This Week's News in Food

Good Morning,
I hope you are all celebrating birth and Spring this fine Sunday morning. There are many ways to celebrate the gifts life offers, and one of them is by ordering said gifts for your own enjoyment and nourishment.
So, the Market is open. We experienced some HUGE sales yesterday; the Spread the Word campaign is working. Keep it up!
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Quick thought: a lot of farmers’ markets are soon to open. I believe attending the first Spring markets is an important part of the new season: you get to say Hello to your farmers after a long winter, enjoy time outdoors, and get some real community time.
May I suggest something…
Sales in Food Club typically drop off as other markets open, which makes perfect sense. There are more options for getting local food. And, as long as people are buying their food locally, who can complain? Many of our Food Club customers do the following: they get their staples from our market (bread, cheese, lettuces, meats) and visit the other farmers’ markets to enjoy socializing and buy the extra knick-knacks for their kitchen. We believe in networking markets together for the benefit of everyone. Get your food from a variety of markets; they have different things to offer. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. So, we encourage you to continue using Food Club regularly and enjoying your other markets simultaneously!
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A big Thank You to Maison Terre for spending time at Food Club yesterday, showcasing her fantastically dyed eggs (see pictures on her Facebook page), spices, teas, and skills in all things herbal and beautiful.
Two things from Maison Terre:
Natural Egg Dye Recipes
Raised Bed Plans.
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Check THIS Out…
We have a new vendor! Please welcome New South Nursery. Tom Frothingham manages an 18-acre farm and nursery in West Pulaski County. He specializes in native plants and saves and cultivates his plants specific to our region, using Integrated Pest Management and organic fertilizers. Look for his native wildflowers, vines, fig trees, and vegetable plants under our Plants section. Here’s a word from Tom himself… "Hello everyone, this Tom Frothingham. My involvement with sustainable agriculture stretches back over 30 years, with a particular interest in native plant conservation for the last 10 years. New South Nursery focuses on Arkansas native plants, but my love of plants is pretty eclectic so we offer a number of non native plants, including heirloom vegetables, herbs, carnivorous plants and fig trees. I’m very excited to be a part of the Arkansas Local Food Network, and I look forward to a great growing season this year. "

Farm Girl Natural Foods is back in our market, with a variety of tasty meats. They’ve got all cuts of chicken, plus stew birds and whole chickens. Fresh Ham. This caught my eye: Hmong Sausage: a Northern Thai sausage featuring unique asian flavors. I’m eager to try it out!

North Pulaski has a lot of beautiful, green-purple broccolini. I’ll be roasting my broccolini from yesterday’s pickup later.

It’s warm and occasionally not wet outside. Time to do some grilling. Farm Girl, Falling Sky, and Youngblood Grassfed Meats have a variety of pork chops, sausages, and bratwursts. Don’t forget our offerings for grassfed beef!

Crimmins Family Farm is bursting at the seems with produce. I think they may have a pest problem, because they appear to be emptying out organic rabbit food onto our market at unparalleled rates.
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Fun Farmer Updates:
Here are the Farmers’ Markets opening this April and May!
15 Shade Tolerant Plants for your shady yard.
Drewry Farm & Orchards is having a Plant Sale.
Rattle’s Garden Flower Ladder.
Falling Sky Farm raised $10,000 in under three weeks! Three cheers! Crowdfunding works, people!

There’s a million more bits of news to share in this ever-growing local food landscape. Stay tuned for delicious updates.
Sincerely,
Sam Hedges