Faster Slow Food

Nice little piece in the NY Times Magazine this morning re: Online Grocery Shopping. Faster Slow Food doesn't get too deep into the burgeoning trend Retail Relay is a part of, but it does -- as an opinion piece will do -- offer a bit of reverse thinking and common sense about how going online can change the way we go about shopping for the food we need. Mark Bittman, who writes the weekly Minimalist column in the Times Dining section, comes at the subject from the perspective of his own (in geek-speak) preferences, and ends up very succinctly listing customer-centric goals we at Retail Relay (six people and 24 stores and farms) hope to achieve one day soon.

"You could also immortalize your preferences (“Never show me anything whose carbon footprint is bigger than that of my car”; “Show me no animals raised in cages”; “Don’t show me vegetables grown more than a thousand miles from my home”), along with any and all of your cooking quirks (“When I buy chicken, ask me if I want rosemary”). You would receive, if you wanted, an e-mail message when shipments of your favorite foods arrived at the store or went on sale; you could get recipe ideas, serving suggestions, shopping lists, nutritional information and cooking videos. If poor-quality food arrived — yellowing broccoli, stinky fish, whatever — you would receive store credit without any hassle. You might even, I suppose, be able to ask the store to limit the amount of impulse purchases that you make — forget that second pint of Ben & Jerry’s or those Cheez-Its you have trouble resisting."

It's a big vision, but suffice to say, we're getting there -- though without the implicit automation. Some of you have no doubt suggested items we should carry and gotten a personal note from Dennis Bates, our operations dude, saying he was on it. He gets in touch with the best retailer for the job, takes the picture, enters the data, and emails you back when the item is up and available for sale (if you have been kind and trusting enough to include a return address). That's a lot of human effort to achieve one slice of what Bittman is requesting. Much effort (and capital!) will be needed before we reach the level of electronic customer engagement in his vision. For now, that's okay. We understand that very often the first preference our customers reveal is to ask, "Do you carry ____?" It is the beginning of a conversation. Thankfully, the best response is still human-to-human.

Know Your Farmer

A staple of the local food lingo, "Know Your Farmer" is actually a stand-in for know where your food is coming from as you place it before yourself and your loved ones on your table. As anyone who remembers the e.coli outbreaks of the recent past knows, it can be a matter of life or death. But actually getting to know your farmer? Aside from some quick banter at the City Market, how much do you really know about the trials and tribulations of your local earth workers? (Did I just coin that?)

Here's some real-life farmer drama: Just got word that Megan and Rob Weary, of Roundabout Farm in Keswick, are staring at VDOT plans that would slice an estimated 40 acres off their farm. Besides being good friends, excellent people, and amazing farmers, the Wearys were also a major supplier of Retail Relay's local produce this summer, so this could hurt you, me, Retail Relay -- and an entire community of locavores.

What are the Weary's like? Check out this video we shot back in the wet, wet, spring, when their buttery lettuces, garlic stalks, and red-white-and-blue potatoes were just getting under way. Get to know a real farming tandem, and shoot them an email at info@roundaboutfarm.net to see how you can help fight their good fight. Don't let the bumper sticker read, "Local Food Lost is Local Food Lost Forever."

You may have noticed, Retail Relay is growing -- by leaps and, ahem, trucks! Last week Arnie and Dennis went down to South Carolina to score a second truck. Now we've got the means to service two pick-up spots at the same time! Thanks, guys, for making the trip...