What does 33,696 pounds of local, organic tomatoes look like?
I can’t imagine that many tomatoes, but Kristin Barry and Shelley Risinger of Applachian Naturals in Goshen can. That’s how many tomatoes Appalachian Naturals bought from Franklin County farms in 2015 to make their salsas and tomato puree. Tomatoes are just one of many local agricultural products Appalachian Naturals uses in their dressings, sauces, dips and mustards. They buy literally tons of food from local farms and sell their products throughout New England and the mid-Atlantic regions.
Those tons of local farm products are why CISA honored Appalachian Naturals with their 2015 Local Hero Award. I’m proud to work for Kristin and Shelley promoting Appalachian Naturals and look forward to CISA’s March 31 annual meeting, where they and other Local Hero Awardees will be recognized.
When most people think of “locally grown food,” they think of fresh vegetables and fruit, meat, cheese, yogurt and milk. In most grocery stores, you’ll find those products around the edges of the store in the produce, dairy and meat sections. But what about all of those aisles full of bottles, jars, boxes and bags of food in the middle of the store? Do you ever wonder what’s local in the grocery aisles?
Not many years ago, you wouldn’t have found anything locally grown or produced in the grocery aisles. Now, Appalachian Naturals is one of many local businesses that use western Mass. farm products in their prepared foods. Thanks to a number of local businesses, instead of buying honey, jams, jellies, pickles, salad dressings, barbecue sauces, dessert toppings, cider vinegars, sriracha, salsas, dips, mustards, relishes and chutneys that traveled from across the continent or the world, you can get jars filled with products made by our neighbors with ingredients grown right here in western Massachusetts.
Here are just a few of those businesses you’ll find in the grocery aisle: Honey from Apex Orchards in Shelburne and Warm Colors Apiary in Deerfield, fruit cordials and spreads from Bug Hill Farm in Ashfield, sriracha from The Kitchen Garden in Sunderland, and jams and chutneys from Mother’s Inc. in Shelburne. Some farms and businesses also sell to restaurants, at farmers markets (Barberic Farm from Shelburne) and/or their own farm stores (Upinngil Farm in Gill, Hager’s Farm Market in Shelburne, Bear Swamp Orchard in Ashfield, New Salem Preserves in New Salem). Check out CISA’s website, www.buylocalfood.org to find these and more.
These companies use literally tons of locally grown vegetables, fruit and other produce in their products. That means local farmers are paid for tons of the vegetables and fruit they grow, local people are employed turning that local produce into shelf-stable products that can be sold year-round, local stores have local products to sell, and we all have tasty food to eat that traveled just a few miles. And, when we buy these products rather than food from far away, this translates into lots of dollars circulating in our local economy.
What’s local on the shelves of the grocery store where you shop? Look for these products and others. If you don’t find them, encourage the store staff to sell products from these local businesses.
Cherrywood Smoked Steak Tips with Pickled Beets
Kristin Barry, Appalachian Naturals, Goshen (www.appalachiannaturals.com/entrees-1/)
1 lb. steak tips (tenderloin, loin, or backstrap)
1 bottle Appalachian Naturals Cherrywood smoked barbecue sauce
16 oz. Real Pickles pickled raw beets
Cut steak into 2-inch cubes, place in medium bowl and drizzle C. Cherrywood barbecue sauce, toss, and marinate for 3 hours. Preheat grill on high for 10 minutes, turn down to medium and grill steak tips to desired temperature. In a small saucepan bring remaining barbecue sauce to a simmer, cook for 5 to 10 minutes, coat tips in sauce, slice and arrange on dinner platter. Garnish with pickled beets and desired greens.
Local food advocate and community organizer Mary McClintock lives in Conway and works as a freelance writer for Greenfield Community College, Interim Executive Director of the Franklin County Community Meals Program, and Brand Promoter for Goshen-based local food company Appalachian Naturals. Send column suggestions and recipes to: mmcclinto@yahoo.com