September 2013 Newsletter

THE GREENE HILL FOOD COOP - AUGUST 2013 NEWSLETTER

In this issue It’s nearly fall, and elections are in the air. Get ready to vote for your Co-op board at our next General Meeting. We’ve got a million ways to get involved this month, including our exciting new Up-Shift working group. Our Fall Celebration is nigh: you can paint our mural, help out, or just show up and party! Learn where we get our eggs, make a delicious late summer salsa, and hear from one of our local growers, too. Greene Hill News Elections to the Board of Directors -- September 26 The Board of Directors is undergoing a lot of changes this year in the way that it is structured, and the role that it plays in steering the Co-op's direction. They have a lot of work to do and everyone involved is dedicated to the advancement of the Co-op. Placement on the board requires a minimum of one year membership in the Co-op, and commitment to regular attendance at both the monthly General Meetings and working meetings. In this time of transition for the Board, we have an excellent pool of candidates who have submitted their bios and experience for your consideration, so be sure to cast your vote either online or in person. The current Board will be presenting their mission for the members' review and approval at the GM on the 26th. Next General Meeting The next general meeting will be held on Thursday, September 26, 2013 at 138 S. Oxford Street, between Hanson Place and Atlantic Avenue in Fort Greene. Come vote in the Board election and vote on what the Board’s role is and how it connects with all the Co-op’s committees. Also hear from the Website Committee which is looking for one or two new co-chairs, so if you are interested in a leadership role come to the general meeting to find out what they do (work credit, as always applies). The Design/Build Committee will propose construction and cost of a new receiving desk. The full meeting agenda can be accessed here. General Inventory: Help out on Sunday, Sept. 29 It’s nearly the end of our fiscal year, and that means it’s inventory time. Calling all members! We need your help for this year’s General Inventory on Sunday, September 29th. Stock up on hours and help us check our stock. See Help Wanted for more details. Announcing the Creation of the “Up-Shift” Working Group The Greene Hill Food Co-op is initiating an exciting new initiative to think through the challenges of adequately staffing all shifts: Project Up-Shift. Using Design Thinking, the committee will interview members, brainstorm, and design and test solutions. Members interested in joining this team, either as subjects for interviews or as a team member, should see the job description, in the Help Wanted section below. Got any spare lockers? The Co-op is looking for lockers in which members can safely stash their bags while at work. If any member has any to donate, or suggestions on where some might be obtained, please contact allison@greenehillfood.coop. Fire SALE starting September 19 To make room for new products, we're starting a SALE on the day of the Fall celebration, September 19 — come and stock up on Alphabets pasta, lemonade, Jason hand soap and more! Look out for the SALE signs in the store. Discounts range from 20%-75%. The merchandising committee is in the process of adding new products to our inventory and we want to hear from you what you're missing in your store! Please make use of the product requests clipboard across from the check-in desk. We can't guarantee that we can fulfill every request due to various reasons, but we will try! Happy shopping! A Tree Grows on Putnam Thanks to the efforts of member Maeve Bace and New York City’s Million Trees Campaign, the Greene Hill Co-op is now graced with a tree in front of our store. And what tree is complete without a handsome tree-guard? The Co-op would also like to thank Bradley Lewart of Jerrick Associates, our renovation contractor, for generously donating the guard and cobblestone enclosure — which has the added benefit of allowing for additional bike parking! We can now accommodate 10 bikes! Mural Workshop a Success! The Mural Workshop on Sunday, September 1st went great! Through a series of engaging interactive activities, we created portraits and drawings around the concept of home — exploring themes of place and time. Participants included Ft. Greene Council members, Greene Hill Co-op members and Brooklyn residents. Last fall at the Fall Celebration we asked you about your ideas for a mural. At this year’s Fall Celebration, we will be painting it. So please join us on Saturday, September 21st from 12-6pm and help paint the Co-op Mural! Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights residents gather to start a food co-op in their community. Greene Hill co-founder DK Holland (bending down, in middle) was there to support the effort. Engaging with Brooklyn’s Greater Co-op Community On August 20th, almost 30 food co-op enthusiasts and activists from Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights gathered to launch a food co-op organizing campaign in Central Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Movement Center (BMC) and the NYC Food and Fitness Partnership convened the meeting, with active support from the Park Slope Food Co-op (PSFC). Greene Hill's DK Holland and PSFC representative Lewanika Senghor were also on hand to share their experience and advice. "It may just have been a historic moment," reported BMC food justice organizer Harvir Kaur. "Folks are ready and motivated to build a food co-op for Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights." Many of those attending were PSFC members. Events Co-op Movie Night! First in a series! When: Friday, September 20, 2013 at 8:00 pm Where: The Outpost, 1014 Fulton Street (between Grand and Classon Avenues) Cost: Free but donations are welcome Save the date for a screening of My Brooklyn, an acclaimed documentary about the changes in our neighborhood. Stay for a Q&A with the film's director Kelly Anderson. http://www.mybrooklynmovie.com Fall Celebration and Mural Painting Event! When: Saturday, September 21, 12-6 pm (Rain date Saturday September 28th) Where: The Co-op's Backyard Cost: Free! The day after the film, join us for an afternoon filled with music, food-sampling and demos, mural painting, kids activities, and more! Members and non-members alike are welcome to hang out in the backyard and shop at the store, so bring friends and spread the word!! There will be samples of products the Co-op carries, as well as food and drink for sale. Bring a bag or T-shirt to silkscreen with the Co-op logo! Please contact events@greenehillfood.coop if you would like to work during the day of the event for work credit, or if you're a musician who would like to perform or DJ. Shift Leader Training When: September 23, 7:00 pm Where: The Store! We are having a Shift Leader Training on Sept. 23 at 7pm in the store. From receiving deliveries, to cleaning and composting, we will look over many of the little details that help the store run smoothly. All members are welcome to attend this training, with the hope that we can foster the next generation of shift leaders. Members please note: changes to work shift procedure Effective September 23, emails addressed to shifts@greenehillfood.coop will no longer be read on a daily basis. Have a question? If it's not too urgent, email shifts@greenehillfood.coop or membership@greenehillfood.coop. If you need an answer sooner, you can call the store at 347-799-1939 or stop by during working hours. Need to miss a shift? As of September 20 the work shift reminder that you've been receiving from shifts@greenehillfood.coop (not the automated reminder that you get from Shift Planning) will include a link to the week's schedule (shared via google docs). Instead of emailing shifts@greenehillfood.coop to note your absence, you will need to make a note directly to the google doc instead so that Allison knows not to expect you at the store. Don't forget the shift trading network! Find coverage for missed shifts! We're all back from the summer, reinvigorated and looking to make up for a little bit of slack. If you need tomake up a shift check the google group (https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!forum/greene-hill-shifts-trade) and see if you can cover for someone. If you're still in summer mode and can't make it to your shift, find someone to cover for you (https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups#!forum/greene-hill-shifts-trade)! And make it up to them when you get back in the game. More Importantly, The phone works! Shift cancellations can also be made by calling the store - particularly if it's the day of and members may not have time to check the google doc or email. Call 347-799-1939. On the Shelf Eggs From Indian Run/Shady Maple Farm in Dundee, NY Have you ever wondered where the Greene Hill Co-op gets our eggs? Of course, they come from chickens (apart from the occasional amazing duck or quail eggs, that is). But if you wanted to know more about who supplies our delicious, local eggs, now's your chance. Most of our eggs are produced by hens at Indian Run/Shady Maple Farm in Dundee, NY. All their birds are fully free-range and antibiotic-free, which means that as well as eating corn, soy, and mineral supplements, they forage for bugs, worms, grass, and other goodies that make our eggs high in nutrients and flavor. If we can't get Indian Run eggs, we turn to Westwind Farms in Interlaken NY, which raises cage-free, antibiotic-free hens. We sell eggs in dozens and half-dozens. If there isn't a half-dozen in the fridge when you're buying your eggs, feel free to grab some scissors and cut a dozen carton in half! (But please make sure to take the half that doesn't have the sell-by date on it, so we can keep track of the freshness of our eggs.) Temporary Styrofoam Egg Cartons A few Co-op members have asked why Westwind eggs are packaged in styrofoam containers. The farm has released the following statement, via its Facebook page: We want to inform all our customers about a change in our cartons. There was a fire and the factory that supplied our pulp cartons burned down. Unfortunately it has left us with no alternative than to switch to styrofoam until the factory is rebuilt. We hope you all will stay with us and know that we do all we can to stay environmentally-friendly, and we plan to return to the pulp cartons as soon as the product is available to us! Try This at Home for under $5.00 Tomato & Peach Salsa This salsa can be served with corn tortilla chips or as a topping for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, fajitas, fish, or meat, and is a perfect way to taste the waning days of summer. Prep time: 10 min Yield: 1 ½ cups Ingredients: 2 firm plum tomatoes, diced small 1 firm ripe peach, diced small 1/2 small red onion, finely diced 1/2 cup cilantro 1-2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice 1 small jalepeño pepper, seeded and finely diced (optional) sea salt, to taste Instructions Place all ingredients into a bowl and gently mix. IServe immediately Courtesy of the Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook.  Ingredient Co-Op Price Total for Recipe Plum tomatoes $3.37/lb. $1.69 Peach $2.20/lb. $1.10 Red Onion $1.92/lb. $0.96 Cilantro $1.79/bunch $0.90 Limes $2.11/lb $0.25 Jalapeño pepper (not in stock) TOTAL: $11.39 $4.90 The Co-op Q&A This month, the newsletter interviews Richard Giles, operator of Lucky Dog Farm, an organic farm he and his family started in Hamden, NY in 2000. The Co-op offers a diverse array of produce from Lucky Dog. Greene Hill Co-op Newsletter met with Giles at his farmers' market stall last week to find out more. Q: What do you grow at Lucky Dog Farm? A: We grow organic vegetables — all sorts of greens. Potatoes, carrots, and beets too. Pretty much everything you can grow in the western Catskills. We just recently started bringing our fruit to The Co-op. Right now we have blueberries and strawberries. We also grow grains, like wheat berries and whole wheat flour. Q: How did you get in touch with Greene Hill Co-op? A: Rachelle Faroul of the Purchasing Committee and Co-op member Lauren Melodia networked with farms at the farmers market and that’s how we connected. Q: When did you start selling in the Co-op? A: April or May of this year. At that time we sold ramps. Q: When did you start farming? A: I’ve been farming all my life. I grew up in the South in Mississippi. I began managing farms right out of college. When the farm I was managing sold, I went to grad school, then came up here to New York, where I met my wife. We moved up to the Catskills, known for its beauty and farmland. Q: What kind of sustainable growing practices do you have in place? A: We are certified organic, and that process of growing organic is to grow good food. We also make our own compost, which is a combination of the grasses that we cut on our farm and our neighbors’. We are recycling the actual materials in the soil. We are also enrolled in several soil conservation efforts. Keeping the soil healthy is the goal. Q: What are some things about the way our food system works that you would like to see change in the U.S.? A: I’d like to think that we slowly are changing it. We’re focusing on local food, and mostly customer-driven markets. We like that people are demanding more and more local produce. And we tend to be sustainable with the shorter distances that our food is travelling. I’d surely love to see more attempts by the land grant universities — Cornell is one of them in New York — to look at the food system. They’re very much on the sidelines of sustainable agriculture. And much like anything that we want to change radically, there needs to be large-scale collaboration. For the food system to change towards local and small-scale sustainable growing, it needs a basic support to make a huge impact. The USDA does have some programs to support small-scale farmers, but they’re smaller than most programs. If we want lots of food brought directly to consumers from farms, then we’re going to have to support those farms in more ways than having them build the farms the best they can. There has to be some farm building, whether that’s through land preservation, loan assistance, grant assistance, or by enabling farmers to purchase farms and equipment. Help Wanted:Work & Shift Opportunities Work and shift opportunities can also be found on our website! Fall Celebration Needs You on Sept. 21 Are you an avid gardener or composter that likes to share your knowledge? We'd love to have some gardening or composting workshops at the Fall Celebration on September 21, any time from noon-6pm. Get work credit for teaching something you love to do. Email events@greenehillfood.coop to volunteer. Face painters needed for the Fall Celebration! Come earn your hours working with kids, it will be super fun. You can pick any 2 hour slot between 12-6pm. If you are interested, contact events@greenehillfood.coop. Want to have a great time at a party while doing your work shift? We need volunteers for the day of the Fall Celebration to help with all sorts of tasks from grilling to tabling to silk screening. If interested, contact outreach@greenehillfood.coop or sign up for a job directly here. Tablers Needed: Putnam Triangle, Sept. 21 Sign up to table at Putnam Triangle on Sept 21, the day of the fall celebration, then come to the backyard to do some celebrating of your own. Sign up on ShiftPlanning or email tabling@greenehillfood.coop! Take Stock of the Co-op Help the Co-op take its annual inventory on Sunday, September 29, and earn extra work credit. The Merchandising and Finance Committees need lots of dedicated members to count unsold goods in the store, for the end of our fiscal year. Please e-mail finance@greenehillfood.coop if you can help, and indicate in your message whether you can work one or more of these shifts: 10 am-noon, noon-2pm, 2-4pm and 4-6 pm. The more members who count our stock, the faster we'll get it done! An inventory count is needed for us to produce accurate annual financial statements and tax returns. Help Build a New Membership Committee, October 7th The erstwhile Membership Committee is ready for a revival. As a committee, we’ll devise ways to increase member engagement, develop a new member orientation, and update the Co-op handbook. Interested folk will convene on October 7 to turn the page and see which roles need to be filled, re-define some procedures, and collectively take on some of the committee's tasks. If interested, email Nick at nick@greenehillfood.coop. Problem Solve In-Store Staffing We'd love your feedback! There's a big opportunity for improvement at the coop right now - reliably covering all the work shifts required to meet store operations. So we've initiated an exciting project called "Up-Shift", to help come up with creative solutions. Would you be willing to speak with an Up-Shift team member for 20 minutes, over the phone? Of course, your time will count toward your Co-op work requirement, and will be an invaluable contribution to our success. Please send an email to Jonathan Landau, at j@jlandau.com by Sept 23rd, to make your voice heard! Office Work Available Interested in doing some office work at the store? One of our members is a professional bookkeeper, who's stepped up to coordinate accounting at the Co-op! She's organized bookkeeping tasks at the store into easy, well-structured steps: handling invoices, entering data into our accounting software, and so on. You'd get all the training and guidance you need, while working at a dedicated Finance desk and computer. And you'd be helping the Greene Hill produce financial statements on a regular basis. Please email finance@greenehillfood.coop if you'd like to join us. Call for Designers, Writers and Marketers The Co-op’s Marketing Committee needs experienced graphic designers and marketing pros to help with design, brand strategy, and copywriting. We have an exciting list of creative projects, community engagement events and campaigns, and would love some fresh new members to join our team. Email Sara at marketing@greenehillfood.coop to learn more. We can’t wait to meet you! Join the Membership Relief Council The Membership Relief Council needs new folks. Are fairness and equity important to you? Are you responsive to emails? By joining Membership Relief, you could help the Co-op make important policy decisions (without a big time commitment). Contact us at membershipreliefcouncil@greenehillfood.coop. Members please note: changes to work shift procedure Effective September 23, emails addressed to the shifts@greenehillfood.coop will no longer be read on a daily basis. Have a question? If it's not too urgent, email shifts@greenehillfood.coop or membership@greenehillfood.coop. If you need an answer sooner, you can call the store at 347-799-1939 or stop by during working hours. Need to miss a shift? As of September 20 the work shift reminder that you've been receiving from shifts@greenehillfood.coop (not the automated reminder that you get from Shift Planning) will include a link to the week's schedule (shared via google docs). Instead of emailing shifts@greenehillfood.coop to note your absence, you will need to make a note directly to the google doc instead so that Allison knows not to expect you at the store. Don't forget the shift trading network! Find coverage for missed shifts! We're all back from the summer, reinvigorated and looking to make up for a little bit of slack. If you need to make up a shift check the google group and see if you can cover for someone. If you're still in summer mode and can't make it to your shift, find someone to cover for you! And make it up to them when you get back in the game. More Importantly, The phone works! Shift cancellations can also be made by calling the store - particularly if it's the day of and members may not have time to check the google doc or email. Call 347-799-1939. Et cetera My Brooklyn image by Laurie Sumiye. Bed-Stuy meeting and tree images courtesy of DK Holland. Salsa image courtesy of Jill Hoffman. Mural Workshop image courtesy of Rachel Robbins and Erin Gleason. The Greene Hill Food Co-op Newsletter is edited by Carola Burroughs, Debbie Grossman, Matthew Hayes, and Alexandra Miller. Contact us with any feedback, suggestions, or requests at newsletter@greenehillfood.coop.