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Only Niagara Fruits this week. We'll offer the full range of local foods the week of the 28th.
Hi Folks,
Is local food more expensive?
Is shopping at Bailey's Local Foods more expensive than a supermarket? I often get these questions and have not known how to answer. I've thought it was more expensive - and for good reasons! So I took the time to Bailey's Local Food Buying Club prices to the prices of a supermarket near the pick up location. And guess what?!?! Bailey's came up slightly less expensive!!! I was shocked. I'm copying a list of the 20 foods that I compared (included fresh produce as well as cheese, meats, popcorn, etc.). I compared them to the closest match I could find in the supermarket. For example, for cheddar I compared it to another cheddar that is made with real milk rather than a cheaper one made with powdered milk that is imported from the States (where they use the Bovine Growth Hormone in their cows). The total for the supermarket was $12.01 higher than for Bailey's Local Foods.
| Grocery Store Total for 21 items | BLF Total for 21 items | Total Difference |
| $98.18 | $86.17 | -$12.01 |
So, my conclusion is: Depending on how you shop for food, buying groceries from Bailey's Local Foods Buying Club can be the same price or cheaper. I still think it is a good idea to spend MORE money on our food. If you think it is a good idea to invest in quality anything (car, roof, shampoo), why not invest in quality food. What impacts your health, happiness and, therefore, LIFE more than food? And it is not just a personal choice. Our choices of food determine the kind of world we live in. Do we want a world that includes clean air, a healthy economy, fertile land, small family farms, and enough food for all?
Local Oils
Let's talk frankly about local oil, okay? The canola oil has a STRONG flavour. Some call it gourmet. Some call it yuck. I'm not a big fan of the canola. BUT I'm loving the soy bean oil from Pristine Gourmet. It is so mild tasting I can use it to bake with. Now I just wish I could get a bigger jug of it. So if you are like me and are not loving the canola oil, do not write off all local oils. Try the soybean oil. (Next time we're in Simcoe we'll bring back some 4L jugs - same price as canola - R.)
The lovely soybean oil is what inspired me to make all local pesto last weekend. It was so easy to make and now I have six cubes of it in my freezer to use for winter pizzas and pastas. Here's what I did: threw basil into my food processor with millbank parmesan (Rachael says it the parmesan tastes good but isn't as dry as she's used to as and she's Italian so she knows!), soybean oil, garlic from Paul and Saloma, peanuts from Kernal, and salt. What is silly is that I froze it all without tasting it. I can't remember why. So I'll have to make a fresh batch this weekend and actually put it on some pasta. (We MAY have local pasta on the 28th!)
This week: Bulk Niagara Fruits Only
So are you the "eat a peach with the juice running down your arm and chin" type person or the "wash, peel and slice the peach" type person? I'm the latter. Maybe if I was at the beach where I could easily rinse off, I'd go for the drippy and sticky option. Aren't the peaches divine?! They were REALLY good in oatmeal the other morning. I wish someone would hand me a pie crust and say "Here, make peach pie." We have an easy pie crust recipe, I just need an excuse to make them. Being on holiday sounds like a good excuse.
We are only offering succulent soft fruits from Niagara-on-the-Lake this week. Rachael is in BC and I can't run this show without her so I'm going to take it slower this week. Charlotte will be hosting the fruit pick-up at a home near Belmont Village in Kitchener. The address will be sent on Wednesday with your order confirmation to those who ordered. The pick up time is 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm on Friday, August 21st. Please pay with cheques only.
Apricot Fairy
What would you think if I showed up at your door with a wagon-full of local food after dark on a Friday night? I had a few boxes of extra food this week and had the urge to randomly give it away. I've learned that it makes me really happy to give food. So I headed up Euclid Street and knocked on a few houses where it looked like someone was home. One person I knew by name and he was delighted to learn more about this "local food thing" that was happening at the church. One guy said he just bought peaches at the store and did not want anymore. (Would you turn down free local peaches?!) Another guy said it was just him in the house and he did not like apricots or kale. He acted like he'd never before had a complete stranger ask him if he likes apricots. Then I stopped at the house of someone I knew was a buying club member but who I can't remember her name. It was lovely to not have to explain myself - she knew who I was and what the buying club was about. She was thrilled when I said, please, take the whole box. That made me happy.
See you next week!
Happy eating,
Nina
Bailey's Local Foods
www.baileyslocalfoods.ca
P.S. We can use your big fruit boxes, jars from preserves and egg cartons (from eggs you bought at Bailey's) again if you return them.
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| item | description of grocery item | description of Bailey's Local Foods item | price at grocery per unit | price at BLF per unit | Size of food package | grocery price for item | BLF price for item | difference between the two prices |
| Plums | yellow from US, by by the pound | Yellow, from Niagara, sustainably farmed, 12.5lb box | $1.99/lb | $1.40/lb | 2lbs | $ 3.98 | $ 2.80 | -$1.18 |
| Olive Bread | Olive Fouguese from ACE | Natural Sourdough Olive Bread from Rundles | $4.49 | $4.75 | one loaf | $ 4.49 | $ 4.75 | $0.26 |
| Granola, artisan | ACE, 375 g bag | Golden Hearth, 500 g | 1.86/100g | $1.50/100g | 500g | $ 9.30 | $ 7.50 | -$1.80 |
| Blueberries | conventional from US | conventional from Simcoe | $2.99/pint | $3.50/pint | pint | $ 2.99 | $ 3.50 | $0.51 |
| Cilantro | conventional from US | no-spray from Elmira | $1.69 | $2.50 | one bunch | $ 1.69 | $ 2.50 | $0.81 |
| Garlic Sausage | PC garlic sausage, conventional from who knows where | Traditional Farms garlic sausage, natural (no gmo feed, no hormones, no drugs, no steroids) | $.80/100g | $1.10/100g | 454g (1lb) | $ 3.63 | $ 4.99 | $1.36 |
| Green Beans | conventional from US | organic from near Linwood (4lb) | $2.69/lb | $1.88/lb | 2lbs | $ 5.38 | $ 3.76 | -$1.62 |
| Popcorn | yellow Orville Redenbacher (850g) | Uncle Bob's yellow from near Simcoe (900g) | $.53/100g | $.22/100g | 900g | $ 4.77 | $ 1.98 | -$2.79 |
| Yogourt | Liberty Plain organic 2.5%, 750 ml | Plain organic cream on top Mapleton's from near Arthur | $.72/100ml | $.50/100ml | 750ml | $ 5.40 | $ 3.75 | -$1.65 |
| Peanuts | Planter's Unsalted, 300g | Kernal redskin peanuts unsalted, 200g | $1.33/100g | $1.12/100g | 300g | $ 3.99 | $ 3.36 | -$0.63 |
| Cheese | Pine River Extra Old, 200g (made with liquid milk, not powdered) | Millbank extra old, .455kg (made with liquid milk, not powdered) | $2.28/100g | $1.97/100g | 455g | $ 10.37 | $ 8.96 | -$1.41 |
| Hamburger | PC lean ground beef, 438g | Traditional Farms lean ground beef, farmed sustainably (no gmo feed, no hormones, no drugs, no steroids), 452g | $.88/100g | $1.11/100g | pound | $ 3.85 | $ 5.00 | $1.15 |
| Butter | PC fresh churned butter, 455g | Stirling whey butter, 455g | $1.23/100g | $1.10/100g | 455g | $ 5.59 | $ 5.00 | -$0.59 |
| Honey | Capalino creamed honey, 500g | Bauman Apiaries, 500g | $1.18/100g | $.85/100g | 500g | $ 5.90 | $ 4.25 | -$1.65 |
| Maple Syrup | PC light maple syrup, glass jar, 500ml | Elmeda Martin light maple syrup, glass jar 500ml | $2.60/100g | $1.75/100g | 500ml | $ 13.00 | $ 8.75 | -$4.25 |
| Lettuce | Romaine conventional, ON | Romaine, no spray, from Elmira | $.69 each | $2 each | one head | $ 0.69 | $ 2.00 | $1.31 |
| Watermelon | Mini red watermelon, seedless, from US | Mini red watermelon, organic, from ON | $1.99/lb | $1.40/lb | 4lbs | $ 7.96 | $ 5.60 | -$2.36 |
| Tortillas | Casa Mendosa whole wheat, 10 tortillas | McKechnie Foods, whole wheat (organic flour), 8 tortillas | $.26/tortilla | $.44/tortilla | 8 tortillas | $ 2.08 | $ 3.52 | $1.44 |
| Peaches | Ontario fruit, conventional, 3 litres | Sustainably farmed from Palatine, 12.5lb box | $1.04/lb | $1.40/lb | 3 lbs | $ 3.12 | $ 4.20 | $1.08 |
| | | | | | | Grocery Store Total for 21 items | BLF Total for 21 items | Total Difference |
| | | | | | | $ 98.18 | $ 86.17 | -$ 12.01 |
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