In This Issue
• Goslings
• A Plant-Based Correction
• Wednesday Fun at Green City and Up Uptown!
• Organic Produce Buying Jumps (study)
• More Goslings
OMG
OK, in an earlier issue of Local Food Forum, I revealed myself as a nature photographer (and worshipper), and warned that the food news would be interrupted from time to time by momentous events such as the arrival of goslings. And here we are.
I captured this beautiful brood at North Pond in Lincoln Park on my way to yesterday’s Green City Market. I’ll have more photos below in case you need a break and only floofy baby birds will do.
And I have an offer for any of you who need a bigger dose of cuteness:
Anyone who gets a paid subscription to Local Food Forum by midnight tonight is eligible for a tour of North Pond, truly one of the city’s beauty spots, led by me. And remember that when there are goslings, ducklings can’t be far behind.
Sorry to have to use the goslings as pawns but we could really use some more paid subscribers.
We’ll be back to farmers markets in a moment, but first, a correction…
Well I’ll Be a Potted Plant
Alas, I need to make a correction to yesterday's Local Food Forum because I confused two august Chicago organizations with similar names and locations.
Vegan Paradise, a vegan farmers market, is presented by Chicago Vegan Test Kitchen in association with The Plant, the holistic sustainable food business incubator owned and operated by Bubbly Dynamics LLC. I erroneously identified the partner as Plant Chicago, a nonprofit organization that develops and shares innovative methods for sustainable food production, energy conservation and material reuse.
So The Plant, located at 1400 S. 46th St., hosts Vegan Paradise, a farmers market that takes place most Sundays through October 31.
Plant Chicago has its own Saturday farmers market, which launches its 2021 season on June 5, that is located in Davis Square Park, near Plant Chicago’s headquarters at 4459 S. Marshfield Ave.
Apologies for the confusion.
Wednesday Fun Day at Green City
There are so many excellent reasons to shop at farmers market just for the healthy, local and sustainably produced food alone. But the convivial atmosphere at the market is a good reason as well. Here are some scenes from Wednesday’s Green City Market that you’re not going see at your local grocery store.
Uptown Steps Up
The brand new Uptown Farmers Market opened on Wednesday afternoon. Chicago Market, a food co-op that is in development, is producing the farmers market, located inside its future store space in the historic Gerber Building right below the Wilson Red Line stop.
The market had a nice mix of well-known and early-stage producers amid the raw surroundings of a building awaiting renovation and reuse, with the list of vendors slated to grow in the coming weeks.
Chicago Market needs more owners and donors to bring the project to fruition and provide jobs, economic stimulus and a year-round source of healthy local food to an Uptown community that has faced struggles in recent years. There is a free 30-minute walk-through this Saturday (May 8) at noon central where you can learn about the advantages of becoming a Chicago Market co-op owner (click the button below to register).
Study Shows Organic Produce Sales Growth
A New Hope Network article shows that the Organic Produce Network, in its 2020 Organic Produce Performance Report, finds that organic produce sales last year grew by $1 billion to $8.5 billion — a 14.2 percent growth rate over the previous year. While this finding is for grocery store sales, it stands to reason that this also benefits our local farms that sell through farmers markets, CSAs and online.
If you are already shopping for healthier, more sustainably produced food, why not go all the way and buy local?