Supporting
local growers - a progress report
A key principle of
sustainable agriculture is support of local organic
growers, many of whom are family-owned and operated.
As you probably know if you've read past issues of this
newsletter, Goodness Greeness is a pro-active supporter of
local organic agriculture.
(Note: Our offices
and distribution center are located in Chicago. When
we use the phrase "local agriculture", we are referring to
organic farming operations in Illinois, in nearby states
(Iowa, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin) and the province of
Ontario.)
Since many of you
subscribed to this newsletter at the
FamilyFarmed.org exposition
this past spring, we thought we would give you a progress
report on support of local organic growers and family farms.
We are entering the peak summer season for local growers and
a wonderful variety of summer fruits and vegetables is now
available from these growers.
Local
growers
Goodness Greeness
distributes produce from many local organic growers.
Here's a list of some of these growers (and organized groups
of growers) with their current produce offerings:
FamilyFarmed.org
There is a new and
exciting program, coordinated by this innovative non-profit
organization, that supports family farms growing organic
produce by connecting them with consumers and commercial
buyers. This program consists of a web site, a food
label, and a periodic exposition. Growers join this
program and their produce is labeled for increased
visibility at your market (you can see an example of this
label in the right hand column).
Since this program is
new, there is a limited amount of produce so far with the
FamilyFarmed.org label. Since demand exceeds supply,
what is available sells out almost immediately, so you may
not find this produce at your market.
Goodness Greeness, an
active supporter of FamilyFarmed .org, kicked off the
program by distributing organic potatoes from Igl Farms in
Wisconsin this spring.
It was very successful and we plan to supply their potatoes
again starting in September. We also plan to offer
much more under this program as produce becomes available.
We want to thank all of
you who have purchased organic produce under the
FamilyFarmed.org label. Keep an eye out at your market
- more is coming.
Michigan blueberry growers
Organic blueberries
are in peak supply and flavor right now. They are grown in
Michigan by a number of different family farms. Treat
yourself and your family to this tasty July berry! (Did you
see our recent article on blueberries in Issue # 27 of
Organics for you?)
Amish growers
We have had a long
standing relationship with a number of Amish growers.
Right now, we have a great supply of organic soft squash
(green zucchini, yellow and gold squash and crooknecks) from
Amish growers in Iowa and Indiana. We also are
beginning to offer cucumbers and green peppers
from these talented and reliable growers.
Later this summer, we
will also offer organic produce from Amish growers in
Wisconsin and Ontario.
Organic Valley growers
There are a number of
family farms in Michigan and Wisconsin who sell their
organic produce under the Organic Valley label. We now
have a mix of greens (kale, chard, spinach, arugula,
parsley and cilantro) from these growers.
The Herbal Garden
No discussion of local
growers is complete without a mention of one unique local
grower - The Herbal Garden. They grow fresh organic
culinary herbs, specialty salads and gourmet edible
flowers on their 70 acre facility near Chicago. With
affiliations with organic growers in Mexico, The Herbal
Garden can now provide fresh culinary herbs year round.
You can learn more about
this local grower at their web site (www.theherbalgarden.com).
And more ...
There are many more local
growers that we support - here's a partial list of local
growers whose organic produce is now available:
Tomato Mountain (Wisconsin) - organic shallots
Harmony Valley (Wisconsin) - organic green beans and
yellow wax beans
Avalanche Organics (Wisconsin) - organic heirloom
tomatoes (coming soon)
As the
seasons progress, we'll report on more local growers.
Contact
us
You can find
a rich variety of organic
fruits and vegetables grown by local, family farms and
distributed by Goodness Greeness at your local market.
Email us
at
newsletter@goodnessgreeness.com if you can't find them and we'll help you
locate them. |
