The Weblog
This weblog contains LocallyGrown.net news and the weblog entries from all the markets currently using the system.
To visit the authoring market’s website, click on the market name located in the entry’s title.
Green Fork Farmers Market: Weekly product list
Dear Green Fork Farmers Market Customers,
NEW! Green Fork Farm has radishes and eggs available this week. Shiitakes may also be available, but only for a couple more weeks, so get them while you can.
Also available:
Vegetables—Arugula, lettuce, green onions, kale, swiss chard, spinach, turnips, collard greens, pumpkins, and sweet potatoes.
Herbs—Sage and mixed herb bunches.
Mushrooms—Log-grown shiitakes
Meat—Pastured beef, chicken, goat, and lamb.
Fermented foods—Sauerkraut and jalapenos.
Salsa—Made with locally grown and organic ingredients.
Olives and Olive Oil—organic and directly from the grower in California.
Plants and Flowers—Culinary, medicinal, pollinator-friendly, and decorative plants and flowers.
Bath and Beauty—Handmade, all natural soaps.
Place your order from now until Tuesday at noon for pickup on Wednesday from 4-7 pm at Nightbird Books in Fayetteville.
If you aren’t able to place an order, stop by to shop with us on Wednesday. We will have a variety of items for sale from the table.
See you on Wednesday,
Green Fork Farmers Market
Wednesdays 4-7 pm
Indoors, Year Round
At Nightbird Books
205 W. Dickson St.
Fayetteville, AR
To place your order, click on the link below to enter the website. Sign in as a customer, then click on the icon next to each product you wish to order. Proceed to checkout, review the list to make sure it’s correct, then scroll to the bottom and click on Place This Order. Make sure you receive a confirmation email—if you don’t, your order was not processed. Payment is at the market pickup with cash, check, debit/credit card, EBT, and Senior FMNP coupons. Ask about our doubling program for EBT and SFweeMNP!
Athens Locally Grown: ALG Market Open for January 14
Athens Locally Grown
How to contact us:
Our Website: athens.locallygrown.net
On Twitter: @athlocallygrown
On Facebook: www.facebook.com/athenslocallygrown
On Thursdays: Here’s a map.
Market News
I’m devoting the newsletter these first few weeks of the year to documenting in detail just how ALG works. I’ll spend some time next week talking about how growers get allowed in the market, and what standards they have to meet. But this week, I’ll get into the details of how the market sustains itself financially. Many of you ask about that from time to time, and I’m happy to oblige.
First off, we’re legally a sole proprietorship, and the market is owned and operated by me. In years past, it was rolled into my farm, and reported on our Schedule F in addition to our regular tax forms. For now, while my gardens have dwindled, it’s an item on my Schedule A, like many other small home businesses. When the market started in 2002, it was named “Locally Grown Cooperative”, but it was never legally organized as a co-op. Dan & Kris Miller, the founders from Heirloom Organics farm in Watkinsville, were always sure to run things in a cooperative spirit, and since they handed the business to me in 2004 (I’ve sold as a grower since day one), I’ve tried to do the same thing. I’ve since renamed it to “Athens Locally Grown”, but you’ll still hear a number of people refer to us as “the co-op”.
We’re not a non-profit, either, but we’ve structured things so that over time the market can just barely cover its own expenses. Just like all of our member farms are sustainable growers, the market itself needs to be sustainable. So how do we cover its expenses? One small way is through the memberships you pay. The $25 a year you give to the market is enough to cover the costs of having customers: banking fees from depositing your checks, paper and ink for printing, web hosting fees, and that sort of thing. What’s left over goes to helping fund farm tours, food donations to like-minded area groups and events, etc. We currently have 292 paid members out of the 3813 active accounts on the website.
By far the bulk of our funding comes from the growers themselves. They generally pay a 10% commission on their sales through the site. This money covers the many coolers we use, the tables and shelves used to spread out and organize your orders, the truck we bought at the end of 2007, gasoline, the food allowance we offer our volunteers, rent and utilities at Ben’s Bikes, etc. During the slow parts of the year, the sales are usually not enough to cover our weekly costs, but in the busy times (late fall and early spring, for us) there is extra. If we plan things out well, it pretty much all evens out in the end.
Last year, the total sales and memberships combined through the market amounted to $199,240. This is a decline from last year, but the continual rise of so many other markets in the area is the biggest reason for that. We used to be the largest farmers market in this part of the state, but only because the others were so small. Now, not only are there several very large area farmers markets throughout the week, but there are many other locallygrown markets serving customers that used to drive to Athens. About 90% of those sales went straight to our growers, and the rest went to a food allowance for our volunteers ($200 a week), rent ($350/month), web hosting, and transportation. The “profit” gets counted as personal income or loss on my tax forms, and almost always comes out even.
The growers get paid out of the shared cashbox for their previous week’s sales when they drop off their items, during the hour before we open the market. Then, you arrive and pay into the cashbox for your order. We used to then rush to the bank to deposit the money to cover the checks we just wrote to the growers, but now the growers get paid the following week (money you pay via credit cards takes up to a week to reach our account). As explained elsewhere on the website, you are really ordering directly from and paying the growers yourself, but our shared cashbox system makes things convenient for you and them. (Imagine if you ordered from ten growers having to write ten checks when you picked up your items!) This shared cashbox system has so far satisfied the tax man, but it does mean that if you place an order and then never arrive to pick it up, we’re left holding the bag. For that reason, you are responsible for paying for orders not picked up, and that amount is automatically added on to your next order for your convenience. On the books right now (going back to 2007) is about $3887 of produce ordered but never picked up and so far never paid for at all (or picked up but paid for with bad checks). That might seem like a lot (and it is), but considering that the market’s sales total, that’s not so bad. In fact, it’s about a sixth of the US retail industry’s “shrinkage” rate, and almost all of it is owed by only ten people. Only $200 came from this last year. On the flip side, $4149 has been pre-paid into the cash box by people who pay online via credit card or who write large checks in person, and then draw down on that balance over time.
There were 5373 orders placed last year, so that averages to $37.08 spent per order, an increase over last year. There are no good studies on this number, but I’ve seen a few surveys conducted by the USDA indicate that the average customer spends $25 per trip to a farmers market. We continue to far exceed that average, which I think says a lot about the advantages ALG offers over the traditional market. And to your dedication to supporting our growers.
So, in probably far too much detail, that’s how we operate financially. Our market might be more expensive to run than a traditional “booths and tables” farmers market, but that price buys a system that’s simple, time-saving, flexible, and in my opinion, just better. There’s no money in the bank, but the market is paying for itself and that’s my primary financial goal. If you’d like to talk with me in person about this or any other aspects of ALG, I’d love to do so. Just pull me aside when you come by to pick up your order.
Thank you so much for your support of Athens Locally Grown, all of our growers, local food, and our rights to eat it. You all are part of what makes Athens such a great area in which to live. We’ll see you on Thursday at Ben’s Bikes at the corner of Pope and Broad Streets from 4:30 to 8pm!
Other Area Farmers Markets
The Athens Farmers Market has closed for the winter. You can watch for news during the offseason on their website. The other area markets are also all closed for the season, I believe. If you know of any winter markets operating, please let me know. And they might all be closed, but we’ll be here all year round!
All of these other markets are separate from ALG (including the Athens Farmers Market) but many growers sell at multiple markets. Please support your local farmers and food producers, where ever you’re able to do so!
We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!
Duette, FL: New things.
I grew a lot of daikon radish. This day, I had to harvest most of them. They were breaking the pots. They are a large white radish used in sushi, kimchee and other Asian dishes. I thought “what to do” and so, I cut a couple up and boiled them like I would for turnips. What I found was that they were more mild than turnips and delicious. I will try the suggested stir fry. Love, Betty
Fresh Harvest, LLC: Fresh Harvest for January 10th
To Contact Us
Fresh Harvest, LLC
Link to Fresh Harvest
Email us!
Tallahassee May
tally@wildblue.net
JohnDrury
john.drury@att.net
Recipes
Creamed Swiss Chard with Lemony Bread Crumbs
from Bon Appetit
Ingredients
SERVINGS: 4
½ cup torn fresh breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Kosher salt
2 large bunches Swiss chard, ribs and stems cut into 2” lengths, leaves torn into 2” pieces
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium shallots, sliced
Freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 400°. Toss breadcrumbs, oil, and lemon zest on a rimmed baking
sheet; season with salt. Toast, tossing once, until golden brown, 8–10 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook chard leaves in a large pot of boiling salted water until tender,
about 1 minute. Drain; transfer to a bowl of ice water to cool. Drain and squeeze well
in a clean kitchen towel to remove excess moisture.
Heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and chard ribs and
stems, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring often, until tender, 5–8
minutes. Add cream; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring often, until
thickened, about 4 minutes. Add chard leaves and cook, stirring, until warmed
through and coated with cream sauce; season with salt and pepper.
Top Swiss chard with breadcrumbs just before serving.
Market News
Hello!
It is finally feeling like winter! It looks to be a very cold few days ahead. Our vegetable offerings are very slim this week due to the cold temperatures and many of our farmer’s taking a break this month – it being January and all!
However, we still haver a bunch of good cold hardy greens for you all. These fresh vibrant greens will help to keep you healthy this winter, so please do get some for yourself! We hope to have a few more veggies and other surprises to offer in the coming weeks, but please do know this is just a very slow time of year for veggie production, and be patient.
In the meantime, please support our other awesome vendors – locally raised, pastured meats from Bear Creek Farm and Wedge Oak Farm, fresh eggs, and our curated cheese selection from The Bloomy Rind.
Dozen Bakery is off one more week for vacation, but will be back next week!
Thanks so much for all your support, and we look forward to seeing you on Wednesday!
John and Tallahassee
Coming Events
We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!
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Dawson Local Harvest: The Dawson Local Harvest for January
The Local Harvest for January 15th!
Winter Produce and More for the New Year
HI EVERYBODY!
It’s January and the Harvest is featuring cool-weather Vegetables including Cabbage, Kale, and Leeks from LEILANI’S. You’ll also find fresh pasture-fed Beef from FIVE HENS, delicious raw Milk from LITTLE BROWN COW, local Honey from BRADLEY’S, and plenty more. Check out the Market’s menu for this week.
THE MARKET IS NOW OPEN!
REMEMBER! You can order until Tuesday night at 8pm. Pick up your order at Leilani’s Gardens Friday afternoons from 4 to 7pm.
You’ll find the DAWSON LOCAL HARVEST at http://dawsonville.locallygrown.net
We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible! We guarantee your satisfaction with all products in the DAWSON LOCAL HARVEST.
Have a happy and healthy week!
Alan Vining
Market Manager
StPete.LocallyGrown.Net: Market NOW Open - Jan. 11, 2016
To Contact Us
St. Pete Locally Grown
on the web
on facebook
on google
via email
see volunteers on pinterest
see local urban growers on pinterest
Ready To Order?
sign in & shop now
FIRST TIME CUSTOMERS You are invited to watch our Market Tutorial before you begin. If you do not receive an email confirmation immediately after you order, then you did not click the SUBMIT ORDER button and we did not receive an order from you. Call your Market Manager for help.
So “WHAT’S NEW?” POTLUCK SOCIALS EVOLVING
Active members of our Market have been enjoying monthly potluck socials for several years now and benefitting from networking with like-minded folks. This year we hope to change up the event a bit and we are open to your suggestions. So far we’ve come up with meeting in a local park on the water, meeting at someone else’s home instead of ours, and even changing up the time of day so that perhaps more people will participate, including children. January’s potluck will be in our backyard and February’s location is almost determined. Wondering if any of our Growers, Customers or Volunteers would like to host our potluck social at their propery or garden? Please let me know and we’ll get together to discuss. For Growers, this would be a great opportunity to attract volunteers you might be needing and customers will get a firsthand look at your beautiful produce!
Message from Your Market Manager
Beef & Pork Updates
This is the last week to order beef for delivery the week of Jan. 25th. Beef ordered this week will appear on your invoice and be PRE-paid with the rest of your weekly order. Ground beef is the only beef that will be delivered to you this coming week. Cuts to prepay include stew meat, London broil, liver, chuck roast, delmonico steak, flatiron steaks, rib steaks, NY strip steaks, meaty soup bones, and short ribs. All pricing and weights listed are approximate and based on history of what we have purchased before from Lake Kersey Farms. Your final price will be adjusted (up or down) for actual weight prior to delivery and charged/credited to your account. If you’ve not cooked grassfed, grass finished beef before then you should know that this beef is as fat-free as a white chicken breast so it cannot be cooked like conventional beef. I tend to use my crockpot as it never fails to produce a tasty and tender result but many people have success cooking it otherwise. Please visit our Q&A page to get info and recipes on cooking this healthier choice of beef.
Please pre-order your pork THIS WEEK so we can meet our $300 minimum purchase requirement and get you all some discounted pricing. We now have a full range of USDA inspected pork cuts available from pastured pigs, frozen and vaccuum packed, including pork loin, bone-in pork chops, Boston butt roast, picnic or shoulder roast, fresh ham roast, and ribs, with all hogs raised by Low Hills Cattle Company. This new “grower” also provides us with amazing UNCOOKED pork sausages that are MSG and nitrate-free with all natural ingredients. These are made at Geier’s Sausage Kitchen in Sarasota, Fl. (and don’t count towards the minimum purchase.) Pork cuts are PRE-paid just like the beef. THERE IS A CAVEAT: I won’t purchase until enough customers have ordered. Without enough response by mid-January, I was planning to refund any collected prepaid amounts and cancel the orders from this Grower. BEFORE I DO THAT, I will contact everyone who ordered and see if they are willing to wait any longer for their pork.
Fab News on our Market’s Raw Dairy Products
Pam Lunn of The Dancing Goat & distributor for JTB Jersey Farm of Duette, Fl announces that all of the raw COW milk products coming from JTB are now totally NON GMO Grass based. Not only that but JTB has expanded their herd and the abundance of product has already improved! Now there is more for our SPLG customers and over time the volume should continue to grow. If you’ve been missing out on these raw cow products, do try them now.
Plants Galore on Our Market
In case you haven’t noticed, our Market has expanded its realm to selling a pretty impressive collection of over 20 different locally grown plants. Mrs. Chippy’s Plant World has taken the lead in plant sales and you’ll want to investigate what kind of edible exotic abundance that her fruit, herbs, and flowers can bring to your homestead. Debra’s passionate dedication, her membership in the Tampa Bay Rare Fruit Council, and contacts with the University of Florida Extension Service in Pinellas County contribute to her success, especially with exotic plants. SPLG is SO grateful she has found us to distribute her fabulous fare! You can easily find her plants under the "P"s on our Market page and don’t miss her Pomegranite and Surinam Cherry trees under the "T"s.
Abundant Veggies This Week & Why You Need Them
- The health benefits of Bok Choy aka Pak Choi are many! Loaded with antioxidants and contributing to strong bones are just a few of it’s benefits. What Are the Health Benefits of Bok Choy covers it all AND links to a low carb recipe too.
- “Did you know that the different parts of the broccoli plant each make their own unique contribution to its overall nutritional value?” “The surprising health benefits of broccoli leaves” contends that “the leaves actually are a richer source of beta-carotene than either the stems or florets.”
- According to Health Properties of Tomatoes “Tomatoes contain all four major carotenoids: alpha- and beta-carotene, lutein, and lycopene. These carotenoids may have individual benefits, but also have synergy as a group (that is, they interact to provide health benefits)…” and there are so many ways to enjoy them!
- There is lots of fiber in starfruit, better known as carambola. 7 Health Benefits of Starfruit offers insight into its uses for weightloss and digestive balance, among other things.
SPLG’S FRUIT BASKET
Calamondin (aka sour oranges), starfruit aka carambolas, papayas (ripe & green!), and Miracle Fruit (great for chemo patients) —all locally grown in St. Pete. Non-local: Braeburn apples from Washington State.
ECONOMY SIZED PACKAGING
FRESH picked greens in abundance this week: arugula, bok choy, broccoli greens, Lacinato kale, collard greens, turmeric, and Swiss chard. Tis the season to be green. Take advantage while the weather allows us these treasures!
ON SALE THIS WEEK
Local honey, scallops, coconut infused balsalmic vinegar, smoked Alaskan Sockeye Salmon, turmeric.
PURCHASE DEADLINE 8PM TONIGHT for Geraldson Community Farm
After 8pm, you will find that only the NOT-SOLD-OUT items are still available. You will still be able to shop all other Growers until Market closes Wednesday 8am.
KITCHEN GARDEN INTERNATIONAL
A critical part of KGI’s work is educating people about the positive role kitchen gardens are playing and will play in the future. This TED talk entitled “A subversive plot: how to grow a revolution in your own backyard” presents good reasons to join the “conspiracy”.
MARKET MEMBERSHIP FEE is $60 when paid in January
If you have never ordered from us, you should know that the membership fee doesn’t get charged until your SECOND order. Our Market Season fee started at $80 in November and each month it decreases by $10. Our Market Season lasts until the end of June.
MARKET MANAGER NEEDS ADMIN HELP WEDNESDAY 8AM – 10AM
Please call Tina at 727-515-9469 to get on the schedule for this Wednesday or an upcoming Wednesday. Your shift will be about 2 hours long. You will print reports and attend to customer orders. Computer literacy preferred.
Upcoming Events
All these and more are posted on our Calendar of Events
WORKSHOPS & EVENTS
- *"Monthly Potluck Social" for January 23rd is scheduled and Evites have been sent out to all qualifying Market members. Hope to see you!
We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!
The Wednesday Market: Time to Order
Hello, all! We hope you are snug and happy somewhere warm on this raw day. Is it just me, or does it feel like it might snow? My handy dandy weather station reports that it is 44 degrees outside, with 65 percent relative humidity. So, no, it’s not going to snow anytime soon.
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. Check the website for all of this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
My son Stephen, who is a 7th grader at Pike Middle School, has Agriculture as his elective for the next 9 weeks or so. His plan is to fix up and replant the garden plot he established in September 2014 during his first agriculture project. He is looking forward to the process, and we are hoping to learn with him. As the project progresses, I’ll share photos and news of Stephen’s efforts.
Thank you for supporting locally grown agriculture and for choosing to purchase locally.
Have a great week, and we’ll see you Wednesday!
Thanks,
Beverly
Russellville Community Market: RCM Opening Bell
Hey everyone, and welcome to a new market week!
Be sure to check out the newly listed items this week! Lots of great, local products to be had!
Happy shopping! Eat Local!
Check out the “Featured Items” section as well as the “What’s New” section at the top of the market page for all the latest products available.
Be sure to “Like” our Facebook page for updates and food-related events in your community!
To ensure your order is placed, make sure you click the “Place My Order” button once you have completed your shopping. Remember, you have until 10:00pm Tuesday evening to place your orders.
Happy Shopping! See you on Thursday!
FRESH.LOCAL.ONLINE.
Fountain Fresh Dairy LLC: Tomorrow
Hello everyone,
Due to the cold weather, we will not be having pickup tomorrow evening (Monday the 11th). Stay warm!
Suwanee Whole Life Co-op: Reminder: Place your co-op before 6pm today!
