Local Food News

Support your local farms!

This message is from Jane Brawerman, posted on the CT River Coastal Conservation District’s Facebook page. Food security is on many people’s minds right now. There are many ways we can promote self-sufficiency in our town, region and state when it comes to our food. Farmers are working hard now growing fruits and veggies, and raising animals so we can enjoy healthy local foods. It’s a great time to connect with your local farmers and find out how you can buy from them to support their farms. Whether it’s signing up for a CSA, going to a farmers market, stopping by a farm store, or ordering online for pick up, you can eat really well, reduce your carbon footprint, and support local businesses! For more information about farms in your local area, go to the Connecticut NOFA Local Farm and Food Guide, https://guide.ctnofa.org/.

Healthy PlanEat will soon launch a new website that will enable farmers to manage inventory, distribution, and incoming orders from local customers. For updates on the launch (aiming for mid-June), please follow the Healthy PlanEat Facebook page or Instagram.

The Bridge, located in Middletown, makes tofu, seitan, amasake, and tofu salad, using non-GMO soybeans. Its products can be found locally at ION, Whole Foods, and the Willimantic Coop. The website is http://www.bridgetofu.com/.

Located in Haddam, Auntie Arwen’s Spices offers about 500 different spice and herb blends, as well as teas. The products are sold online and at farmer’s markets. The website is https://www.auntiearwenspices.com/about.html.

Owned by Nancy DuBrule of Middletown, Natureworks in Northford is a small garden center that focuses on organic gardening and native plants. Due to the pandemic, the retail shop is closed, but orders are taken on line at https://naturework.com/ and can be picked up at the curb.

Heirloom Market at Comstock Ferre in Old Wethersfield offers delicious organic food in its café, as well as groceries, bedding plants, and a wide variety of Baker Creek heirloom seeds. The Facebook page is https://www.facebook.com/heirloommkt/, and the Web site is https://www.heirloommkt.com/.

The Rockfall Foundation’s newest video in the Nature’s Supermarket series highlights two types of nettles. Wood Nettle is a native species found in our woodlands. Stinging Nettle is an introduced species that may seem like a nuisance plant in your yard, but has culinary value and many other uses.  Click here for the video on identifying both types of nettle. We’ve included a recipe that we enjoy for Stinging Nettles Indian Style.