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| Grade A IQF Saskatoon Berries from Blue Sky Farms |
Last week was my first time at the West Michigan Co-op and it was awesome. The day started by weighing, bagging, sealing and labeling Saskatoons. Usually this is a rather quick process for me but this time it was different thanks to the 43 orders I had to fill for the Co-op. After 2 1/2 hours and a few cups of spilled berries I was off with a cooler chock full of fruit and a head full of excitement.
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| Meghan and Mo (Mo is very animated which makes her hard to photograph apparently) |
Once I arrived at the Co-op site in Grand Rapids I met Danielle who is an extremely helpful and friendly volunteer. She gave me a table to use for the night ( note to self: bring your own) and a sign to hang at my booth. From there I set-up my stuff and had a look around. The Co-op uses the
Media Rare building as it headquarters and save a more finished (and heated) office area, the whole thing is essentially a giant warehouse. My booth was next to Mo (Maura) Ennenga of Alaskan Premium Seafoods and she and I chatted while we watched other vendors begin to arrive. Mo gave me the in's and out's of the Co-op process and made me feel at home and comfortable in my new surroundings. She and I talked about the best practices for sealing and transporting frozen goods, the best places to list our businesses, the most effective ways to market and sell our products and a whole lot of personal stuff too. She, my friend Meghan (who came to help me out for the night) and I chatted all night long both amongst ourselves and with all of the members who came to pick up their fruit and their fish.
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| 1lb IQF Saskatoons |
It was a fast paced evening but I was able to steal away for a few minutes to collect my own orders while Meghan (wo)manned the booth. I picked up some nitrate free, hickory smoked bacon and some garlic kielbasa from
Creswick Farms, the best granola I have ever had from
Daily De-Lish, a whole, grass fed chicken from
Grassfield's Cheese, some great fig, spelt bread from
Earthly Kneads and eggs from
Crane Dance Farms. I can't tell you how good it felt to speak face to face with the people responsible for growing and baking all of the food in my basket. Each person was so knowledgeable and friendly and it was apparent after speaking to them that they genuinely love what they do. I can only hope that each person that left my booth that evening felt the same way about me and my project as I did about each of the other vendors.
The end of the night brought any emptied Saskatoon cooler and full appreciation for organizations like the West Michigan Co-op who bring together the best vendors and producers and the people who recognize and desire healthy, clean food and products. I'm really looking forward to next month.....
