Planet Organic Markets Hosts First “Meet the Locals” Food Festival

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE            

PLANET ORGANIC MARKETS HOSTS FIRST
“MEET THE LOCALS” FOOD FESTIVAL

EDMONTON –

Profile:  Graham Sparrow and a handful of stalwart volunteers at Sparrow’s Organics hand-weeded 2,000 feet of carrot beds with a paring knife this past summer to bring the goodness of organic carrots to local kitchens.

Profile:  Dwayne Smith of Grainworks tends a mere 6,500 acres of organic grains on his farm, then mills every single grain of wheat, rye, barley and more to ensure the products you scoop out of the bulk bin are as fresh as can be.

Profile:  It’s been a long time since Sara Larson of The Happy Camel used blankets to keep her pita dough moist in her kitchen workshop.  Now she bakes thousands of pitas a week in a sparkling new commercial kitchen facility.  

Profile:  When Emily McNairney and Sean Superkoski of Mighty Trio eat popcorn, they douse it with their own certified organic hemp oil, plus a pinch of sea salt.  Healthy snacking never tasted so good.

Profile:  Anita and Ben Oudshoorn of Fairwinds Farm take kidding around to a whole new level.   Each spring, they tend to more than 100 goat kids that are born at the farm so the cycle of producing their fresh goat milk products can continue.

Profile: Lorna and Dennis Guitton’s 730-acre organic beef farm in Claresholm, Alberta is like a spa for cattle – they are pampered and treated like royalty and the beef is absolutely delicious.  Their healthy herd rarely get sick, but if they ever feel poorly, they never get antibiotics – a healthy dose of organic garlic powder in their feed sets them right.

Our local food producers have amazing stories to tell, and these are just some of the people who will be featured at Planet Organic Market’s first Meet the Locals Food Festival, which kicks off Monday, November 16 at the Strathcona Location at 7917 104th Street.
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“Our commitment to local food producers has been strong right from the minute we first opened our doors in 1993,” said Diane Shaskin / Co-Founder of Planet Organic Markets.  “This festival is our way of introducing the people behind the products on our shelves.  They are an amazingly dedicated group who deserve to have their stories told.”

The Meet the Locals Food Festival runs for three one-week periods:  Nov. 16 – 22; Dec. 14 – 20 and Jan. 11 – 17.   Local producers and growers will be on hand to offer free tastings and special promotions and each week will feature a celebrity cooking class and more.  Go to www.planetorganic.ca <http://www.planetorganic.ca/> for full details.

Why shop local?  The facts speak for themselves:

-       Local food tastes better.  It doesn’t travel for thousands of kilometers to get to your kitchen.
-       When you buy local food, you reduce the miles your food travels.  Fewer miles means less pollution.
-       Large grocery chains demand large quantities of product, so smaller producers often can’t meet the demand.  The result?  If you shop at a large chain, you are
-       often forced to buy mass-produced food that travels a great distance to get to your door.
-       Our local producers and growers are your neighbours and friends.  Support them, and you are helping support a healthy community.
-       Conventional farming uses large amounts of nitrogen fertilizers that take a lot of fossil fuel to produce and they also release a powerful greenhouse gas.

Earlier this year, Corporate Knights magazine ranked Planet Organic Markets number one in Canada in its Green Grocer survey.   Planet Organic achieved an overall “A” grade and outranked all national grocery chains for their excellent track record in stocking a wide variety of organic, fair-trade, and environmentally-friendly products, as well as integrating consumer education and sustainability into its operations.          

For more information on Planet Organic Markets, please go to www.planetorganic.ca <http://www.planetorganic.ca>

ATTACHED:
MEET THE LOCALS FOOD FESTIVAL SCHEDULE

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Media contacts:

Diane Shaskin / Co-Founder            Daryl Davies/ Store Manager
Planet Organic Markets                         Planet Organic Markets
Phone: 250-727-0867                                    tel 780.433-6807         
dshaskin@planetorganic.ca                        ddavies@planetorganic.ca