CFN – Charity starts at home. Peace starts within. I’m certain all of us have heard these words of wisdom before which enforce the premise that the answer to the worlds woes begin with cleaning our own personal house so to speak. Our world is signalling she requires some care and attention and it is perhaps through our own self-care that we can relate and meet the demands of our larger personal body that sustains and nourishes us…our earth.
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We have become so accustomed to eating processed foods that many of the foods or non-foods that we go to for a snack contain negligible if any nutrition at all. Take for example chips, sodas, processed cheese and crackers. I have heard many people lament “eating healthfully is out of our budget”. Enter Community Green Boxes.
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This program came to my attention some time ago and I just recently decided to buy into trying one of these community green boxes. I had overheard a conversation some time ago that said that the green boxes gave out second quality vegetables and fruit. I can assure you that this is completely false. In my neck of the woods, Cornwall, Stormont, Dundas, Glengarry and Akwesasne, Hawkesbury, Rockland and Bourget “The Green Food Box” is a non-profit, community-based program that brings neighbours together to buy a variety of nutritious fresh vegetables and fruit at wholesale prices.
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The boxes in my area were available once a month in two sizes, $10.00 and $15.00. I ordered mine through a location convenient for me, the Renew Lifestyle Studio. The boxes must be prepaid by a set date, and then the produce is delivered to a central location where it is available for pick-up at a specific time range and place.
Our green box, the first I ever ordered last week, contained bright, fresh first quality produce. It contained 1 peppercorn squash, 1 rutabaga, 1 bag of carrots, 1 green pepper, 2 red peppers, 6 bananas, 6 apples, 1 package grape tomatoes, 1 broccoli, 1 kale, 1 romaine lettuce, 2 large onions, 1 eggplant and 2 zucchinis. Some of the items were locally produced, some organically produced and there was an insert with a couple of recipes to use the eggplant. The variety of produce gives great nutritional return on the dollars spent and will give many the opportunity to try new items on their table. The Green Box provides people the opportunity to gather round friends and family to try a new recipe and to share some face time in the kitchen. The Green Box could be the catalyst to getting the family back to sharing conversation along with infusing the body with nutrition to sustain us in our daily endeavours.
If you would like more information about the Green Food Box or are interested in organizing one in your community, please call 613-933-1375 or 1-800-267-7120 and ask for Health Line.
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Your commentary is encouraged and always welcome below or to earthmatters@jmilner.com
Deadline to order and pay for your Green Box for December is this Friday, December 7th. Great value and nutrition for your dollar.