Community: Grown Boldly & Organically

By Ben Goe

When I sit down to write an article for the Natural Enquirer, I can usually know what it’s going to look like ahead of time. I’ll have been asked to cover a specific subject: an event I attended, food waste, a particular farm or supplier, holiday recipes. This time the prompt was pretty broad: how co-ops build better communities. As I began to consider the topic, I quickly realized that what I know best is how our own Co-op builds up our own community, through partnership with local farms and suppliers.

In August, my assistant Clay and I had the pleasure of being invited to Boldly Grown Farm's 10th anniversary “Farm Prom” party. I can’t say enough good things about Boldly Grown, and about its owners Jacob and Amy.

The Co-op is and always has been an ardent supporter of their farm and their mission, and we continue to buy much of our winter produce from them. Jacob and Amy also work closely with the Puget Sound Food Hub, another co-op, and the Organically Grown Company, which was a worker-owned co-op for many years before it transitioned to a mission-driven perpetual purpose trust.

The party was a blast. Attendees dressed up in a combination of prom formal and farm wear. Everyone brought a delightful potluck dish, probably more food made with local produce than I’ve ever seen in one place. Eric from Well Fed Farm roasted a pig that he had raised while some of us toured the farm, and we were reminded at every turn that this truly is a close-knit community that we are privileged to be a part of. Many local farmers and agricultural luminaries were in attendance, and there was a prevailing sense of kinship and common goals.

As Jacob and Amy began the work of setting up their farm ten years ago, they met with me to discuss what they might grow for us. We all saw a need for season extension in the Valley—more local produce available for more of the year.

Since then, they have worked hard growing storage crops and winter vegetables, and we now have much more local produce available through the winter. They’ve become pioneers in growing winter chicories. They now farm 35 acres in Bow, on what was a derelict dairy farm when they purchased it in 2021. They operate a year-round farm stand on the site and have a 325-member winter CSA.

A few other events that reminded me of our close connection to the local agricultural community over the past year jump to mind. There was the day when everyone in the Produce Department went to the WSU Extension Center west of Mount Vernon to participate in their sweet potato variety trial taste-test. We ranked over 20 varieties of sweet potatoes on flavor, color, texture, and sweetness. WSU has been developing wireworm-resistant varieties suited to growing in our region. I also got to attend the Skagit Agriculture Summit at the Extension Center later in the year. At both events, the

Co-op produce department was recognized and thanked for our contributions to the vibrant local ag scene.

I mentioned the Organically Grown Company (OGC) earlier. In early September, Brendan and Kristi from OGC came up from Portland and did a melon tasting at the store. All of the melons we sampled were Northwest-grown, from farms that are also stakeholders in their company. Last year, Ryan, one of our department leads, got to tour the farms where the melons are grown and to meet the farmers. We went to dinner after the tasting, and the conversation drifted between personal and agricultural. I’ve known both Brendan and Kristi for many years now, and again, I was struck by a feeling of camaraderie and shared goals. It’s not just a business relationship—it’s a sense of common values, a feeling that this is a community, and that we have a responsibility to give back, and make it better, healthier, and more prosperous for everyone in it.