What's in season this week (AUGUST 4th):

Let us supply your summer cookout. Grill up some hamburgers from grass-fed Angus beef.  Top your patty with cheddar cheese, a perfect slice of heirloom tomato, and fresh onion.  Pair it with some grilled corn topped with gobs of fresh butter.  Make some jalapeno poppers with bacon-chevre. Finish with a slice of homemade blueberry pie.

Summer crops are finally here.  We have fresh eggplant, heirloom tomatoes, super-sweet cherry tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, and more!

New items this week include sorrel (a bright and lemony green useful as an accent in salads and sauces), unripened green tomatoes for frying, newly harvested organic spaghetti squash perfect for a healthy weekday meal, and 'Sungold' cherry tomatoes, one of the sweetest and prettiest cherry tomatoes we have ever tasted.

Finally, if you've never had ground cherries, you should give them a try. O&E Farm of Gouverneur has made a limited quantity available this week. Sweet with hits of pineapple and tomato flavor, you'll find yourself eating them by the handfuls. They are also perfect in sauces and desserts. Now, if we can only answer the question of whether they are a fruit or a vegetable! Tell us what you think on our Facebook page

 
FEATURED ITEM OF THE WEEK:
1 dozen ears of sweet corn grown in Jefferson County for $5.08 retail!

Is your menu getting tired? Do your customers want something new?

Are you an area restaurant?  Impress your customers with farm-to-table ingredients and seasonal weekly specials.

This week, we suggest featuring fresh eggplant parmigiana . We can provide ingredients in bulk.  Instead of traditional parmesan, try 'Market Storm' aged goat cheese.  Simply choose "wholesale" when you register for an expanded list of products, sizes, and most importantly, wholesale pricing.

CONNECTING NORTH COUNTRY FARMERS WITH LOCAL BUYERS 
our online marketplace is NOW OPEN
TO BOTH WHOLESALE AND RETAIL CUSTOMERS.

Are you a retail customer? Our new retail option makes many of our great products directly available to local consumers.  Simply register as a retail customer and begin filling your online cart. For your convenience, we've pre-packed reusable bags with the best of local North Country seasonal products.  Choices include our delicious Breakfast Bag, seasonal  Fruit and Veggies Bag, and a Snack Bag.  We negotiate with farmers and producers to buy in bulk, so you get the highest quality products at a great price.You can also add a la carte items to your order, ranging from grass-fed steaks to shiitake mushrooms to fresh bread.

Orders may be placed only during a limited window each week.  This allows our farmers and producers time to list new products.  Ordering begins Wednesday morning at 7:00 am and concludes Sunday evenings at the stroke of midnight. We then pack your order and deliver it to your chosen pickup location on the following Friday.  To save on costs, we ask that you return your bag each week so that it can be reused.

At checkout, specify which pickup location you will use in the notes section. Pay online with your credit card. You can then pick your order up on Fridays at one of our distribution locations in Lewis and Jefferson County.  Pickup locations include:

Are you a wholesale customer? We supply wholesale ingredients - from dairy to meat to produce to maple - to restaurants, food retailers, schools, and other organizations throughout the North Country, Syracuse, and Utica. Be sure to choose wholesale when you register for an expanded list of products, sizes, and delivery routes. As always, wholesale orders will be delivered for FREE directly to your location if you are on one of our routes. There is no minimum order. Upon registration, simply select the delivery day for the location in which your business resides. The ordering window begins on Wednesdays at 7:00 a.m. and ends on Sunday evenings at the stroke of midnight.

READY TO SHOP?

CLICK HERE FOR THE ONLINE MARKETPLACE


 

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The North Star Food Hub is a regional initiative that serves farmers in Jefferson, Lewis, Oswego, and St. Lawrence counties. The Food Hub works in collaboration with the respective Cornell Cooperative Extension Associations and New York State Agriculture and Markets to help local producers expand their production and become more competitive in the marketplace. It provides a platform for local producers to sell wholesale local foods to area restaurants, grocery stores, food retailers, corner stores, schools, hospitals, and other institutions. It also operates a direct-to-consumer website delivering fresh ingredients to delivery locations within Jefferson and Lewis County.

The North Star Food Hub's Steering Committee provides guidance and recommendations on development, implementation, and operational aspects of the Food Hub. The project is currently funded through a NYS grant, administered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County.

Black River Valley Natural Foods, based out of Lyons Falls, NY has been retained to provide staffing and assist local producers in the four-county region to expand existing markets and find new markets for produce, value-added products and meats.

OUR collaborators

Cornell Cooperative Extension provides technical assistance and education to producers and many local food activities, such as the North Star Food Hub.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County administers public funding for North Star Food Hub and offers agriculture-based education programs and technical assistance for local growers. Topics range from obtaining GAP’s certification, accessing the NYS Grown and Certified program, navigating the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), Produce Safety Alliance – Grower Training Workshops, and marketing local foods. For a list of upcoming agriculture programs being offered, please click here.

For more information, visit: http://ccejefferson.org/local-foods

Or, contact Cathy Moore, CCE Jefferson Agriculture Program Leader at 315-788-8450, email cmm17@cornell.edu

For those perhaps unfamiliar with the organization, the Commissaries are stores, similar to supermarkets, that are operated by the United States Defense Commissary Agency.

Their main focus is to provide military service members and their families with familiar food products wherever they are stationed, both abroad and at home. Beginning in the spring of 2017, North Star Food Hub began supplying the Fort Drum Commissary with local produce and value-added foods. Not long after, the North Star Food Hub expanded into other Commissaries throughout the Northeast. Now, soldiers and their families are able to choose from products such as produce, beef jerky, vinaigrettes, and honey, all sourced from North Country farmers.

 
Contact

Bethany@northstarfoodhub.com

Phone: 315-741-5872

Mobile: 802-578-3999

4012 Center St. PO Box 407 Lyons Falls, NY 13368

 

 

Funding for North Star Food Hub is supported by the New York State Senate, granted by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, and administered by Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County.

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