new GM 13 - Port Townsend Food Co-op

THE CO-OP COMMONS
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Love, so much more than just February 14th
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Newsletter of The Food Co-op in Port Townsend
read us online www.foodcoop.coop
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January/February 2011
printed in Port Angeles on recycled paper
J.C. School
Gardens
6
Program
Needs Our
3 Community
owner
Support!
discounts
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talk to us on facebook
new
GM
5
candice cosler
JC School Garden Coordinator
JC Farm to School Coalition Member
sleep
13
what’s a
QR?
Betsy Hart’s 5th/6th grade Quilcene class grinds wheat on
the Finnriver Farm bicycle grinder to make flour for pizza
7
Do you value children learning about nutrition, learning where their
food comes from and how to grow food, learning to prepare healthy
dishes from the garden, making healthy food choices and improving
the quality of food served in school meals? If so, we need your help!
schedule
19
CO-OP
CLASS
Michele Moriarty’s 2nd/3rd grade Quilcene class
threshes wheat to remove the grain from the chaff
With childhood obesity and diabetes at epidemic levels, teaching
kids these important lessons at an early age in a fun-filled “handson” environment can help shape healthy eating habits for a lifetime,
thereby reducing diet-related illnesses.
continued on page 2
cover cont. . .
THE CO-OP COMMONS
a bi-monthly newsletter of
The FOOD CO-OP
PORT TOWNSEND
In Jefferson County, over
500 students participate in
the wildly popular School
Garden and Compost Program
created by the Jefferson County
Department of Public Works
and partially funded with a grant
from the Department of Ecology.
Grant funding ended in 2010 and
financial and volunteer support is
critical to the continuation of this
program.
established 1972
www.foodcoop.coop
414 Kearney St.
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Store 360-385-2883
OPEN DAILY
Mon-Sat 8 am - 9 pm
Sun 9 am - 8 pm
Every student at Grant Street School in
Port Townsend and at Quilcene School
(grades K-7) are involved (plus some high
school students). Both schools have seen
tremendous value in the program. Quilcene
science scores doubled last year, which
impressed the Quilcene School Board, who
voted unanimously to assist with funding
through the 2010-2011 school year.
MISSION STATEMENT
Seeking to uphold the health
of our community and world,
The Food Co-op,
a consumer cooperative,
serves our membership by making
available reasonably priced whole
foods and other basic goods
and resources by means
of our life affirming
democratic organization.
Quilcene Superintendent David Andersen is
thrilled with the results. He believes the school
garden program has an impact on school
science scores and helps kids make healthier
food choices. “We have garden produce going
from our little garden to the cafeteria,” says
Anderson, “so the kids see the fruition when
it’s served in the lunch room. And we get to
promote better and healthier food for the kids.”
PRINCIPLES
1. Voluntary & Open Membership
2. Democratic Member Control
3. Member Economic Participation
4. Autonomy & Independence
5. Education, Training & Information
6. Cooperation Among Co-ops
7. Concern for Community
MEMBER-OWNED
no annual fees
one time $5.00
$2 payments
every month you shop
until $100 capital
investment achieved,
a paid-in-full membership!
memberservices@
ptfoodcoop.coop
Last fall, students studied the cycle of wheat
from farm to belly. With School Garden
program assistant Elise Heikkinen, we
harvested wheat from the Dry Land Farm
Project in Port Townsend. Students observed
wheat they had grown in the school garden
and learned how wind disperses pollen from
flower to flower. They threshed wheat by
hand to remove the seed. Ancient methods
of winnowing were demonstrated then
students cradled grain in their hands to
lightly blow the fluffy chaff away.
EDITORIAL COMMITTEE:
Brwyn Griffin, Editor
Deborah Schumacher, Copy Editor
Mindy Dwyer, Graphic Artist
[email protected]
SUBMISSIONS
of interest to the community
are gladly accepted.
Please drop off articles for
consideration at the Co-op
c/o The Co-op Commons.
Include your contact information.
Submissions may be edited
for length or content.
[email protected]
Laughter and excitement filled the air the
following week as students anxiously
awaited their turn on the bicyclepowered grinder from Finnriver
Farm. Students worked up a sweat as
they ground wheat into flour. They
saw the germ and bran in the flour
and learned why whole-wheat
flour is more nutritious. They
learned wheat originated in
the Fertile Crescent and has
been cultivated for over
10,000 years!
The CO-OP COMMONS
is printed in Port Angeles
using recycled paper
and vegetable-based inks.
Opinions expressed in this
newsletter are the writer’s own
and do not necessarily
reflect Co-op policy or
good consumer practice.
The following week students savored
the fruition of their labor. At Grant
Street School, parent volunteers baked
whole-wheat zucchini muffins using
student-ground flour and zucchini from
the school garden.
In Quilcene, Dented Buoy Pizza chefs
brought their wood-fired pizza oven to
school for pizza day! Students rolled out
pizza crusts from flour they had ground.
They topped their pizzas with freshly
picked tomatoes from the garden, pesto
from school-grown garlic and cheese
from Mt. Townsend Creamery. The
gourmet pizzas were then devoured in
the lush school garden.
The program now is part of the Jefferson
County Farm-to-School Coalition, a
non-profit organization, which offers
assistance to the school garden and
compost program and whose mission is
to improve the nutritional value of food
served in Jefferson County schools. The
organization currently has two matching
challenge pledges from philanthropic
community members, one for $1,500
and one for $3,000, to help support the
school garden program. Matches from
individuals, families, organizations,
businesses or any combination will offer
substantial support. To find out how you
can help and to learn more about the
organization go to jcfarm2school.org
$1
$5
The Food Co-op
is currently
raising funds
for the School
Gardens Project.
Make a donation
at any register
and let’s meet
the challenge
pledge of $3,000!
photos by Norma Bridges
“Love is like pi - natural, irrational, and very important.” - Lisa Hoffman
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
2
January/February 2011
from the manager
Looking
Back,
Looking
Forward
What’s
the
Deal with
Co+Op
Deals?
Deb shortess, Acting GM
We have the opportunity, as we prepare our
budget each year, to reflect on and celebrate our
successes, big and small alike. Our local vendor
relationships come to mind right away. Between
October 2009 and September 2010, we purchased
items from over 120 local farmers and producers.
Our local purchases increased at the same rate as
our total purchases. A highlight for me was having
consistent sources of local grains, fresh-ground
flour from those grains, and having bread, pasta
and deli salads prepared with local flour and grains
(until the crops failed for the 2010 harvest).
Our local partnerships are key as we work to
strengthen our foodshed. We have supported
field trial research by Organic Seed Alliance
(OSA) for two years. During 2010 we purchased
fall vegetables grown from 2009 field trial seeds
to determine varieties suited for cold season
extension. Local schools are focusing on “harvest
of the month” as a theme for local food in the
schools. In order to support the success of this
program, we have offered produce storage and
processing at the Co-op, as needed.
Late in 2010, after being without a recycling option
for over a year, we discovered a plastics-and-more
recycling facility here on the peninsula (Blyn).
We are glad to be working with a new recycling
vendor and will be looking for other recycling
opportunities with them. At our last annual
meeting, I announced that we would soon be able
to celebrate that we no longer use styrofoam trays
for our packaged meats. The availability of bagasse
fiber trays has been sporadic; we expect that this
year we will have a consistent supply
of the fiber trays to replace styrofoam.
In the New Year, staff will continue its
internal focus on safety, productivity,
efficiency, and awareness of loss. We
recently installed mats in our walk-in
freezer to minimize slippery floors.
We are more efficient in our ordering
for wellness and grocery using our
Scan Genius system—the time we
save in ordering we’re able to use as
time for customer service. During a
power outage in November that lasted
several hours, we were able to utilize
our “turkey truck” as refrigeration,
preventing several thousand dollars of
loss.
In September 2010 the Co+op Deals logo replaced the Coop Advantage promotional logo. Beginning this month,
you will see not only biweekly Co+op Deals flyers, but also
biweekly promotional periods, running Wednesday through
Tuesday. (There will be a few three week promotional periods
throughout the year.) Each of the Co+op Deals flyers is smaller
than the monthly Co-op Advantage flyer was, however there
will be about 15% more items promoted each month through
Co+op Deals. You can still pick up a current flyer at the north
entrance of the store.
What will you see on the shelf? Every sale sign has the last day
of the sale printed on the tag. If you look at the shelf during
January, you will see several different sale end dates, 1/11,
1/25 and 2/1. There are three different end dates because
Co+op Deals and our other UNFI promotional periods don’t
coincide. Plan your shopping accordingly. We will be building
our new endcap displays on Thursdays to accommodate the
changes.
We also look ahead to the coming year to
assess where we focus our work towards
What about getting the sale price on your Special Orders?
future success. From a staff perspective,
Check the end date on the sale tag of the item you wish
we are anticipating the arrival of our new
to order and place your order no later than Monday at
General Manager, Kenna Eaton (see letter
9 pm the day before the sale end date. For example, if
from Kenna on page 6). We are also looking
the sale tag shows 1/11 as the end date, place your
forward to our kitchen addition/remodel.
order no later than 9 pm on Monday, January 10.
There are several community projects we
hope to be a part of, such as a milling/storage
facility for local grains and a local facility
for food processing and storage. We want to
continue to support the programs mentioned
above and work together with our local partners.
Will we have time to celebrate our successes along
the way? You bet!
“Your task is not to seek love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself
that you have built against it.” - Rumi
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
3
January/February 2011
Calendar
from the board
Jan 4*
Board of Directors
Meeting
Jan 12
Product Research
Committee
3:00 pm
The Long Road
JANET WELCH, Board Vice President
Feb 1*
Board of Directors
Meeting
Feb 9
Product Research
Committee
3:00 pm
All meetings are held in
the Co-op Annex at 2482
Washington Street unless
otherwise noted.
Committee meeting
dates/times are posted on
our website.
*Check the Board’s board
in the store or our website
at www.foodcoop.coop for
Board meeting time.
At its December meeting, The Food Co-op Board of Directors
was very pleased to announce its hiring of Kenna Eaton as our
new General Manager (GM).
The road to hiring Kenna has been a long one.
Briar Kolp, who served as our GM for 12 years, went on
medical leave in November 2009. Hoping that Briar would
be able to return to her position, the Board assigned an
interim management team consisting of store managers Deb
Shortess, Marcia Atwood, and Victoria Wideman to assume
her duties while continuing in each of their positions. (Hats
off to all three of them for their incredible ability to run the
store without a hitch!) Briar formally resigned in August 2010
when it became apparent that she was not able to return to her
position.
The GM is the sole employee of the Board (the rest of staff
answers to the GM) and, therefore, the Board holds the
sole responsibility of finding and hiring the new GM. With
guidance from a document produced by Carolee Colter
called Hiring a General Manager, the Board first convened a
Search Committee. Board President and Vice President, Sam
Gibboney and Janet Welch, respectively, and Board member
Rick Sepler served on the committee, along with Wellness
Manager Jan Tobin. (Managers who report directly to the GM
were ineligible to serve on the committee.)
The Search Committee drafted a procedure and a budget
for the search process and presented it to the Board for
approval. With that approval, the Search Committee rolled up
its sleeves and got to work. It queried each Board member
and all Managers on two sets of criteria that each person
would consider “required.” The “hard” criteria included
experience in supervising managers (topping the list in both
sets of responses), types of grocery experience (broken down
by retail, cooperative, or natural foods industries), strategic
planning experience, financial skills, and experience working
with a Board of Directors. “Soft” criteria included ethics (also
at the top of the list in both sets of responses), team building
ability, ability to listen, and ability to articulate a vision and
get buy-in. There was a near perfect overlap in the criteria
sought by the Board and the Managers. Phew, we were on the
same page!
At the time that we were recruiting for applicants, a number of
GM positions at other co-ops around the country were open.
Our co-op, at over $10 million in annual sales, is one of the
larger organizations and one that is well known across the
country. We were confident that we could recruit for applicants
with strong co-op management skills and also knew that the
community of Port Townsend would help “sell” the position.
The job announcements set a very high bar for qualification.
At the Search Committee’s recommendation, the Board
advanced five of the eight applicants for an initial screening
interview with Carolee Colter. Carolee used the criteria we
provided to make an initial determination as to which of the
applicants met the minimum criteria. The Search Committee
conducted phone interviews with three of those candidates and
ultimately recommended to the Board that three finalists come
for in-person interviews.
The day before the interviews, one of the finalists advised
the Board that she had accepted a position with another coop. The remaining two finalists came to Port Townsend for a
full weekend of interviews, interactive events, and tours. Each
of them withstood a barrage of interviews: an open interview
with the Board and membership, a closed interview with the
Board, and a meeting with the 11-person management team.
The feedback to the Board from the managers’ meeting,
member surveys, and the Board itself aligned almost perfectly.
Whew!! There was tremendous agreement that Kenna had not
only ample skills to do the job, but that she was the perfect “fit”
for our organization. On her side, she had made it very clear
that The Food Co-op and the community of Port Townsend
were the perfect “fit” for her (and husband Tim). It is hard
to say who was more thrilled with the hire, the Board, the
Managers, the membership, or Kenna!
Welcome Kenna and Tim!
“We can only learn to love by loving.” - Iris Murdoch
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
4
January/February 2011
outreach news
Owners Manual
2011 Event Dates and Parking
Have all of you picked up your Food Co-op
Owners Manual yet? We’ve put into one
booklet a description of the benefits and
responsibilities of ownership. This is a
first printing, so your feedback is greatly
appreciated. Owners Manuals are available at
all registers in the store.
Welcome Kenna!
We have set two Member Appreciation Days for 2011: April 14
and October 20. Mark your calendar and PLEASE do not park
in Penny Saver’s parking lot. They need their parking spaces for
their customers! For festival Sundays, you can park at Kinetic
Koffee and at Chase Bank: Kids Festival, April 17; Apple Festival,
October 16. Please do not park in the Penny Saver parking lot
unless you are shopping at Penny Saver. Thanks for helping us
keep good neighborly relations.
CO-OP
CLASS
A few details that aren’t mentioned about
Kenna in the other articles about our new
GM: Kenna Eaton was born in England
and raised in Delaware; she holds a degree
in horticulture from the University of
Delaware; she married Tim, a nurseryman,
in 1983; they have two kids, Caitlin, 23,
who is studying nursing at Lewis/Clark State
College in Lewiston, Idaho and Robinson, 25, who is working
for Apple in Portland while studying marketing at Portland State
University. We are so grateful to our Board for engaging in an
extensive search process and hiring such a talented and personable
GM.
Co-op Classes
Co-op Classes are open to all and owners get a discount.
The Natural Foods Classes are free. Our pool of teachers
is growing and the topics of Co-op classes are broadening.
We’re printing a new Winter/Spring Co-op Class Calendar
available soon at the Member Services Desk.
CO2 & You
In December we sold over 30 Northwest Neutral carbon offset
certificates. These certificates help sustain a program whereby
locally owned forest lands are preserved from development for
100 years. For more informaiton, please stop by the Member
Services Desk.
February
Free Fish & Farmshare
Cape Cleare and Nash’s Organics
will return again in January to
sell product outside on Saturdays
beginning January 1 with Nash’s
and January 8 with both vendors.
Farm to School Coalition/School Gardens Project
Matching Grant Challenge
The Farm to School Coalition has taken on fundraising to fill
the void of the lost grant monies supporting the School Gardens
project. It is recognized that making the connection to healthy
foods through having the opportunity to work growing, preparing
and eating foods is essential to the success of the Farm to School
program. The Food Co-op is actively participating through the sales
of felt ornaments and cards made by the Grant Street Elementary
students and through a matching grant challenge.
Shoppers can pick an apple off the tree at the north
entrance, take it to the register and donate any amount.
Our goal is to raise $3,000 from Co-op shoppers, which
will then be matched by a private donor.
Co-op Owner Discounts
at Key City Fish & Fair Winds Winery
$5
Just a reminder, show your Food Co-op ownership card at either
of these local businesses and pay by cash or check to receive a
discount. Do you know a local business that may want to offer
a discount to Food Co-op owners? Have them call Outreach at
385-2831 x308!
“Love life and life will love you back. Love people and they will love you back.” -Arthur Rubinstein
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
5
January/February 2011
outreach
WELCOME KENNA!
At its December meeting, the Board
announced the hiring of Kenna Eaton
to the position of General Manager.
Kenna will begin full-time in March.
She plans to be in the store working for
a week beginning January 4, so stop by
and join us in welcoming Kenna to
The Food Co-op!
PORT TOWNSEND’S FOOD CO-OP
a poem by Christine Swanberg
A sense of intention permeates the aisles,
a supposition turned into a reality,
a trend transformed into a staple.
Here staples do not clamor for attention,
but in their lovely, still bins beckon
an invitation to health.
Here simplicity is elegant,
and a quiet, post-consumer joy
whispers, “It’s time. It’s time.”
Dear co-op community,
in Por t
to work for The Food Co-op
I am really excited to come
nity
mu
e Food Co-op and the com
Townsend. I have visited Th
would
years and always thought it
many times over the past 30
be a great place to live.
is the only
e right off the top that this
I think it’s impor tant to not
e being the
a great job in Moscow. I lov
position I applied for. I have
closing
d Co-op. However, with the
GM of a thriving, robust foo
g home,
vin
lea
s
s summer and the kid
of my husband’s nursery thi
at an
Wh
en this position opened up.
it seemed like serendipity wh
the
to
l dreams at once: living closer
opportunity to realize severa
at an
in Por tland and still working
son
my
to
ser
clo
ng
livi
,
water
s footsteps
d to try and follow in Briar’
awesome Co-op. I am excite
same time
realize its mission and at the
in helping The Food Co-op
y.
help grow the local econom
to several
in November I was treated
During my most recent visit
has a
op
s the store. I think the Cotours, the first of which wa
storethe landscaping around the
charming exterior and love
I look
and about, the gardens and
-somebody really cares for,
s really
wa
I
ide
warmer weather! Ins
for ward to enjoying them in
ally
eci
esp
ising and the use of space,
impressed by the merchand
can also
h a small space. However, I
how well everyone fit into suc
entory
llenges in both managing inv
see that it presents many cha
ether
tog
out
g
we’ll have fun figurin
and managing staff. I think
ryone
eve
for
more effective and useful
how best to make the store
this year.
sed
erful farm tour and we discus
Brendon took me on a wond
rs,
we
ble, affordable land for gro
the challenges of finding ara
orks
t, and projects of the Landw
for getting product to marke
degree
in growing plants (I have a
st
ere
int
my
th
Wi
e.
tiv
ora
Collab
I
planned to be a farmer until
in Horticulture and originally
d food,
goo
for
rk was) and my passion
discovered how hard the wo
g
pin the
ow in Briar’s footsteps in hel
I am excited to try and foll
p grow the
n and at the same time hel
ssio
mi
its
lize
rea
op
Cod
Foo
local economy.
ition and
ited to be chosen for this pos
Again I am honored and exc
rking in your community.
look for ward to living and wo
Kenna
It’s time to care where food comes from,
who processed it, how, and why;
time to measure what we take from this earth.
Here food is science, art, and spirit:
Port Townsend Bay Organic Coffee,
smooth blend to start your day with a purr,
red dried apricots to keep the engine running
smooth;
crunchy trail mix to sustain the engine.
So many raw, virginal foods to keep it revved!
This is a place that returns to a gusty palette
of dark, delicious strong cheese,
a cornucopia of untainted vegetables,
a grinder for fresh cashew or almond butter,
a juice bar where a burst of sun and ginger
keeps the pipes rolling like STP.
A meal here has a different kind of class:
honey-roasted golden beets with a little crunch,
purple, orange and green garbanzo salads.
People arrive on bikes and with dogs
in patriotic bandanas who wait
as they shop carefully for clove shampoo,
toothpaste free of toxins and full of herbs,
talking to friends in aisles, in
a post-consumer community, where everyone
knows that having too much
no longer defines success, and happiness
shines in the sheer harmony of living well.
Christine Swanberg lives in North Central Illinois
and recently visited our co-op. Read more about
Christine on our website at www.foodcoop.coop
(go to the Co-op Reading Room in the Education
section).
“Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you really love.“ - Rumi
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
6
January/February 2011
co-op digital worlds
QR CODES:
Stay
Connected!
www.foo
dcoop.coo
p
Bridge Between Physical
& Digital Worlds
www.facebook.com/TheFoodCoop
JACK OLMSTEAD, Food Co-op Owner
@ptfoodcoop
join our
e-mail list
memberservices@
ptfoodcoop.coop
ers at t
b
m
e
m
ard
.ne
emailbbooard@olympus
coop
Member
Response
Cards
Do you have something you want to tell
us? Would you like us to carry a product or
did you have an experience that gave you
a good idea you’d like to share? We read
every Member Response Card our owners
fill out, and have a better store all around
because of the owners who take the time
to give us feedback.
Hearty
Thank You
Nomination
Forms
If you observed an employee of The Food
Co-op involved in something you really
appreciated, we encourage you to fill out
a Hearty Thank You form. Each month the
forms are reviewed by a committee and
the winner of the Hearty Thank You award
receives a choice of $125 or a paid day off.
In Japan, fresh produce is labeled with QR
(Quick Response) Codes that customers scan
with their camera phones. Shoppers can quickly
learn about the farm, how the produce was
grown, soil conditioners added; they can access
the farm’s website and see images of the farmer
and his family. Individuals interested in knowing
how their food was grown and who their money
is supporting can easily find out during their
shopping experience.
Port Townsend, the “Way Finding Project” will be
expanded in the summer of 2012. “The primary
purpose of the project,” states Christina Pivarnik,
Port Townsend’s Marketing Director, “is to help
residents and visitors alike seamlessly navigate
their way around and through Port Townsend by
increasing the ‘legibility’ of the environment.”
The Food Co-op received international attention
in August 2010 by launching the first QR Code
video
shelf-talker
pilot
If it’s important to support
program in the country with
family farms instead of a mass
Mt. Townsend Creamery. In
download free apps
corporate culture, then QR
September 2010, the Dave’s
to read QR codes:
Codes are transparency tickets
Killer Bread QR Code shelfthat will help you achieve this
talker at The Food Co-op began
smart phones
goal.
to change every Wednesday.
http://get.beetagg.com The link has gone to discount
QR codes originated in Japan
coupons, downloadable radio
in the mid-1990s. Toyota
interviews, articles, customer
PC or Mac computer
subsidiary
Denso-Wave
video about the ex-con
http://www.quickmark. videos,
developed the technology
founder Dave Dahl, recipes,
com.tw/En/basic/
to track parts in vehicle
social media sites, and an
downloadPC.asp
manufacturing. Denso-Wave
online brochure on nutrition
owns the patent rights but has
facts and ingredients. The Cochosen not to exercise them.
op’s QR Code pilot program
QR Codes are “open source” and free to use. was expanded to include changeable shelf-talkers
(Source: Wikipedia)
in the front of the store featuring video interviews
with several Board of Directors.
In June 2009, the City of Port Townsend and the
P.T. Chamber of Commerce launched the “Way QR Codes can only be accessed through
Finding Project.” QR Codes were created for smartphones like the iPhone, Blackberry or Google
several local businesses (Elevated Ice Cream, The Droid. PCs with webcams can also be used to scan
Upstage, Sirens), City Hall, the Port Townsend QR Codes. New information about The Food CoLibrary and the Chamber of Commerce. With a op’s QR Code pilot program and a discussion
$200,000 grant from the Department of Interior’s about this article is posted on our Facebook Wall
National Park Service through Preserve America at facebook.com/TheFoodCoop.
and $412,566 matching funds from the City of
“Love cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living
every minute with love, grace and gratitude.” - Denis Waitley
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
7
January/February 2011
eatin’ with the season
BASIC
VEGETABLE
STOCK
Keep a bowl for
vegetable trimmings
from carrots, celery,
onions, leeks, garlic,
and parsley in your
refrigerator to prepare a
less structured stock.
¼ ounce olive oil
½ pound onions, coarsely
chopped
¼ ounce garlic, chopped
2 ounces leeks
4 ½ quarts cold water
¼ pound celery, coarsely
chopped
4 ounces mushrooms,
sliced
1 ounce fennel, sliced
Sweat the onions,
garlic and leeks in olive
oil before adding the
remaining ingredients.
Cook the stock 30-45
minutes uncovered. Let
sit overnight, if possible,
so the flavors can meld.
Strain out vegetables
and refrigerate or freeze
for future use.
Yield: about 1 gallon
From The Outpost Natural
Foods newsletter The
Exchange (January 2009)
Produce
REPORT
BRENDON O’SHEA, Produce Buyer
JANUARY & FEBRUARY
LOCALLY:
We will continue to offer Dharma Ridge Yukon Gold Potatoes from
storage and fresh-dug carrots as supplies last. Winter speaks ROOTS
ROOTS ROOTS to me . . . beets, turnips, parsnips, and Nash’s Best
5# Bagged Carrots will be going strong through February. The early
cold snap we experienced in November really brought the local
offerings to a minimum. So, please check out our produce racks
daily for local items being offered in small quantities. Also, look for
locally adapted seeds from Tessa Gowans at Seed Dreams starting in
mid- to late-January. NEW to the selection are a few seed offerings
from Steve Habersetzer from OatsPlanter Farm. All of Steve’s seeds
are grown and bred by Steve himself.
TRANSITION TIME:
Most vegetable growing has migrated to the warmer and sunnier
climates of Mexico. We will source regionally and from California
as often and when we can.
CITRUS:
Winter months bring wet, windy and cold temperatures (along with
“colds” themselves!), so why not implement a Vitamin C program
into your daily routine? Orange, tangerine & grapefruit juices are
loaded with vitamin C, so juice 1 or 2 or 3 today! This season’s
supply of Satsuma mandarins from Johansen Ranch (Orland, CA)
looks to be plentiful and all fruit is sizing on the large size. Meyer
lemons, Clementines, Navel oranges and Blood oranges round out
the offerings from Johansen and will be available as long as supplies
last.
South Texas Organics brings us sweet and juicy Rio Star Grapefruit
along with the Honeygold grapefruit. Honeygold is a natural mutation
of White grapefruit, the first commercial variety, from which Pink,
Marsh White, and Marsh Pink were developed. The Honeygolds at
South Texas Organics were planted a half-century ago. Honeygolds,
typically available from late February through mid-April, has
a golden yellow exterior that is beautifully complimented with a
sweet honey-like interior, both in color and in flavor. Ask a produce
teammate for a sample. This is my favorite variety of grapefruit,
hands down!
Read more about South Texas Organics on our website at www.
foodcoop.coop (go to the Produce page in the Products section
for a link.)
HARVEST
DINNER
POTATO TART
Ingredients:
1 lb. chanterelle mushrooms
(or if chanterelle season has passed, try Moonhill Mushroom shiitakes)
1 lb. onions and 1-2 leeks, all chopped fine
1 lb. potatoes
(Yukon golds from Colinwood, or other starchy substitute. Mandolin slicer works well for this if you have one.)
2 eggs
¼ cup cream
Fromage blanc
(From Mt. Townsend Creamery, or use any local chevre. Used to top tart—be as generous or sparing as you like.)
Butter (for sautéing and for buttering pie pan)
Lemon juice (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400º
• Dry sauté mushrooms with salt to taste
until liquids are released and mushrooms
are cooked till dry. Add a little bit of butter
and a bit of lemon juice (lemon juice
optional).
• Sauté 1 pound onions and 1-2 leeks (white
part only) in butter with salt & pepper until
cooked.
• Thinly slice potatoes and lay into a pie
plate brushed with melted butter. Overlap
the potatoes along the side and then thickly
through the curve of the plate and the
bottom to provide a nice support for the
filling.
• Layer with onions and leeks on top of
potatoes.
• Layer ½ the mushrooms over onions and
leeks.
• Beat eggs, cream and a pinch of salt &
pepper together and pour over all.
• Cover with remaining mushrooms and dot
with fromage blanc.
• Bake at 400º till set in middle, approx. 25
minutes.
This recipe was prepared by Beth Johnson of In
Season Catering at the 2010 Farmers Market
Harvest Dinner. Borrowed with permission
from Beth and Will. For ease of preparation,
some changes were made to Will’s recipe
narrative.
“The good life is inspired by love and guided by knowledge.” - Bertrand Russell
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
8
January/February 2011
eatin’ with the season
What’s in
IN THE HEART OF WINTER:
Season Beans
Winter focus on
storage foods
like onions,
potatoes, garlic,
winter squash,
roots &
hardy greens.
beets,
Brussels
sprouts,
burdock
root,
cabbage,
carrots,
collard
greens,
kale,
Jerusalem
artichokes,
leeks,
mushrooms,
rutabaga,
shallots
Deborah Schumacher, Staff Writer
If you’re eating with the season this winter you’ll likely be relying on what you put by
last harvest and you might be storing some of last season’s winter squash, potatoes, and
onions. Maybe you bulked up during last September’s Emergency Preparedness and still
have some cans of tomatoes or a bucket of grains or beans. If you have any or all of the
above, you have the ingredients for healthy winter eating.
Beans are a good winter food, a good source of protein, and they smell good cooking
on the stove all day. Many varieties can be grown locally, even in the home garden, and
once dried they store well. They are low in fat and loaded with nutrients. To get rid of
the indigestible complex sugars that create gas in your gut, try changing the water while
you’re cooking or soaking your beans. It also helps to cook the beans thoroughly, until
they can be easily mashed with a fork.
You’ll find 21 varieties of dry beans and peas in our bulk section, from adzuki to black
turtle to baby lima. If you’ve ever wondered about all these beans and how best to use
them, read on.
adzuki bean = azuki bean = Tiensin red bean The Japanese use these small red
beans to make sweet red bean paste, but they’re also good in rice dishes or salads. Azuki
beans are sweet and relatively easy to digest, so they won’t make you as gassy as other
beans. They also don’t take as long to cook. Substitute: red kidney beans
black bean = black turtle bean = frijole negro These beans are a staple of Latin
American and Caribbean cuisine, where they’re used to make side dishes, soups, bean
dips, and salads. They have a strong, earthy flavor, so they’re often combined with
assertive flavorings. Substitute: black soybeans
cannellini bean = white kidney bean You’ve probably already encountered this
Italian bean in minestrone soup or a bean salad. It’s prized for its smooth texture and
nutty flavor. Substitutes: Great Northern bean, navy bean
lima bean = butter bean With their buttery flavor, lima beans are great in soups or
stews or on their own as a side dish. The most popular varieties are the small baby lima
bean and the larger Fordhooks. Shelled frozen limas are a good substitute for fresh, but
canned limas aren’t nearly as good. Substitutes: fresh lima beans, fava beans, soybeans
mung bean = mung pea Whole mung beans are small and green and they’re often
sprouted to make bean sprouts. When skinned and split, the beans are flat and yellow
and called moong dal.
navy bean = Boston bean = haricot blanc bean These small white beans are
commonly used to make baked beans, but they’re also good in soups, salads, and
chili. They’re relatively difficult to digest. Substitutes: great Northern bean (larger),
dried lima beans, cannellini
pinto bean The dried beans are beige with brown streaks, but they turn a uniform
pinkish-brown when cooked. They’re often used to make refried beans and
chili. Substitutes: kidney bean, azuki bean
red kidney bean These gorgeous and versatile beans are often used in chili, refried
beans, soups, and salads. Substitutes: red bean, pinto bean, azuki beans
BEAN
TIPS
1 pound of
dry beans
measures
about 2
cups
1 pound of
beans
yields 6
cups cooked
1 cup dry
beans yields
3 cups
cooked
(beans
triple in
volume)
Soak beans
in 3 cups of
water
for every
cup of
beans
Source: Cooks Thesaurus at http://sonic.net/~alden/Beans.html
“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid
of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us.
When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
9
January/February 2011
chill
freezer
beer
store shelves
New
Kombucha
Golden
Wonder
Drink
Glen
Portland
Bow, WA
Traditional
Pear Ginger
Sparkling Cherry
Sparkling Berry
22oz.
Hale’s
Seattle
Harmon Ninkasi
Eugene
Lucky
vegetarian
spring rolls
original &
chicken
flavor
GF
Food
for
Life
Ezekiel GF Muffins Talenti
brown rice &
multiseed
Townshend’s
Kombucha
Portland
Oatis Oatmeal
Stout
gelato & sorbetto
7 new flavors!
Harbinger
Port Angeles
5 new varieties!
check out the new products & tell us what you think
Mongoose IPA
Tacoma
Supermongoose IPA Pt. Defiance IPA
Brown Point ESB
Heavy cream
is back!
Superberry
Nutrionic
Clear Mind
GT’s
Kombucha
is back!
Lapas
Greece
Dr. McDougall’s
Soups
Black bean with lime
Organic Extra Virgin
olive oil
Miso with noodles
Chicken ramen
Pad Thai
Split pea
Nunez
de Prado
Spain
Wolfgang
Puck’s Soups
Tortilla
artisan estate grown
organic olive oil
Minestrone
Bela
Portugal
tomato sauce
hot sauce
lemon sauce
olive oil
wine 6
Amy’s Soups
Eaglemount
Port Townsend
Syrah
aisle
5
Hearty French vegetable
Hearty Italian vegetable
Please note:
Spectrum
wasabi
mayonaise
has been
discontinued
by the
manufacturer.
aisle
“Kindness trumps greed: it asks for sharing. Kindness trumps fear: it calls forth gratefulness and love.
Kindness trumps even stupidity, for with sharing and love, one learns.” - Marc Estrin
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
10
January/February 2011
store shelves
New
Kaia
Foods
Cherry Pie
Mimicreme
unsweetened
buckwheat granola
Kaia
Foods
Sprouted Sunflower Seeds:
nut-based cream
C2O
pure coconut
water
Blue
Diamond
Almond Breeze almond milk
original & unsweetened (64oz.)
chocolate (32oz.)
raw
check out all the new products & tell us what you think
Teriyaki, Garlic Sea Salt & Sweet Curry
Livin’
Sunshine
Corn Cilantro &
Live Sweet Onion Crackers
Buckwheat Granola
Biowafer
Fair Trade organic
chocolate wafer cookies
Nature’s
Path
Frosted Toaster Pastries
4 3
cherry pomegranate
wildberry acai
Carter’s
Local chocolates
Kettle
Chips
Caramels & Turtles
Chocolate Bark
Baked Potato
Chocolove
Almond & Sea Salt
Natural
Nectar
Lady Fingers
aisle
aisle
1
dark chocolate
Natural
Vine
strawberry &
black licorice
aisle
River
Valley
Organics
George &
Apple Otte’s
Farm
Tonasket, WA
Dried organic
apple wedges
& dried organic
Bosc pears
bulk
Lots of
NEW cereals!
ch
ips
Kaia Raw
Kale
Chips
cheese or lime
“Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much a heart can hold.” - Zelda Fitzgerald
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
11
January/February 2011
vendor spot
Fairhaven
Mills
operation’s move accommodates gluten-free milling
Deborah Schumacher, Staff Writer
Classes Of Wheat
Farmers classify wheat by their color
and the “hardness” of their kernels.
Generally, the harder the kernel, the
Fairhaven Mills, now located in Burlington, Washington, has been in business since 1974. Originally a cooperative higher the protein.
grain mill that served the Bellingham community, company ownership changed hands in 2007 and is now a family
business owned and operated by Kevin and Matsuko Christenson. The mill serves the Pacific Northwest region Durum Wheat
Hardest of all U.S. wheat, high
milling, at the old Bellingham location, 40 tons of flour a month.
protein (12-16%), used for pasta
All of Fairhaven Mill’s whole grain organic flours are hammer milled or stone ground fresh each week from certified
organically grown grains. They have always run only 100% organic grains through their mills. The grains milled Hard Red Spring Wheat
into flour come from organic growers throughout the High protein (13-16.5%), an
western U.S. Fairhaven supports local farmers as excellent bread wheat
much as possible, given the limits of growing some
Hard Red Winter Wheat
grains in our region.
Medium protein (10-13.5%), all
The mill moved from its original location in Bellingham purpose flour used for bread and
to a larger facility in Burlington, Washington in late baked goods
2010. The move into a larger facility has allowed
Fairhaven to expand into milling new grains and has Hard White Wheat
allowed them to dedicate a separate milling room with a Medium protein (11.5-12.5%),
new hammer mill to gluten-free grains and seeds only. similar to red wheats but with a
sweeter, milder flavor, used for bread
“With the new dedicated gluten free mill,” said and tortillas
owner Kevin Christenson, “we can produce rice,
oat, buckwheat, soy and millet flours for our Soft Red Winter Wheat
gluten intolerant customers, while milling organic Low protein (about 10%), used for
wheat, barley and rye flours on our other mills cakes, crackers and pastries
for the rest of our clients” (NW Farms & Food
website, 12/1/2010). The newly labeled packaged Soft White Wheat – Predominant
Fairhaven flours should already be in our store. wheat of the Pacific Northwest
Look for labels that read “gluten-free, produced on Low protein (about 10%), used
mainly for bakery products other
dedicated equipment.”
than bread
Parts of this article comes from the Fairhaven
Source: NW Farms & Food
Mills website at www.fairhavenflour.com
website at www.nwfarmsandfood.
com
The term
gristmill or grist mill refers to the building
where grain is ground into flour. Early mills were almost
always built and supported by farming communities and the
miller received the “miller’s toll” in lieu of wages. Most towns and
villages had their own mill where local farmers could easily transport
their grain. These communities were dependent on their local
mill as bread was a staple part of the diet.
(Source: Wikipedia)
“The one thing we can never get enough of is love. And the one thing we can never give enough of is love.”
- Henry Miller
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
12
January/February 2011
wellness
Insomnia
&Good Sleep Hygiene
Expanding the Knowledge
LIZ LINDSTROM, Supplement Buyer
Insomnia is at epidemic levels
in the developed world. So it’s
no wonder that there are almost
90 clinically recognized sleep
disorders. 50-75 million Americans,
roughly a fifth of the population,
complain about sleep problems.
“True” or “psychophysiological”
insomniacs are people who either
can’t get to sleep or can’t stay
asleep for no evident reason. They
wake up and don’t feel rested.
They lie down and their brains
whir. While the treatment of true
insomnia is not so clear-cut, many
people have found great success
in managing chronic insomnia as
well as occasional sleeplessness
by practicing good sleep hygiene.
Good sleep hygiene is really a way
of retraining your body and mind
by following strategies and making
lifestyle changes. I have listed some
of these strategies below.
Cut back on or eliminate
caffeine. Some people can easily
metabolize a cup or two of coffee
daily, while others are unable to
tolerate even the trace amounts in
decaffeinated coffee or tea.
Exercise daily. Consistent, daily
exercise is crucial for keeping stress,
anxiety, and depression at bay—all of
which are prime contributors to sleep
problems.
Eat and drink for restful sleep.
You will sleep better if your stomach
is not overly full. Plan to eat dinner
at least three hours before bedtime
to give your body time to complete
digestion. A glass of red wine is
healthful and relaxing but avoid more
than one glass; alcohol stimulates the
release of cortisol, which can cause
restless sleep during the night.
Enhance Sleep with
Aromatherapy. Research shows
that certain essential oils (EOs) such
as jasmine, lavender and rose elicit
alpha and theta brain waves, which
indicate relaxation. Our personal care
department carries a wide assortment
of EOs; the Natural Wellness staff
can provide tips on how to utilize
EOs for relaxation.
Create a Relaxing Bedtime Ritual.
Create a set time for going to bed
and getting up in the morning to
help your body establish a healthful
sleep-wake cycle.
About an hour before bedtime, begin
to prepare for sleep by taking care
of nightly tasks: make tomorrow’s
lunch, brush your teeth. In the final
minutes before sleep, engage in
a calming activity like listening
to soothing music or reading an
enjoyable book.
Create a tranquil sleep
environment.
Supplement with Natural
Remedies. The Co-op’s supplement
Establish a regular bedtime.
Don’t eat in bed or watch TV. Clear department has several products
that can help you fall asleep, stay
away all clutter, including stacks
asleep and wake feeling refreshed
of magazines and books from your
bedroom.
in the morning. Although natural
sleep aids are non-habit forming,
our bodies can adapt to them if
taken habitually. For this reason, I
recommend that anyone suffering
from chronic insomnia use natural
remedies conservatively.
Practicing good sleep hygiene
is really part of creating a life in
balance. And no one would argue
that adequate sleep is vital to any
personal recipe for life balance.
During this economic downturn,
when worry and stress can make life
more than a little wobbly (one third
of Americans report they have lost
sleep in the recent economic crisis),
it’s important to remember that
health is the new wealth. If you’re
not satisfied with the quality of your
sleep after practicing good sleep
hygiene for several months, consult
with a health practitioner that can
help you sort out the complex
issues of sleep deprivation. Natural
Wellness is dedicated to assisting
you in finding solutions to all your
health issues. On behalf of our entire
staff, we wish you peaceful slumber
and sweet dreams.
All Weleda
face products
are 15% off
while supplies last.
Look for the new
label coming soon.
Sources:
“The Power of Sleep,”
Better Nutrition April 2010
The Secrets of Sleep, D.T. Max
Read the full article on our website
at www.foodcoop.coop (go to
the Co-op Reading Room in the
Education section)
“The greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion. The more we care
for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being.” - Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
13
January/February 2011
co-op staff
Hearty
Thank-you
Awards
Staff Spotlight
Kate Miller
Our Farmer Cashier
Staff
Picks
DEBORAH SCHUMACHER, Staff Writer
Most of us living in Port Townsend have a story to tell about why and how
we got here. Kate Miller, who moved here from Connecticut in early 2010
and started work at the Co-op last May, probably has the best story I’ve
heard. “I moved here to watch someone’s dog.” Okay, she was already
living in Seattle when she made that leap of faith. Any way you look at it,
Kate’s presence in our community has been one leap of faith after another.
Sept
Dorothy
Hoffman
Oct
Laura
Lawless
Nov
Adam
Carter
Staff
Anniversaries!
January/February
16 years
Skylark Beck, Wellness
Beverly Mustin, Grocery
Gale Wallis, Front End (sub)
9 years
Deborah Schumacher, Outreach/MSD
8 years
Dan Goldstein, Finance
5 years
Teresa Swindell, Front End
4 years
Adam Carter, Produce
Derek Christensen, Produce
2 years
Mindy Dwyer, Outreach
John Steurer, Produce
Chandra Wright, Produce
1 year
Jayne Kraft, Grocery
Anniversaries begin from
date of hire for paid employment
and may not reflect years
of work as a volunteer.
I first heard about Kate from Linda Davis at Solstice Farm, where Kate is
currently an intern. Linda told me that after Kate had finished her degree
she’d discovered a passion for farming. After living in Port Townsend
for almost a year, Kate is fulfilling that passion by being enthusiastically
involved in WSU’s new F.I.E.L.D. (Farm Innovation Education Leadership
& Development) Program. The program was developed and coordinated
with the help of local farmers John Bellow and Roxanne Hudson of
SpringRain Farm as well as Linda at Solstice. Kate’s host farm since July
2010 has been Solstice Farm.
Rick Eason’s
Blueberries
Recommended by
Sue Sjolund, Produce
The F.I.E.L.D. program formalizes what had been a more informal
arrangement between farmers and their interns to give interns time in
the classroom as well as the field. They not only get hands-on farming
experience, they participate in weekly workshops teaching topics ranging
“from beekeeping to canning, from crop rotation and orchard management,
to business and marketing,” explained Kate.
Kate, who doesn’t come from a farming background but has spent time
working on farms while attending St. Joseph’s College in Connecticut
(where she earned a degree in Environmental Science), sees her role in
farming focusing on the community. As much as she enjoys working in
the fields, she wants also to be involved in education and outreach. Indeed,
she’s hoping to coordinate the F.I.E.L.D. Program next year and is looking
Recommended by
forward to working with other farmers, integrating more farm intern events
Jayne Kraft, Grocery
like socials and mixers into the program, and involving interns in more
community service events. “I would really like to see a greater sense, a Staff Pick’s are drawn randomly
stronger sense, of community among interns,” Kate explained. After having
each month from submissions.
spent a season at Solstice Farm, she says, “I feel really lucky to be farming
on the Peninsula.”
Garlic Lover’s
Pasta
(in the Deli)
Way to go!
René Tanner, our Maintenance/Facilities Manger, has found a local recycler
in Blyn called E-Cycle that will help us reduce our waste stream. We are now able to
recycle plastic containers not currently recycled in East Jefferson County and plastic film products like
shrink wrap and heat shrink plastic through Daniel Tharp at E-Cycle. We’ll pay a $25.00 charge for full
bag pick-ups, money well spent to close the waste loop.
“What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork.” - Pearl Bailey
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
14
January/February 2011
S
food for thought
tatistics are often presented attempting to show that progress is being
made in the battle against cancer. But regardless of how the numbers
are presented, the bottom line is that cancer (in all of its forms) is fast
overtaking heart-related diseases as the number one cause of death in
America. One hundred years ago one out of 33 people were diagnosed with
cancer in their lifetime. Today one person out of three will be diagnosed with
cancer in their lifetime, and that ratio continues to grow. Cancer is affecting
more and more people and at ever younger ages.
Do things that cause more oxygen to be introduced into your body at the
cellular level, because cancer cannot thrive where there is an abundance of
oxygen. (Dr. Otto Warburg, a German scientist, won the Nobel prize in 1931
for discovering that cancer cells are anaerobic, meaning that they generate
energy without the need for oxygen.) On the other hand, healthy cells thrive
on oxygen, and deep breathing is one way to bring more oxygen into the
body. Also eat raw green vegetables and drink fresh squeezed juice from deep
green leafy vegetables (like collards, kale, and Swiss chard). These greens are
rich in chlorophyll, and chlorophyll enhances oxygen circulation.
The malignant tumor mass that’s commonly called cancer is in reality a
symptom (or indication) of cancer. Cancer itself is the malfunctioning
process that causes tumor symptoms to appear. In other words, the malignant
tumor is not “the cancer.” Similarly, smoke that comes from a fire is not “the
fire.” It is, however, a symptom or indication of a fire. Surgery,
chemotherapy and/or radiation do not rid the body of cancer
any more than eliminating smoke puts out a fire. Clearly,
it is not enough to merely manage the tumor symptoms
of cancer; instead, we need to address the cause of
cancer at the cellular level. It’s time to change the
way we define this disease. In short, a paradigm
shift in how we think about cancer is urgently
needed.
Consider the following well-researched
information as a starting point:
Change the environment in your body
to make it a lot less acidic and more
alkaline. Cancer thrives in an acid
environment; on the other hand your
body functions best when its major
fluids and most internal organs are
slightly alkaline. Remember to drink
enough water during the day, and try to
drink water that is slightly alkaline.
Eat less cooked foods and a lot more live
plant-based foods, especially a variety
of deeply colored fruits and vegetables. In
addition to excellent nutrition they are high in
fiber, rich in enzymes that facilitate digestion,
and they insure a healthy acid/alkaline pH
balance.
Cleanse your body. Make a serious effort to detoxify, because it greatly
enhances your body’s ability to heal itself. Coffee enemas and ESSIAC tea
are especially helpful for internal cleansing. (Tenzing Momo is an herb store
in Seattle that sells ESSIAC tea in bulk*).
Take steps to reduce stress. Meditation, prayer, and
moderate exercise—all are very helpful.
Cancer,
A Paradigm
Shift
MAURIS EMEKA, Author & Food Co-op Owner-member
i
In closing, it’s time we stop thinking
of cancer as some sort of localized
disease, like a skinned knee, and
thinking that if we detect and destroy
a tumor symptom early enough the
problem is solved. It is not enough to
merely manage tumor symptoms. We
are dealing with a chronic metabolic
disease that cries out for a wholistic
response to include fundamental
changes in our diet and lifestyle. To
be sure, we must take greater personal
responsibility for our health and wellness
and commit to consuming a much higher
percentage of unrefined, unprocessed, whole,
natural, and plant-based foods.
*The Food Co-op sells ESSIAC in the bulk
herbs & spices section as well as FlorEssence, a
formula used in the U.S.
Make an effort to greatly strengthen the immune system,
because it is our primary defense against cancer.
Remember to consume some foods each day that reduce inflammation,
because inflammation adversely affects the immune system as well as the
acid/alkaline balance in the body. Turmeric spice, aloe vera gel fresh from the
aloe leaf, and fermented soy—these are excellent anti-inflammatory foods.
Eat primitive, that is, eat a high percentage of
raw and whole foods. Among other things,
this introduces more fiber into the body and
ensures better bowel regularity (stimulating
3 to 4 movements daily). Otherwise,
bowel sluggishness contributes greatly
to increased acidic body chemistry.
Mauris Emeka ([email protected]) has authored and published
two books about diet and cancer: Fear Cancer No More, copyright 2002; and
Cancer’s Best Medicine, 2nd edition, copyright 2008. See www.cancernomore.
com for more information.
“Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The consciousness
of loving and being loved brings a warmth and richness to life that nothing else can bring.” - Oscar Wilde
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
15
January/February 2011
healthy people & pets
Natural Holistic Care
Feminine For Backyard
Products Chickens
Molly Force, N.D.
DR. ANNA GARDNER, MA Vet. MB
Owner-Member & Holistic Veterinarian
Owner-Member & Naturopathic Physician
Some of the feminine products on the market are safe for women, while
others are potentially harmful or even lethal. It’s critical to become aware
and educated of what you place in and on your body. Your health may
depend on it!
Chickens are becoming increasingly popular as part of sustainable living.
In the challenging economic times we live in, they can be a very helpful
addition to the household, providing wholesome eggs and meat–though I
was never able to eat my chickens!
Most women today use commercial menstrual pads and tampons made from
cotton and rayon blends. The majority of women do not know that almost
all commercial menstrual products contain pesticide residues and dioxin, a
harmful chemical.
The most important thing to consider is diet—organic is the better way to
feed. There are commercial organic feeds that can provide a basis for a more
varied diet. The addition of organic food scraps and access to fresh grass,
either free range or using a movable pen, is helpful. Chickens allowed to
range will eat a wide variety of foods and be healthier overall, but there
is the risk of predators in this area. In addition, the use of a good natural
multivitamin and mineral supplement and a little cod liver oil is greatly
beneficial. Flax seeds enhance the overall health of the chicken as well as
help produce wonderful eggs higher in Omega 3 and lower in cholesterol.
Dioxin is a byproduct created when menstrual products are bleached with
chlorine to make the cotton whiter and the rayon more absorbable. Dioxins
are found in all chlorine-bleached products, including but not limited
to: paper towels, coffee filters, tissues, baby diapers, tampons, pads, and
toilet paper. Exposure to dioxin has been linked to cancer and other health
problems. While this should raise concern, it continues to be found in
significant quantities in most menstrual products on the market today. The
vaginal membrane is highly absorbent and sensitive, making the danger of
toxic exposure very significant.
There are natural ways of controlling parasites, both external and internal,
such as diatomaceous earth, which controls ectoparasites and can also help
with internal parasites too. It’s available in the pure food-grade version
or in combination with other natural wormers in proprietary brands like
WormGuard Plus. Parasite control is very important, but avoiding the use
of harsh chemical wormers and topical insecticides is equally important in
raising a holistic poultry flock.
You have a choice!
Ladies, we have alternatives. Don’t think you are stuck choosing between
Brand A or Brand B tampons and pads. There are many wonderful products
available for handling menstrual flows.
Chickens respond very well to homeopathic remedies and flower essences
should a health problem arise. The individual remedy has to be picked to
match the symptoms. A useful reference guide is the book The Poultry
Doctor by homeopath B. Jain. Homeopathic nosodes can also help prevent
diseases and act like natural vaccinations and can be extremely effective
without the side-effects of conventional vaccines. All in all, natural care of
chickens will produce healthier stock, better eggs and a happier chicken!
Bleached products are not your only option. To avoid both dioxin and
pesticide exposure, use only organically grown, chlorine-free cotton
tampons and pads, washable cloth pads, sponges, or menstrual cups. In doing
so, you will reduce your toxic exposure as well as the toxic burden on our
environment. Remember, not only are dioxins toxic for humans directly
exposed to these bleached cotton and rayon products, they are also being
spread into our wastewater and landfills when disposed of. Please keep in
mind that disposable products, although popular, are not the only solutions
to menstruation.
Anna Maria Gardner MA Vet.MB is a holistic veterinarian based in Brinnon.
Dr. Gardner uses nutrition, homeopathy, acupuncture, flower essences, and
other holistic modalities to bring holistic health care to the animal kingdom.
She can be reached at 360-796-3749 or [email protected] or visit
her website at www.petsynergy.com for more information.
Dr. Molly Force is a family practice naturopathic physician who specializes
in combining natural healing with conventional medical diagnosis and
therapy. Her practice, Prosper Natural Health, is located in Uptown Port
Townsend. She can be reached at 360-385-5375.
“Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving.” - Kahil Gibran
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
16
January/February 2011
co-op community
Reducing Plastics
in the Landfill
AL CAIRNS, Jefferson County Solid Waste Coordinator
The plastics in such programs are collected,
bundled together and shipped to overseas
markets, most typically to China, and this is
exactly where our categorical way of thinking
begins to fail us. If our aim is to promote a
healthy environment by recycling, we probably
shouldn’t be sending materials of dubious value
to countries with famously lax or non-existent
labor and environmental safeguards. Are we
really promoting a healthier planet if we are
simply exporting our “waste” half way around
the world?
The Food Co-op has asked me, your county’s
solid waste coordinator, to say a few words
about why plastic materials stamped with the
numbers 3 through 7 are not presently accepted
in the county’s recycling program. I should
begin by addressing the most frequently asked
question about our recycling program: “What
is the connection between Jefferson County’s
recycling program and the Rinzai school of
Zen Buddhism?” Let’s first consider the path to
enlightenment that Rinzai monks follow.
Rinzai beginners seeking enlightenment are often
asked a nonsensical question called a koan. The
student deliberates on this puzzle for an extended
period of time until their intense concentration
leads them to see past categorical thinking and
enter into kensho, a level of consciousness that
does not see the world in dichotomous terms.
For the Rinzai initiate the only “right” answer to
the koan is “Mu,” which is interpreted as “not”
or “nothing” or “no thing.” In other words, the
student is telling the master, “The question is
wrong!”
Getting back to the relationship between Jefferson
County and Rinzai Zen Buddhism, we could ask
ourselves a koan of significance to our recycling
program like, “Why doesn’t Jefferson County
recycle plastics numbers 3 through 7?” The
answer would be “Mu!” Consider that the buying
and selling of recyclable materials is a global
enterprise and that often there is no domestic
market for certain commodities. Plastics with
numbers between 3 and 7 are the least valuable of
plastics commodities because they are of a lower
quality and have already been recycled several
times. Because profit margins in recyclable
materials are so narrow to begin with, domestic
recycling programs will often accept all plastics
That’s precisely the question that Public Works
staff and our partners in recycling, D.M. Disposal
and Skookum Educational Programs, asked
ourselves when we considered this practice.
By consensus, we adopted a policy for all
materials collected in our program that requires
that “materials must be sold to buyers engaged
in business practices that are verified to be
environmentally and socially responsible.” To
date we have not found a single buyer who can
meet this simple requirement for plastics numbers
3 through 7.
無
Mu
regardless of numbering so that the total volume
(and dollar value) of the high grade plastics can be
increased through a greater public participation
rate owing to the convenience of just tossing all
plastics into a single bin.
So, perhaps a better question to ask ourselves—
one that can be answered without “Mu”—is
“What can I do as a Food Co-op shopper to create
a healthier environment?” An obvious one is to
buy whole foods and other products that do not
come packaged in plastic at all. Your Food Co-op
already does an amazing job at promoting just this
sort of enlightened choice by offering so many
bulk product options. If we really want to be good
stewards of our only planet, our best effort might
be to take advantage of all the opportunities your
Food Co-op has created for you. Your planet will
appreciate your enlightened ways and so will
your hardworking local farming families.
“Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference.” - Barbara De Angelis
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
17
January/February 2011
take back your food
Material collected by Deborah Schumacher, Newsletter Staff
A call to educate yourself
about food issues & to take action!
THE COST OF
FARM SUBSIDIES
Check the kiosk at Member Services for updates
REGIONAL
GRANT MONEY FOR NW “FOODHUB”
Ecotrust, a Portland-based organization, received a $259,340 grant to
support their FoodHub initiative, an online directory and marketplace
that makes it easy for regional food buyers and sellers to find each other,
connect and do business. The grant will help Ecotrust increase recruitment
of producers and buyers in rural communities and provide training and
assistance that supports their goals. Source: Washington State Food &
Farming Network (9/29/10)
NATIONAL
$55 MILLION EXTRA FOR SPECIALTY CROPS
Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced the award
of block grants to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops (fruits,
vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops, including
floriculture). The 54 grants total approximately $55 million and will fund
827 projects, a 10 percent increase over last year. Source: FarmPolicy.com
(9/20/2010)
CHILD NUTRITION ACT PASSED IN 2010
President Obama signed into law the Child Nutrition Reauthorization
Act on December 13, 2010 as part of an administration-wide effort to
combat childhood obesity. The $4.5 billion measure increases the federal
reimbursement for free school lunches by 6 cents a meal and will also
expand access to free lunch programs and allow 20 million additional
after-school meals to be served annually in all 50 states. Michelle Obama,
a vocal supporter of the Act, cited a group of former generals and military
officials who have said unhealthy school lunches are a national security
threat because weight problems are now the leading medical reason that
recruits are rejected. Source: Huffington Post (12/13/10)
GMO MILK IS DIFFERENT
A recent Federal Appeals Court decision (IDFA et all v. Boggs) in
September 2010 found that milk from cows not treated with rBGH (a
bovine growth hormone) is different from normal milk. The decision
states: “A compositional difference does exist between milk from untreated
cows and conventional milk.” Milk from rBGH-injected cows contains
higher somatic cell counts, which makes the milk turn sour more quickly
and is another indicator of poor milk quality. The use of rBGH has also
been shown to elevate levels of IGF-1, a naturally-occurring hormone
that in high levels is linked with several types of cancers. Source: Organic
Consumers Association e-newsletter Organic Bytes #245 (10/7/10)
Even though a new Farm Bill won’t come into
effect for almost two more years, the political
conversation has already begun. Much of the
conversation, as with the Farm Bill voted into
law in 2008, is about subsidies—who should get
them and how much should they get. This time
around there’s much more economic as well as
political pressure to make cuts in farm subsidies.
With high deficits, lawmakers are expected to
make big changes to the farm subsidy program.
During the discussion of the 2008 Farm Bill,
Michael Pollan first suggested that not only
farmers but eaters are affected by which crops
are supported by tax money. A good example of
this is corn sweeteners. Studies show that soft
drinks sweetened with corn may have a bigger
impact on weight gain and other health issues
than previously thought. A study published in
the journal Obesity in October 2010 that found
the sugar in soft drinks may contain as much
as 65 percent fructose seems to reinforce this
idea. Fructose tastes sweeter than glucose and
fructose may be a larger contributor to weight
gain because of the way the body metabolizes
it, said researchers at the University of Southern
California. The highest levels of fructose were
found in Coca-Cola, Sprite and Pepsi products.
Several research physicians at Mount Sinai
Medical Center addressed the issue in an ad in
The New York Times when they asked why, when
faced with a childhood obesity epidemic, the
federal government continues to subsidize cornbased sweeteners suspected of contributing to
the problem. Because of farm subsidies, they
say, the cost of soft drinks containing HFCS has
decreased by 24 percent since 1985, while the
price of fruits and vegetables has gone up by 39
percent. (FarmPolicy.com, 10/27/2010)
We’re reminded again that a better name for
this legislation is Food Bill. Look for the
conversation about the 2012 Farm bill to heat
up over the next couple years as legislators try
to decide the best ways to support farmers in this
country.
“When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.” - Jimi Hendrix
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
18
January/February 2011
Saturday 8
2-4pm
Labels
Brwyn Griffin
definitions & deceptions
taste samples of
prepared dishes
FREE
385-2831 x308
Sunday 16
CO-OP
CLASS
All classes require
reservations.
A Winter/Spring
class calendar will
be available soon
at the Member
Services Desk.
4-7pm
The Art of
Braising
Laurette Feit
slow cookery, comfort
foods, bistro recipes
tasting & wine
$55 owners $65 non
385-4886
Monday 24
6-8:30pm
Pastry Arts
Art of the Cake
Laurette Feit
fundamentals
of great cake baking
improve your techniques
$55 owners $65 non
385-4886
February
Saturday 5
6-8:30pm
Pastry Arts
Butter Doughs
Laurette Feit
10-12:30
Fermented
Foods
Marko Colby
yeasty, buttery
pastry doughs
sweet & savory brioche
$55 owners $65 non
385-4886
the master of
locally grown
fermented foods
$35 owners $40 non
385-5579
Monday 17
Saturday 22
6-8:30pm
Pastry
Fillings & Sauces
Laurette Feit
10-12noon
Superfoods
decorating,
perfect crusts,
& edible flowers
$35 owners $40 non
360-981-2328
Saturday 29
Sunday 30
1-3pm
Gluten-free
Breads
Iliana Laulicht
2-4pm
Oils
Brwyn Griffin
385-2831 x308
FREE
taste samples of
breads, mix ingredients
& take home
$25 owners $30 non
385-2831 x308
Saturday 12
Saturday 26
not all are
created equal
2-4pm
Chocolate
Elixirs
Julia Corbett
2-4pm
Sweeteners
Brwyn Griffin
what’s in, what’s out
& in-between
taste samples
385-2831 x308
385-2831 x308
Saturday 15
2-4pm
Grains
Brwyn Griffin
go beyond wheat, oats
& corn taste samples of
prepared dishes
FREE
385-2831 x308
Saturday 22
2-4pm
Beans, Seeds
& Nuts
Brwyn Griffin
Julia Corbett
lemon curd, mousse au
chocolat, creme
patisserie, caramel hazelnut
& chocolate ganache
$55 owners $65 non
301-5014
learn why
organic matters &
taste for yourself
FREE
Saturday 15
find out about these
tiny powerhouses
of nutrition
FREE
385-2831 x308
Monday 31
6-8:30pm
Pastry Arts
Decorating Cakes
Laurette Feit
learn techniques, tips &
secrets - lots of fun
decorate & eat
$55 owners $65 non
385-4886
y
V al
entine’s
Da
y!
2-4pm
Meat, Dairy
& Produce
Brwyn Griffin
Monday 10
Ha
pp
January
calendar
learn the secrets of
raw chocolate &
sweetener synergies
$35 owners $40 non
360-981-2328
FREE
“Love’s greatest gift is its ability to make everything it touches sacred.” - Barbara De Angelis
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
19
January/February 2011
looking back on 2010
Student Tours
PTHS
YMCA Kids
Fit Camp
Organic Seed
Alliance
Seed Trials
twice
a year
MAD
Day
prizes!
Farm Tour
2010
Farm to
School
& School
Gardens
thank
you!
we want to
express our
gratitude
...your support
made
it possible
to give back
to this
February
community
Cape Cleare Fish
that we
Giveaway
love
Apple Festival
Co-op Classes
“Where there is great love, there are always miracles.” - Willa Cather
THE CO-OP COMMONS www.foodcoop.coop
20
January/February 2011