free range eggs Archives - Rachel Willcock

Summerside Farmer’s Market

I love going the The Summerside Farmer’s Market! I have been going every Saturday for over a year now, supporting local businesses. I try to spread out and reach as many vendors as I can. There are so many options of goods and the people are so friendly.

This past weekend I brought home a great haul of goods. When I go shopping I buy plastic free options or try my best. I bring my own produce bags and containers. Our family has been going plastic free as much as possible for over a year. You can read all about it on my website, Rachel.Willcock.ca. You can also follow me on Facebook at Managing Our Waste at Home.

I wish there was more support for the vendors to offer plastic free options. Some options off the top of my head:

Sell in paper bags or paper containers (I for one won’t mind the price going up a tad to stop single use plastics!)
customers bring their own bag/containers
vendors could sell their goods from a large bin using tongs to select the amount purchased. Have a scale available to weigh the products.
Have a bring back a reusable container/bag program

In this picture is a lovely selection of the goods I picked up for my family to enjoy.

I got some Vesta Bella and August apples from Brady’s Farm using my own produce cloth bags. Brady has paper bags he sells his apples in and he does want them returned when possible. Reuse!!
There are strawberries and blue berries from East Isle Farms. The wooden crates are compostable on PEI and the paper containers are recyclable like egg cartons.
Some lovely Peas from J&L Farms, using my own white cloth produce bag.
Clohossey Farms was selling brocolli and cauliflower package free, score!
The best bacon I have ever had is from Pleasant Pork. Sometimes we get back bacon, kolbalssa, salami and pepperoni. Ham is on my list this coming weekend! They also sell free range eggs. The eggs are the best ones I have ever seen too! Nothing like free range!
I also bought some lovely snack bags from Inspire Essential Heatable Bags. They are great for back to school! Natural fabric with a water proof fabric inside, keeping the snacks fresh all day. They are also washable in the washing machine. Less containers for me to wash after school!
I buy our cleaning needs from The Farmer’s Wife. Bar soap, Shampoo bar, Cleaning soap, Laundry Soap and Wool dryer balls. This list is short compared to what is available! I will add, the cleaning and laundry soap containers are returnable with a small discount, Reducing the container waste. Awesome!

I also visit other vendors for string beans, carrots, peppers, croissants, honey, leafy greens and garlic.

Some pictures of past trips to the Summerside Farmer’s Market

Croissant, wrong beans,now as, carrots, English cucumbers plastic free, bacon and garlic.

Free range eggs, lettuce, laundry soap, berries, bar soap, english cucumbers plastic free, kolbassa and bacon.

Free range local eggs, bacon, back bacon, laundry soap, bar soap, fresh greens, pepperoni and salami.

String beans and peas, apples, eggs, bar soap, shampoo bar and croissant.

Carrots, laundry soap, free range eggs, peppers, bacon, garlic, croissant, and peas.

Lettuce in cloth produce bag, carrots, peas, eggs, English cucumbers plastic free, string beans, bar soap, croissant and bacon.

Shopping local has many benefits!

Keeping money in local communities
Helping local families
Products come from familiar people
Much less carbon footprint for travelling
Products are fresher
Usually less packaging
Creates more demand for local products in turn creating local jobs
And many more!

Check out this post about my Shopping Routine and seasonings! It will show more about why I have changed our shopping and consuming habits and how! It was published in early June, and already we have made more changes!

Don’t forget the important R’s

Refuse
Reduce
Reuse
Repair
Recycle
Rot

Another Successful Shopping Trip

The Farmer’s Market sure is starting to burst with new products. Lots of new fruit and veggies to be had! I requested the night before the market to a farmer if he could bring in two English Cucumbers not wrapped in plastic. I did this 2 weeks ago with another farmer, and the cucumber stayed fresh until it was eaten, about 5 days. (English Cucumbers are wrapped because of their thin skins. Moisture lost is a problem to keeping great quality cucumbers). The Laundry Soap container is returnable with a small refund discount and it gets reused! I ask for the leafy greens to be emptied from the bags they are in, into my dish I bring in. The farmer will reuse the bag.

My tin can is working great for picking up casseroles from Superstore. A couple weeks ago I was asked not to bring in glass containers in case it falls and smashes, leaving broken glass all over the products. That would be terrible, and I completely understand the reasoning. In the deli department, my dish is not handled very much so there has been no concern about breakage there.

Bulk Barn trips are going very nicely! My cloth bags do the job, pre-tared and permanently marked with the tare weight. No having to re weigh the bag every trip! I highly recommend powdered products and coffee to be purchased in containers, not cloth bags. Very messy and the coffee will make the other food taste like coffee. That happened to us one time, I will say I learned my lesson.

Normally, my routine is to call the Butcher Shop the morning of my shopping trip. Asking for my order to be wrapped in paper. The last few times, I have not been able to get a hold of anyone in the mornings to place my order (They are very busy). So this time, I called the day before with my order. I will say it was a little less stressful and easier to not have that task the morning before shopping. Saturday mornings are very busy, preparing for the purchases we need for the week as well as needed housework and kid stuff before I leave.Shopping zero waste requires planning, structure and discipline.

Farmer’s Market Haul

This weeks Farmer’s Market trip.

Specifically asked last week for a English cucumber to be unwrapped. Testing to see how good it is!

Pleasant Pork, Emmerdale Eden Farm, The Farmer’s Wife and Schurmans Family Farm .