Buy local eggs, save Virginia agriculture

I wasn’t lucky enough to get to attend the Monticello Heritage Harvest Festival this year, but I recently watched some of the “Meet the Farmer TV” videos that were made at the event. Relay’s very own Neal, Lindsey, Cameron and Brittany were interviewed! Neal made some really good points about what the Relay business model can do for the community. Of course we want Relay to be convenient for our customers. That’s why our founder, Zach, came up with the idea…so he could spend more time with his kids and less time at the grocery store. But what can Relay do for our communities in Charlottesville and Richmond?

After the election on Tuesday, there is no doubt it anyone’s mind: it’s all about the economy these days. Creating jobs, stimulating growth, etc. etc. It seems like a daunting task, but many knowledgeable people at the Heritage Harvest Festival mentioned the same thing…that we can do a lot, just by keeping some of our food dollars in the local community. After doing a little of my own research, I stumbled across this article from the Virginia Cooperative Extension (an incredible resource for anything agriculture-related). First of all, agriculture is huge in Virginia, accounting for around 357,000 jobs in 2006. Second, many small- and medium-sized farms are struggling to survive, especially due to the tough economic environment. But here’s the kicker, in a direct quote from the article: “A similar study by the Virginia Cooperative Extension showed that if each Virginia household would spend just $10 of their total weekly food budget on local food and farm products, this purchasing decision would annually generate $1.65 billion in direct economic impact for Virginia’s economy.”

Of course we can’t dismiss the fact that there is a lot more work to be done to both improve the economy and create a truly vibrant regional food system, but that’s a big step! A big step that requires just a little extra effort on the part of the consumer…and here’s where Relay comes in. There are plenty of ways to spend those $10 on local foods if you so choose: farmers markets, CSAs, restaurants that serve local products, but we’re just trying to make it a little easier. So…how would I spend my $10 on local Relay products?

Richmond:

Harmony Hill Farm eggs - $3.09 (fresh and super tasty!)

Deer Run Farm butternut squash - $1.75 (Thought you didn't like squash...HA! This will change your mind.)

Granny Smith apples - $0.77 (Virginia grown. For snacking or in pie!)

Mountain View Farm Swiss cheese - $4.22

Charlottesville:

Meadow Run Farm green onions - $1.75 (I can never seem to have enough green onions…try them in miso soup!)

Hardy Farms Swiss chard - $3.00 (delicious and comes wrapped like a bouquet of colorful, edible flowers)

Belle Haven Farm soft dinner rolls - $2.49 (they smell amazing and taste even better)

Meadow Run Farm pie pumpkin - $2.00 (with the holidays coming, this needs no explanation)

Yum!

Sources and links:

Monticello Heritage Harvest Festival videos:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Virginia Cooperative Extension article

The Hook picture gallery of the Harvest Festival