About - Nourishing Connections Food Club

How we work

The Nourishing Connections Food Club is completely member-operated, and participation by all members is essential to the club being successful.

Each member selects an NCFC job to assist in the club’s operation. Most members are source coordinators – meaning they are responsible for ordering, sorting, and delivering a specific source. Members use a web-based system to place orders. The source coordinator uses the same web-based system to place the group’s order, create individual invoices and and collect payments. For large sorting orders, such as Lancaster Farm Fresh, multiple sorters assist in separating products once they have been received.

Products are exchanged on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Pick up at your convenience from early afternoon to 9 p.m. We used this time as an opportunity to share information and build relationships with each other. Special events may also coincide with pick up but may also be held separately.

Sorters put items for each person by their name tag

Goals

Supporting local families and farmers

– Obtaining affordable, delicious, nutrient-dense, and ethically produced products
– Educating ourselves about our food system and our health
– Creating a community of people connected to each other and to those who produce our food

Facilitating members’ ability to obtain nutrient-dense foods and healthier household supplies directly from independent farms, small businesses and cottage industries

We believe this is how we can best support our local producers and build a viable local economy. NCFC members also receive the benefit of discounts as a result of group purchasing power. By purchasing as a group, NCFC often qualifies for wholesale pricing, receives discounts on bulk products and discounts for meeting ordering minimums. This allows us to provide the most affordable and fair prices while supporting our sources’ ability to make a suitable living.

Purchasing organic, seasonal and fairly traded products whenever possible

Although not all products have official certification, our food is produced ethically and sustainably to the best of our knowledge. This means that products are produced in a manner that enhances the well-being of the producers, consumers and the environment in the present and in the future. Members have often met the farmers and visited their farms. We choose farmers who produce traditional foods and we buy the same food they feed their families. Some sources (such as Frontier) carry products that do not meet these criteria and are identified in the database (i.e., organic or not, country of origin, manufacturer). Members make their own determinations about what to order.

Encouraging members to educate themselves and each other about the connections between how we purchase food, the economy, the environment and our health

By educating ourselves about where our food comes from, we also gain an understanding of the risks and obstacles faced by our local farmers. Members also often work for legislation that supports our goals, small farmers and other independent businesses.

Facilitating opportunities for education, community building and action

Common themes include food, garden, health, resource conservation and self-sufficiency. Members are invited to special events, such as presentations, workshops, educational movies and social events. Members also share information and opportunities with each other through on-line and in person discussions.