Here’s a flyer for upcoming ways to taste great food/drink and learn at the Co-op:
Celebrate Fair Trade this May!
On May 10, we will be celebrating World Fair Trade Day with Alaffia, Alter Eco, Divine Chocolate, Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, Equal Exchange, and Guayaki Yerba Mate. All these brands are committed to fair trade through their entire supply chains supporting small family farmers and trade justice policies.
Look for great deals on fair trade products at the co-op from April 28 through May 20, when the manufactures have agreed to donate 1 percent of purchases made at participating co-ops to Root Capital. Root Capital is a nonprofit social investment fund that grows rural prosperity in poor, environmentally vulnerable places in Africa and Latin America by lending capital, delivering financial training, and strengthening market connections for small and growing agricultural businesses. The National Cooperative Grocers Association (www.strongertogether.coop) will be matching the manufacturers’ donations as well. Learn more about Root Capital at www.rootcapital.org.
May Beers to Your Health: the Ayurvedic Diet
A holistic approach to eating that takes into account your unique body type, aims to prevent disease and make you a more happy and healthy person. Ayurveda is an ancient medical practice from India with mainstream appeal, appearing on Dr. Oz, for example. The three doshas, which are the Ayurvedic body types, are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha which each carry a set of behavioral and physical characteristics and a prescription for foods to eat and avoid for optimal well-being. The Astoria Co-op’s monthly food and wellness lecture series, Beers to Your Health, will cover the basics.
The Co-op’s guest speaker for May is Yogacharya Dharmananda, also known as Swamiji. Swamiji is a prominent scholar and teacher of the Science of Yoga, Hindu Philosophy, and Comparative Religion.
As the former Director of the International Vishwaguru Yoga and Meditation Institute (Rishikesh, India), he has given these teachings to students from all over the world for more than 25 years.
“The benefit (of the Ayurvedic Diet) will be health, including cancer and diabetes prevention, for example. Food-related sicknesses will be increasing with seasonal changes now in spring and with summer coming. There has to be a change in diet with a change of weather. As summer approaches, heat outside increases and so does heat in the body. There are substances which should not be taken much; coffee for example, onions, and garlic which add heat into the body,” Swamiji said.
Swamiji currently resides in Longmont, Colorado and works with Longmont United Hospital’s award-winning spirituality program. Columbia Memorial Hospital is bringing him to Astoria for a series of workshops for nurses and other caregivers called Healthcare from the Heart.
“We feel extremely fortunate that we are able to have Swamiji speak at our lecture while he’s in town. It is a unique opportunity and I hope anyone who’s interested in eating better can come,” Astoria Co-op Marketing Director Zetty Nemlowill said.
The lecture happens on Thursday May 8th at 7 p.m. in the Fort George Lovell Showroom at 14th and Duane Streets in Astoria. Doors open at 6 p.m. for food and drinks. The event is free and open to all ages.
Fresh Meat & Seafood at the Co-op
For the first time in the Co-op’s 40 year history, we started carrying fresh meat and fish this year! Oregon grass-fed beef, organic chicken and wild local seasonal fish are among the many new products we have for you. The Co-op has carried frozen meat and fish for several years, but increased shopper demand for fresh has led to this expansion.
Here is some information about our purveyors:
Smart Chicken produces the finest humanely raised certified organic chicken on the market. The Co-op worked hard with our local meat distributor to be able to bring you the very best fresh chicken option in North America. Smart Chicken offers the healthiest, best tasting, and most sustainable chicken on the market. We strongly encourage you to read more about their practices, from water conservation and protection, care and husbandry, and technological innovation in processing. Click here to learn more.
Grass-Fed Beef from Knee Deep Cattle Company
Born and raised on Oregon’s green pastures in the Willamette Valley, Knee Deep produced 100% grass-fed beef with no added hormones or antibiotics. All Black Angus cattle are certified humanely raised too. Sold at natural food stores throughout Oregon, we are proud to carry this line of local beef.
Fresh Seafood
For fish, we’re picking up whatever is fresh and local directly at Bornstein’s in Astoria. Much of the fish that’s caught off our waters get trucked to Portland prior to redistribution to stores and restaurants in our area. We’re committed to circumventing the larger supply lines to bring you the freshest most sustainable seafood in the world!
Co-op Farm Visit & Local Flower Workshop
Straight from the Cutting Garden: Growing and Using Your Own Cut Flowers
On the summer solstice, join Kathleen Barber, owner of Erika’s Fresh Flowers and Floral Designer Erika McDowell for a three hour workshop on how to use fresh flowers from your own cutting garden to decorate your home.
Kathleen and Erika will share with you the plants that grow on the farm and are well suited for the North Oregon Coast, how to use them in floral arranging, including tips on how to properly condition flowers for maximum vase life. You will design a work of art from fresh, organic floral material to take home in a container provided.
The Straight from the Cutting Garden workshop will take place on the flower farm in Warrenton. Dress for the weather and bring your garden apron if you wish. The class will be standing for three hours, with light refreshments provided. Floral cutters will be available, however if you have your own favorite pair of cutters you are welcome to bring them.
Maximum of 7 students so sign up early! Registration is open as of April 1 at the Co-op.
Date of workshop: Saturday, June 21 (Summer Solstice) Time: 1:00-4:00 p.m.
Cost is $45 (includes instruction, plus container and arrangement to take home)
To learn more about Kathleen and Erika, visit www.erikasfreshflowers.com.
Questions? Email [email protected]
Co-op Class: Fermented Food
Fermentation is an ancient way of preserving food with modern appeal in today’s food culture, for its taste and health benefits. Local farmers, Carol Carver and George Exum of Island’s End Farm on Puget Island, Washington, ferment many of the vegetables they grow. They will share their fermenting knowledge and advice on how you can do it, on Thursday April 10, at the Astoria Co-op’s monthly food and wellness lecture series “Beers to Your Health” at the Fort George Lovell Showroom, 14th and Duane St. in Astoria.
Carol and George have been growing food for their family for about 35 years. Seven years ago they started farming commercially. They use organic practices and grow a variety of fruit and vegetables. They sell their produce, jams, pesto, and fermented products—different types of sauerkraut and kimchi—at the Cannon Beach farmer’s market, River People Farmers Market in Astoria, Puget Island Farmers Market on Puget Island, and the Astoria Co-op.
During a tour of a biodynamic winery in California, the owner sparked their interest in fermented foods while at the same being interested in learning from George how he made wine from root crops like bulb fennel. They read books by Sandor Katz, the “guru of fermentation” and experimented with fermenting food until they felt comfortable selling it. Fermenting preserves the quality and vitamins of food, and there’s added health benefits.
“Fermented products that have not been subjected to heat have good bacteria for your gut and that’s what people are calling probiotics. So when you eat fermented vegetables you get all the nutritional value of the vegetables plus the probiotics that will help with digestion, and there’s strong evidence that it helps with reducing inflammation and increasing immunity,” Carver said.
Fermented foods, including sauerkraut and kimchi, can be eaten in a variety of ways.
“We use them with sandwiches, eggs, frequently sausage and sauerkraut, and we know people who just eat it out of the jar, but most use it as a side dish. It goes well with a lot of things,” Exum said.
At the lecture, the Carvers will explain the fermenting process of both food and wine, bringing along some of their fermenting crocks for people to see. They will offer samples, and have their products for sale.
The Astoria Co-op produces these lectures to educate and increase awareness about healthy food. The Fort George Brewery provides the space as a service to the community.
Beers to Your Health is free and open to people of all ages. Doors open at 6 p.m. Food and drinks are available for purchase. The presentation begins at 7 p.m. and last about an hour.
Co-op Class: Edible Landscapes
Learn how to transform your backyard into an edible landscape, featuring native plants. Join us Thursday March 13th for our monthly food and wellness lecture we call “Beers to Your Health”. Why do we call it that? It’s located in a space generously offered up by our neighbor, Fort George brewery. For this month’s lecture, we’re collaborating with North Coast Food Web to bring Farmers Scott and Dixie Edwards from Watershed Garden Works here from Longview, Washington. They will share their expertise, and even have some plants available for you to check out and purchase if you wish.
Here’s our poster:
More information:
Dixie and Scott’s main business at Watershed is growing and selling northwest native plants for stream and wetland restoration, but the farmers also grow plants and produce for farmers markets. You can find their edible and ornamental plants, fruits, vegetables, jams, jellies, and pickles in Astoria at the River People Farmers Market. The farmers will share their expertise with a focus on edible landscaping.
“Edible landscaping can mean a lot of different things such as aesthetically pleasing vegetables in your flower beds… all the different types of common edible plants that would fit in with the existing landscape and how to create zones in your landscape where you’re trying to produce food year round in our unique climate,” Scott said.
Farmer Dixie Edwards also plans to touch on local ethnobotany, the scientific study of the traditional relationship between people and plants.
“Wapatos were a staple food for a large population of people here before Lewis and Clark. Wapato, Camas, berries and how they were used also fits into the landscaping because those plants are adapted to our climate,” Dixie said. A Wapato is a small potato that grows in marshes. Camas was another root vegetable food source for native people.
Our co-collaborator for this event is North Coast Food Web, a local non-profit aimed at connecting local people with local food. The lecture is free and open to all ages.
The details:
When: Thursday March 13, doors open at 6 p.m. for food and drinks.
Lecture is 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Fort George Lovell Showroom, 1483 Duane St. Astoria
Food Culture of Clatsop County
We are teaming up with the American Association of University Women (AAUW) to host a lecture called “Food Culture of Clatsop County” in February. This is part of the Co-op’s monthly food and wellness lecture series called “Beers to Your Health” at Fort George Brewery, and it is one in a series of monthly programs sponsored by the Astoria branch of AAUW. Founded in 1881, AAUW is a national organization whose mission it is to empower women through advocacy and education.
From farming to fishing, those attending will get to hear from some of the most prominent women shaping our local food scene. A panel of speakers includes Alana Kujala of Skipanon Brand Seafood, Kristin Frost Albrecht of OSU Extension and North Coast Food Web, Teresa Retzlaff of 46 North Farm and North Coast Food Web, plus Kelly Huckestein, a farmer and produce manager at the Astoria Co-op.
AAUW will lead the discussion in a question and answer format that the group traditionally uses at its candidate forums. AAUW President, Meredith Payton, came up with the concept of featuring local food culture in an educational way and asked if the Co-op, a community-owned grocer, would like to be involved.
“The Co-op jumped at partnering with AAUW on this lecture, because the topic of local food is in line with the work we do, for example, sourcing from several farms within a 40-mile radius,” Astoria Co-op Marketing Director Zetty Nemlowill said.
The Astoria branch of AAUW was founded in 1927. As the organization evolves it is innovating with new types of events and collaborations such as this food culture lecture with the Co-op.
“This is us getting out into a different realm of the community to get new membership, to branch out to younger generations,” Payton said. AAUW membership information will be available at the event.
The lecture is free and open to all ages. Those wishing to attend are encouraged to show up early as seating is limited to 60.
When: Thursday February 13, Doors open at 6 p.m. (food and drinks available for purchase) Presentation 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Where: Fort George Lovell Showroom, 1483 Duane St. Astoria
December Giving at the Co-op
This season of giving, the Astoria Co-op will be taking a portion of the money you spend at the store in December, and donating it to local causes. Coming up on Sunday December 22, we will donate 10% of everything you spend to Clatsop Community Action’s Regional Food Bank.
A quarter of residents in Clatsop County qualify for emergency food assistance. In five years, the CCA Food Bank distributed twice as much food as it did five years ago. The need has increased dramatically but also the methods of gathering food has grown substantially, as the food bank is much more active in the community, working hard to procure food and funds to a greater degree than ever before.
We donate fresh food several times a week to the food bank, as well as our non-perishable food bin you’ve been filling this holiday season, but we wanted to help in an even bigger way. Marlin Martin, food program developer for the food bank says the food drives this time of year are great, but cash is king when it comes to leveraging loads of food.
“With money, we can procure 5 to 6 pounds of food for every dollar, whereas a can of vegetables might cost close to a dollar in a store. The other thing money is important for is we can procure products in bulk commodity, repackaging and labeling them at the food bank. We can get 10 to 20 pounds more food by buying in bulk,” Martin said.
Earlier this month your Co-op donated 10% of sales on December 8 to Astoria schools via parents clubs for extra supplies including books and activities such as field trips.
We like to do good things for the community (we are community-owned after all). In fact, this year the Co-op won Clatsop Economic Development Resources’ award for “Business Service to the Community”.
What & When:
Sunday December 22: Astoria Co-op donates 10% of sales to CCA’s Regional Food Bank
Where: The Astoria Co-op is located at 1355 Exchange St. in Astoria open 8-8 daily.
Owner Spotlight with Marni Postlewait
Q: What is your food philosophy (what do you enjoy eating and feel is healthy)?
A: In our house we focus on “real food”. To us this means food that is as fresh and local as possible, mostly organically-grown or raised in a way that nature intended, homemade and minimally processed. This means I prepare a LOT of food in my own kitchen. We also try to minimize our consumption of grain-based carbohydrates and one member of our family has a recently-discovered wheat allergy so we try to avoid that altogether. The goal is, every meal entirely from scratch including sauces, condiments and salad dressings. We don’t achieve this 100% of the time, but we do most of the time.
Q: Why do you shop at the Co-op?
A: I shop at the Co-op because it is a convenient place to find many of the organic or specialty products that I love while supporting a local business. I also believe that every food dollar we spend is a vote in support of what kind of food we want to eat and the practices that are used in bringing these foods to our dinner table. The less we spend at large, corporate grocery stores that oppose GMO labeling and use practices that overtly deceive consumers, and the more we spend at locally owned stores like the Co-op that provide quality products from quality farms, dairies and other companies, then the quicker we will see a shift in our overall food supply. This is a shift that I believe is happening, which I think is exciting.
Q: What is your favorite product(s)?
A: Many of my favorite products at the Co-op are in the bulk section. I love the selection of nuts, seeds and alternative flours. I also love the selection of farmstead cheeses and other dairy products. And of course, I buy many of the herbal
supplements and natural remedies. My husband is especially impressed with the beer selection.
Q: How do you encourage your children to eat healthy?
A: My kids are older now and are able to understand how food affects them and why good nutrition and “clean eating” are important. I share articles with them that I read on certain subjects so they can have the information themselves.
When they ask for things I’d rather they not have I’ll ask them to read the ingredients. Learning what many of these hard-to-pronounce ingredients are, is often enough to help them decide on their own to make a better choice. My kids often hear me say “This isn’t food”.
I also really try to help my children understand how the food they have eaten may be making them feel at a certain time. About 8 years ago I stopped buying anything with artificial color and immediately noticed a change in their behavior. It was drastic! Now they are older and though eating colorful candy is still tempting to them and they occasionally do, they all realize that it doesn’t help them feel and think better, later.
Q: “What are your favorite foods around the holidays?”
A: We celebrate Christmas at our house and that starts soon after Thanksgiving. Normally we don’t do too many sweet treats, but at Christmas we splurge a little. Each of the kids gets to help make their favorite treat, and we share with friends and neighbors and enjoy them through the season. Our big Christmas dinner usually consists of a prime rib roast with all the usual side dishes. This will be the second year it will come from locally raised, grass fed beef. And in keeping with my mother’s tradition, who felt like Christmas was her only day off throughout the year, we have our big dinner on Christmas Eve. It’s all homemade from scratch, and the whole family is involved! Walt roasts the prime rib, my daughters make pies, my son makes fluffy dinner rolls and I take care of the sides. Christmas morning is a cheese and egg breakfast casserole with homemade cinnamon rolls. Both have been made ahead so all we have to do it pop them in the oven. The rest of the day we snack on the most delicious reheated leftovers, and things like dips, cheese spreads and cold salads that have been made ahead so that we have more time to enjoy the day without spending it working in the kitchen.
Q: What advice would you give to another family who is just starting to focus on feeding their family healthier, less processed food?
A: My advice would be baby steps. It can be very overwhelming at first. Try to focus on any improvement you make and not on how much is left to be learned or accomplished. If most of your meals are processed or packaged, then begin by trying to cook 2 nights a week. Try to make extra to put in the freezer for a future meal. Get the whole family involved. Watch cooking shows or You Tube videos to learn techniques or new recipes. And don’t be afraid to experiment a little! And then after 6 months or so look back at what you were doing when you started and see how far you’ve come. You’ll probably impress yourself!
See Marni’s recipe for Spaghetti Squash Au Gratin in our winter newsletter (out soon).