Delridge Produce Co-op has chosen a location for their store
Delridge Produce Co-op has chosen a location for their store
Sat, 04/14/2012
The Delridge Produce Cooperative that has been working to bring fresh produce to what is known as a "Food Desert" along Delridge Way s.w. has chosen a location for their future store.
The DESC housing project at 5434-5444 Delridge Avenue s.w., will be finished around the end of 2013 - and DPC has been in negotiations to secure a commercial space. They plan to open a green grocery store selling organic fruits, vegetables, greens, roots, seeds, nuts, grains, flours, oils, nut butters, bottled tomato sauce and a few similar items, bread, meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products in the beginning of 2014.
In a press release they stated how they will source the produce.
They plan for a "large part of our produce purchases to come from the Delridge community itself, and so we have a great need to reach out to neighbors to find and recruit members and growers. If we connect gardeners to the food hub that we are growing, we can all eat healthy, local food without paying the high prices that we are all used to seeing for organic produce at the grocery store."
"USDA rules for organic food allow us to present small growers (those whose businesses gross less than $5000 per year) with rules that they sign, stating that they use no pesticides or other unhealthy farming methods. We can encourage local farming and help to revitalize Delridge's economy by becoming a great place for neighbors to make a little extra cash."
They will work over the course of the next two years, to build their member base, raise money, and recruit neighbor-farmers in order to be ready to open as soon as possible once the store is built.
They plan to host one public meeting per month, inviting new volunteers to come and find out what they can do to help. They need people to help schedule volunteering time, oversee fundraising and recruiting projects, knock on doors, show up for local events and distribute information, recruit new members and farmers, join the Board of Directors, and contribute their professional talents on a volunteer basis.
Person-to-person outreach to the community is also a major part of their effort.
This Monday, April 16th 2012, is the first in that series of monthly meetings. It takes place at 6:30 pm at the Delridge Library Delridge Public Library 5423 Delridge Way SW.. They will be sending out monthly reminders to their email list to let everybody know what's going on and when the next meeting is.
You can also visit their website and click on the calendar to see the events they will be attending.
