Weekly Market News
11/14/19
Living Well Farmers Market
(Formerly Suwanee Whole Life Co-op)
Order on Our Website: https://livingwellga.com/ Fridays to Sundays
Pick Up Location: 1300 Peachtree Industrial Blvd, Suite 1104, Suwanee 30024 at Cultured Traditions (LOWER LEVEL at The Plaza at Suwanee Station Shopping Center)
Pick Up Date & Time: WEDNESDAYS 1 pm to 6:30pm
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New Farm: Old Cotton Hill Farms
I am so happy to welcome Chez and Neah Maxwell of Old Cotton Hill Farms, in Pocataligo, Madison County, Georgia to our family of growers and producers! They raise heritage breeds Red Waddle Hogs and Freedom Ranger Chickens. They pasture raise the animals, allowing to forage and scratch as they please while supplementing them with a special order certified organic mixture containing no corn and no soy from Reedy Fork Organic Farm in Elon, NC.
(Nora's Side note: Did you know that we do not have an organic feed mill in the whole state of Georgia? I find this very sad and disappointing. Many of our farmers have to drive long distances or order special supplemental feed. Hopefully this will change in the near future and your support will make this happen!!)
I visited this amazing farm on Monday and soon we'll get a farm tour date on the calendar in the Spring so you can visit too. In the meantime please show your support and welcome them to the market! All their available items will be on the market starting this weekend. To find all their items in one place you can visit their Co-op Vendor Store on our website by clicking https://www.livingwellga.com/store/oldcottonhillfarms/
No corn/soy reasoning
At Old Cotton Hill Farms, we choose to raise our animals with certified organic feed containing no corn or soy because we have animal, human, and environmental health in mind. Pigs and chickens are non-ruminant animals, resulting in their inability to fully process certain grains- corn and soy being at the top of the list. As non-ruminant animals, like humans, they do not produce phytase, the enzyme used to break down phytic acid which is very high in corn and soy. As a result, certain elements combine and act as a digestive tract inhibitor within the intestines of the animal, ending in a lack of nutrition consumption and added fat for the animal.
Eating these foods also causes the animal to release excess phosphorus into the environment that attacks the mycorrhizae (the hairs attached to plant roots which absorb nutrients), resulting in suffocation of grasses and plants, and an increase in weeds. The weeds lack the need for mycorrhizae, and take over fields where healthy grasses and plants once grew.
Lastly, this situation effects the water system, as it chokes out good algae needed for healthy ecological habitats. This can alter nutrients and oxygen in the water, which then begins a negative cycle of loss.
Old Cotton Hill Farms - Chicken
At Old Cotton Hill we raise Freedom Ranger chickens, a breed known for their ability to free range as well as their superior taste compared to other meat breeds. We free range our chickens, allowing them to scratch and forage as they please while supplementing them with a special order certified organic mixture containing no corn or soy from Reedy Fork Organic Farm in Elon, NC. Our chickens are happy and well cared for from their arrival to their departure.
Whole and half chickens, hearts, livers, chicken feet, and necks are listed on the market for ordering starting this weekend.
Old Cotton Hill Farms - Pork
Our pigs are supplemented a no corn or soy organic feed from Reedy Fork Organic Farm in Elon, NC. We chose a no corn or soy diet for our pigs due to the breed, animal health, human health, and environmental health. Corn and soy are used in the conventional agriculture model as a means of fattening the animals as cheaply and quickly as possible. We raise slow growth meat, valuing the health and quality of life of our product above all. Red Wattle hogs are naturally a lean meat hog with excellent marbling quality, which eliminates the need for any fat increasing ingredients. Due to the physiological make-up of pigs (non-ruminant animals, like humans) they have a restricted ability to fully process certain grains. When these grains are not fully processed in the digestive tract of the animal, excess chemical elements are released into the environment resulting in negative environmental impacts.
Red Wattle hogs are a heritage breed known for their adaptability and ability to thrive on pasture. They are an endangered breed of swine which nearly went extinct in the 1800’s due their inability to thrive, and even survive, in the dreaded feed lot systems used by the conventional agriculture model. Instead of a 12’ x 12’ pen, our hogs are raised on 32 acres of beautiful pasture and woods maintained by the animals and with manual labor instead of herbicides and pesticides. Pigs are great tools for land maintenance when used correctly, as they keep the soil turned, seeds germinating, and grass growing, which increases their food source and reduces our carbon footprint, resulting in increased land and environmental health.
Ground Pork, Sliced Pork Shoulder, Fatback, Pork Bones, Pig Feet,Ham Roast, Picnic Roast are listed on the market for ordering starting this weekend.
Ground Pork- Seasoning
We (Old Cotton Hill Farms) chose to have no seasoning added to our ground pork, to ensure the meat’s quality would not be jeopardized by adding less than organic additives. Instead, we researched and created our own one-of-a-kind sausage seasoning, and purchased the certified organic herbs and spices from Frontier Co-Op. These spices are measured out and packaged, and are given to customers when they purchase ground pork if they want it at no extra charge.
Old Cotton Hill Farms’ sausage seasoning can be used two different ways. You can empty the packet of seasoning into your ground pork, mix, and cook immediately, or you can empty the packet of seasoning into your ground pork, mix, and let it sit in the refrigerator for several hours before cooking. Both are equally delicious!
There will be 2 listings for Ground Pork depending on if you want the free seasoning pack or not.
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New Items!
Check out these new items just listed on the market!
Vegetable Broth (Organic ingredients)
Jerusalem Artichokes – aka Sunchokes
Jam/Jelly filled Cream Cheese Turnovers
Charcoal & Green Clay TALLOW SOAP
NEW! Georgia Olive Farms Olive Oil
Group Buys- just in case you missed it...
Last weekend we had our group buys but I did order some extra cheese, sea salt, organic spices and herbs, MCT oil, and more. Quantity is limited but just in case you missed it, there are still some items available.
Easy way to find all the group buy items in 1 place is in the Menu click Co-op Vendor Stores, then click Living Well Farmers Market and visit store. Or you can click this link https://www.livingwellga.com/store/living-well-farmers-market/ They are also in each individual subcategory as well.
PLEASE HELP! Volunteers Needed at pick up!
1 VOLUNTEER NEEDED NEXT WEEK at 5pm
Since I'm not sure when the new store will open up I went ahead a created Volunteer schedule until end of December. Please click link below if you can help!
Please consider volunteering during market pick up. I can’t run the market without your help! Shifts are 1 hour long and go by really fast. It's a great opportunity to meet and help your fellow members!
Thank you Gwen ,Stephanie, Melanie, Chuck, and Kelly for volunteering last Wednesday! We couldn't have the co-op without our amazing volunteers!!
If you are interested in volunteering but unsure exactly what that involves, please let Nora know and she will do a quick "volunteer orientation" with you on a day/time that you pick up.
Thanksgiving week delivery and holiday schedule, buildout update
I plan to have Market on Wednesday, Nov 27th the day before Thanksgiving. It will be normal pick up hours.
I've decided since Christmas and New Year's Day falls on a Wednesday this year that I will not have Market those weeks. I will send a reminder stock up before those last 2 weeks of the year.
With regards to store buildout, we passed our final mechanical inspection, and my CO application has been submitted to the Fire Marshal today! Now waiting to hear back for the Fire Marshal inspection date that should be sometime next week. As soon as we get the CO we can start moving in and getting the store ready. I'll keep you all posted!!
FAQ: Check Out Issue: Register or Renew Subscription screen
Question: I'm trying to check out on the Living Well site and am getting an error. I recently paid my renewal and I didn't have trouble ordering on the new site last week so I'm thinking there maybe a glitch. I've got 5 items in my cart and when I try to check out I get a screen with the following: Register or Renew Subscription
Answer: The fix is to clear your cookies and cache from your browser. There's a lengthy techie explanation but the short is we updated your membership in the database. Your browser doesn't recognize the membership change since the last cookie had different information. If you delete your cookies and cache it will not get hung up and allow you to check out.
You can search how to clear cookies and cache in your specific browser. Thank you for your support!
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Repeat
Crave Pie - Keep Briana in your prayers
Please keep our sweet friend, Briana and her staff, in your thoughts and prayers as she rebuilds her Duluth location and opens new spot in Alpharetta.
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Group Buy Schedule and Events
Below is a list of upcoming co-op group buys to help with planning and budgeting. All dates are subject to change.
Group Buys:
FCLO - TBD Dec
Collagen - TBD Dec
Upcoming Farmer/Vendor of the Day/Farm Tour:
COMMUNITY CORNER
Community Resource Directory
The purpose of this directory is to help co-op members advertise their products or services and to foster a sense of community.
If you are an active member and would like to list your service, organization, or business, please send me an email with your name, business name, brief description, website address and contact information. The directory will be updated on a monthly basis. Please do not submit products that compete with our farms or vendors. I’m looking forward to supporting all our local business owners and I hope you are too!
List of Health Practitioners - Member referrals (DOCUMENT BELOW)
If you have someone you can recommend please send to Nora@livingwellga.com
Member Announcements
So proud of one of our co-op members, Ruthie Norton, for starting ParkFit Kids! Happy to welcome her as one of our newest wellness partners. Check out her flyer below for more details:
About Us
We are an online farmers market that strives to provide the community convenient access to nutrient dense, organically grown foods and healthy products that contain No Antibiotics, No Hormones, No Synthetic Fertilizers or Chemicals, No Additives, such as MSG or Nitrates, No GMO Soy and No GMOs.
Email: nora@livingwellga.com
Website: https://livingwellga.com
Location: 1300 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard, Suite 1104, Suwanee, GA, United States
Phone: 404-934-4644
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SuwaneeWholeLife/
Twitter: @localfoods30024