Greenitforward’s Weblog

I am a foodie.  I love good scrumptious, hearty, flavor on an artfully arranged plate, shared with good friends and raucous conversation.  I love the “slow food” concept, the idea that meals are sacred.  They’re a kind of agnostic church, wherever two people come together…  And good food deserves the homage.  I fight for these moments.  I fight for these moments by trying to honor the huge importance, the complex history, and the undeniable medicinal science of food and diet.  For me, this reverence has seeded a desire to re-connect with “the land”, that idyllic nostalgic bounty that we call the earth.  And so I commenced to planting tomatoes in the borrowed sun of my landlord’s back yard. 

Knowing tomatoes alone (especially those nourished in questionable Brooklyn top soil) would not sustain me, I turned to the buying group.  Buying groups are kinda hippy.  They’re like the vestiges of a 1960 flower-power commune project.  They’re like a YMCA for food.  I guess that makes me a flower-blowing, bell-bottom wearing village person!    

A buying group is essentially a collective of individuals (members) who pool they’re purchasing power to take advantage of economies of scale.  Members benefit from wholesale prices by cutting out the middle man (or third or fourth man). 

Like any organization, buying groups reflect the priorities and personalities of their members, so different buying groups engage in different missions.  In the case of my buying group, Kalabash Food Coop, our mission is to develop cooperative economic practices in disadvantaged neighborhoods through the purchasing organic and farm-direct produce.   There are a number of reasons why I chose to commit my grocery money and volunteer time to such a mission, but mainly because inner-city communities face a lack of access and financial resources to buy organic on a regular basis.  I feel good knowing that my efforts help improve access to healthy food options, ensure that the land on which it grows is being treated better than average, and that what I consume is largely unadulterated.  Not to mention, my pocket doesn’t hurt the same way it would if I bought the same items at Whole Foods.

But buying groups don’t exist without community.  They involve like-minded people banding together, and making a mutual financial commitment.  The practice itself reminds us that it takes a village to, well, feed a village.  Like a good meal, a buying group can take a lot of time and effort to prepare, but the rewards are scrumptious and sweet—and taste even better when you have a few friends to join you. 

You can learn more about buying groups and community supported agricultural groups in New York City by visiting www.justfood.org.  

Happy Harvest! 

Candace Hewitt