THE BUZZ ON BEE PRODUCTS

Honey: This sweet, golden syrup is produced from the nectar collected by the bees from flower blossoms. In order to make one pound of honey, 70,000 loads of nectar are needed, and a healthy active hive can make up to 300 pounds of honey per season. Nectar mixed with healthy bee enzymes is transferred by worker bees into honeycomb cells where it becomes thick as the bees band together and fan it with their wings. Once the moisture content is low enough that it won’t spoil the honey is sealed within the comb. It will keep for years, acting as a food source for the hive during the winter months. Honey has protein from pollen and contains several types of vitamins. It is a balanced sugar made up of fructose, glucose, sucrose and minor higher sugars, therefore providing a safe, healthy energy boost.

Beeswax: The magic of beeswax begins in the field, where honeybees collect pollen and nectar from flowers. Next, each load of nectar is passed from field bees to hive bees, which are younger and more efficient at producing wax. After the wax is made through a complex digestive process, it is used as building material for the combs. Each chamber in the comb is hexagonal in shape, which is a marvel of engineering that efficiently utilizes the smallest amount of wax needed for strength in design and volume of honey stored. Beekeepers build and supply frames for their bees to build combs that are easy to remove and extract honey and wax from. 

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR CHICKEN?

Eat better and be an educated consumer! We have found that some people don’t realize that most of the chicken you buy in the grocery store is raised in poor filthy living conditions. These birds are kept in tight spaces and force fed night and day. I’m sure that we all have seen those “super-birds” on the shelf. Our family raises chickens and even our biggest roosters don’t have breasts or wings that look like that. I have watched those truckloads of chickens being taken to the factory and thought wow there’s so many! That can’t be good. When we think about chicken houses, they are huge! Inside they house tens of thousands of birds at one time. Some become sick and are given antibiotics but it’s supposed to be ok with us as consumers, because the federal law mandates that chickens be free of antibiotics BEFORE they leave the farm. So let’s feed them more so the antibiotics will flush through their system faster….. right??? WRONG! The problem with this is that the farmers get paid for the final weight of the chickens. So all that really matters is how much weight they gained in the end.

As you can imagine a lot of these chickens don’t make it, but they aren’t always cleaned up so the birds who survive end up feasting on dead birds. Chickens do eat other chickens! Once at the slaughterhouse they are washed with bleach and treated with chemicals, like chlorine, before being packaged and sold to us to eat. They are marketed and labeled as “all natural” or “vegetarian fed” but what does that really mean?!?! A diet of genetically modified soy and corn along with fillers plus some antibiotics on the side. They want us to eat this and sadly for years we have. The question that we should ask ourselves is this: Do we really want to continue to feed our family this way?!?? I’m sure the answer is no. Your health and theirs is too important! The fact is that we all have choices. We can choose to be aware of what we put in our mouths, we’re fed themselves. We can learn how the animals we eat were raised, treated, harvested, etc. We can ask questions and be informed consumers. I personally know someone who raises chickens and sells them and they are huge! I also know that he gives them the cheapest feed he can find in bulk and makes sure that they don’t ever run out. Just because someone owns a farm or raises chicken doesn’t mean they are fed well or even well cared for. We know that not everyone can or even wants to eat organically but it’s important to be aware and in control of what we eat. Food can be healing. We often become sick because what we ate was sick. Please don’t take our word for it. Research for yourselves and then decide. We are in no way saying that everyone who owns a chicken house or has a mass production poultry farm is bad. This post is about being informed and aware of those who are. Thank you for taking the time to read this information. It is our sincere hope that it helps us all to be better consumers. We want you to think about what you eat…..so be informed and choose better!

Rachel Hawkins of Hawkins Homestead

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

I realize it’s too hot to go caroling. Even if anyone did travel north they wouldn’t see snow unless they kept going at the Canadian border. The only person I know who keeps a tree up year round still has Easter decorations on it. But we can still celebrate Christmas. It is after all traditionally the birth of Christ which we can rejoice about every day, and while society has many cultural things tied to it, there are two that can’t be denied: Chocolate and Charity.

Last October Hurricane Matthew left widespread devastation to the island country of Haiti. Many of you may remember that a few weeks later we partnered with the Bourret family to help a sustainable farming village get back on its feet. Thanks to your efforts and generosity, we raised enough money to fund a much needed tree nursery. Many smaller donations have been made to them since.

The Bourret’s have shared some of the island’s bounty in the form of dark exotic chocolate and . . . (drum roll please!) there will be samples at the Market next Friday for any and all. Any Chocolate that is left over will be available for purchase the following week with funds doing directly to Haiti.

And . . . (you knew this was coming!) a box for donations will be available to help the farmers in the village of Petit Trou de Nippes rebuild. Trees that grow tropical fruits, cacao and coffee beans don’t grow back in a year and rebuilding the village infrastructure is an ongoing project.

Even if you don’t place a Market order this week feel free to stop by to try a sample and send wishes of Peace on Earth, Good Will toward Men to our island neighbors. We’d love to see you! Even if the amount is small any donation will help fellow farmers who are trying to make a difference in their community.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

BEAT THE HEAT

It’s July. It’s hot as blue blazes, and unless you’re a first year resident you know that it will be hot like this through August and into September. As a young woman I used to tell myself “only ‘x’ number of weeks till the nights start cooling down.” I’m afraid it’s a little early for that, and thankfully things like Christmas in July, Back to School Sales (and tax free weekend) can help get our minds off it a little.

The National Safety Counsel recognizes heat exposure as a cause of death and the CDC recorded 7,233 heat related deaths between 1999 – 2009. That being said, what follows is a smattering of food and non food ideas that may or may not be useful. All are offered in the spirit of wishing you safety, cool, comfort and joy (opps on the Christmas reference!) for the remainder of the summer!

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

MORINGA OLEIFERA: TRULY A “MIRACLE” TREE

(No doubt many of you scratched your head when you saw a recent listing for Fresh Moringa Leaves. Fortunately for all of us Patty D. is very familiar with them and has graciously researched the following as well as sharing a bit of her own amazing story. THANK YOU PATTY!)

The Moringa tree can meet all your nutritional needs, take the place pharmaceuticals and even purify your water.  For centuries, the natives of northern India and many parts of Africa have known of the many benefits of Moringa oleifera, also known as the clarifier tree, horseradish tree and drumstick tree (referring to the large drumstick shaped pods).  In East Africa it is called "mother’s best friend”. Native only to the foothills of the Himalayas, it is now widely cultivated in Africa, Central and South America, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and the Philippines. It is little known in the western world and only recently have people begun trying to grow it in the US. This miracle tree is now being grown by our very own Greg and Carole Lolley of Mayim Farms. There are hundreds of uses for this tree as every part of it can be used.

The immature pods are the most widely used part of the tree and contain all essential amino acids along with many vitamins and other nutrients.  The immature pod can be eaten raw or cooked while the mature pods are usually fried and and said to taste somewhat like peanuts. The pods also yield an edible oil known as Ben Oil. This oil is clear, sweet and odorless, and never becomes rancid. Nutritionally, it most resembles olive oil.  The root has been used as a substitute for horseradish but safety is questionable due to the presence of a toxic alkaloid (moriginine) a potent fungicid, pterygospermin, and a bacteriocide, spirochin.  While less toxic if the bark of the root is completely removed, excessive consumption of the root can be toxic so it is best to avoid the root altogether.  The leaves are eaten as greens, in salads, in vegetable curries, as pickles and for seasoning. Leaves and young branches are relished by livestock. The bark can be used for tanning and also yields a coarse fiber. The flowers, which must be cooked, are eaten either mixed with other foods or fried in batter and are rich in calcium and potassium.

The leaves contain significant quantities of vitamins A, B and C, calcium, iron and protein. According to Optima of Africa, Ltd., a group that has been working with the tree in Tanzania, "25 grams daily of Moringa leaf powder will give a child the following amounts of recommended daily allowances: Protein 42%, Calcium 125%, Magnesium 61%, Potassium 41%, Iron 71%, Vitamin A 272%, and Vitamin C 22%.  Gram for gram, Moringa leaves contain: SEVEN times the vitamin C in oranges, FOUR times the Calcium in milk, FOUR times the vitamin A in carrots, TWO times the protein in milk and THREE times the Potassium in bananas. The leaves are readily available even when other sources of nutrition are scarce and the powder can be stored for months without refrigeration with no loss of nutrients. The Moringa tree offers hope nutritionally, medicinally and economically to the extremely poor 3rd world countries. In the Western world, it is coming into use in supplement forms.

India’s ancient tradition of Ayurveda says the leaves of the Moringa tree prevent 300 diseases. While most medicinal uses of the tree are anecdotal and little research has been done, there is no question about the antibiotic potential.  Although human trials (random, placebo controlled) are lacking, many countries use all parts of the tree to treat internal and skin infections. Several compounds have been identified and proven effective in vitro (in a petri dish).  Research also supports the Moringa’s role in treating cancer, but again, human trials are lacking.  Other medicinal benefits of Moringa include the ability to lower blood sugar, lower cholesterol and reduce inflammation. Again, these claims are based on anecdotal evidence over centuries of use and animal studies.

Once the oil has been extracted from the pods, there is a seed cake left.  This is as effective as as aluminum sulphate (alum) in removing suspended solids from turbid water and is non-toxic, contrary to aluminum.  This has major potential in the treatment of waste water also.  Unlike aluminum, this can be produced locally generating employment and income.  Currently there are ongoing studies and projects being done to examine this potential.  Truly a “miracle tree”!

Sources:
*Ramachandran,C., Peter,K.V. and Gopalakrishnan,P.K., 1980, Drumstick (Moringa oleifera): A multipurpose Indian Vegetable. Economic Botany, 34 (3) pp276-283.
*http://peacecorps.mtu.edu/resources/studentprojects/moringa.htm
*http://www.tfljournal.org/article.php/20051201124931586
*Meitzner and Price (Amaranth to Zai Holes: Ideas for Growing Food Under Difficult Conditions,?ECHO, 1996),
*http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/cv/wedc/papers/20/sessioni/sutherla.pdf

“In 2007, due to a complication of low back surgery, I was in a wheelchair and could only walk around my house with a cane and hanging on to furniture . I was on nearly 30 medications including morphine and antidepressants.. When the neurosurgeon bluntly told me to “take the morphine, get in the wheelchair and learn to live with it” , I knew my life had to change.  Prayer led me to a chiropractor and from there to a clean, whole food diet.  Within 6 months, I was out of the wheelchair and off over 20 medications including the morphine and psychotropics. I lost 80 lbs over several years.  I am now nearly fanatical about healing through the use of real food and natural remedies and do everything I can to avoid doctors.  I spent over 30 years in conventional medicine in pharmacy and as an RN." Patty D.

(Please do not republish this article without permission from the author,  Contact information may be requested by email from marketatdothan@gmail.com)

Lastly: A new recipe featuring Moringa has been added to the recipe section.

Footnotes

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

A Tiny Big Announcement

If your eye didn’t catch it there is a slight change to our header this week- three little letters that mean good things for Market at Dothan.

As of today, July 1, 2017, Market at Dothan is now Market at Dothan LLC, a fully legal entity complete with it’s own business license and checking account! Incorporating the Market’s business structure was no small decision and was not made without input from a lot of wise people. If you’re reading this and helped out, THANK YOU, especially to JD and the staff at Dothan Nurseries who have made the Market possible. Let me encourage you to sign up for their monthly newsletter on their website. You won’t be disappointed!

The biggest factors considered in making the change were creating room to grow for our vendors, and providing a legal structure that would protect them from liability. Market at Dothan has absolutely the best growers in the Wiregrass and they deserve that! At one point we considered creating a non-profit, but after some serious research it became obvious that the extra work and expense to create one was not worth the benefits of going that route. So with the legal help of our customer Chris L, we created an LLC that’s pretty much run like a non profit. . . . pretty much like it’s always been.

As of now there are no plans to make any changes in the way Market at Dothan LLC conducts business and plans are in the works to do some extra and some special things that we couldn’t do before. The biggest change for you, our customers is that now we have a real business account to make your checks out to! We are more than happy to abide by the “no mingling of funds” advice from Chris!

Reusable Bag Update

With the change in business structure it seemed like a good time to re-visit one of our existing Market policies. As you know we encourage customers to provide reusable bags for your Market foods to go home in and some of you have multiple bags you rotate from week to week. Please know we respect your investment and make sure your bags are stored safely (and alphabetically!) between orders.

While reusable bags do help our landfills, a downside to them is that they need to be cleaned once in a while. Like everything else they collect dust, pollens, bacteria etc. Fabric bags are a simple fix as they go through the washer and dryer quite easily. The polypropylene type bags listed on the Market website require only a wipe with a disinfectant. Let me encourage you to do one or the other with yours as a health and safety precaution. This GREAT article explains the importance of keeping your reusables clean!

There’s a LOT of good information out there in cyberspace about the pros and cons of reusable bags, everything from statistics about how many trees you can save switching to reusable, to how long it takes a cotton bag to decompose as opposed to various plastics. If you want to know more feel free to check out some of the links below; if not, that’s a-ok. And if you’re getting your Market order in a “Thank You” Plastic bag, we respect that choice too and will continue to use the ones that have been donated till they run out.

Reusethisbag.com lists 25 reasons to go reusable. Their minimum quantity for an order is 200 bags.

National Public Radio did an excellent series called “How Green Is It?”. This section examines the claims made by companies like the one listed above.

You can always make your own! This Youtube tutorial shows two different ways to make no sew bags from tee shirts. If you go this route check out some of the other bag tutorials before breaking out the scissors because you may find something you like even better. A word of caution – if you expect to carry a lot of weight in your bags we really recommend tying or stitching the bottom.

The internet if FULL of bag patterns and tutorials if you want to go the extra mile to make a custom one.

Lastly, we found ourselves gawking last week when Sarah S. pulled one of these pretty little things out of her purse and proceeded to put her very large Market order in it.

Footnotes

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Red, White & Blue Memories

The Fourth of July is a uniquely American holiday as it is the birth-date, if you will, of our nation. It is the date that our founding fathers begin signing the Declaration of Independence two days after voting to leave the British Empire and form a new country. The resulting war was long and hard, but our scruffy revolutionary army prevailed and the United States of America became a nation that has stood as an example of liberty and democracy for more than two centuries now.

The day has been observed in all places and in many MANY ways. Rather than focus on all the great food Market at Dothan offers for your celebration this holiday, we thought we’d look at some of the fun ways we’ve celebrated in the past . . . and might do again!

Lee Greenwood: No 4th celebration is complete without it. Let’s just get it out of the way first.

Flag Tee Shirts:Fess up – you know you have one somewhere.

Patriotic Deely-Boppers: Yes, that’s their real name.

Jamie S. My favorite July 4 th memory occurred about 10 years ago. My husband, daughter and I were living in Jalala-bad, Kyrgyzstan, and we hosted a party for all of our Kyrgyz friends. We had a badminton tournament, and feasted on walnuts, watermelon, tomatoes, and all kinds of dried fruits and cookies. My sister had come from Dothan to visit. The day was perfection!!! Such a special day.

Painting an American Flag on Your Cheek

Firework Horror Stories When Roslyn’s mom was small, a lady she knew lost her hearing when some mischievous boys threw a cherry bomb that got caught in the woman’s hair curlers. Thankfully cherry bombs are now outlawed, but the sober warning about explosives remains to this day.

Hasty Red, White and Blue Pedicures We’re sparing you the photos on this one!

Cold Watermelons followed by Seed Spitting Contests

Hints and Tips

Many thanks to Melinda F. for bringing me to my senses to share this! One of the things that helps the Market run smooth is a free app called Alarmy (Sleep If U Can)- alarm by Delight Room Co., Ltd.

Alarmy goes off EVERY week at 5:00 pm on Saturdays and Tuesdays to keep your Market Manager on task and on schedule. Because of it Market jobs get done at the right time and everything runs much more smoothly than it did a year ago when Ros was in a spot up on Lake Wedowee with no cell signal. Market wasn’t opened till Sunday morning during church after a much needed battery recharge. Yes, that really happened. It was awful.

The moral of this section is – Alarmy can help you remember to place your orders during the 72 hours we are open every week, as well as remind you to pick up your order on Friday morning. If you’ve got Zedge or a similar app with fun ringtones you can get creative customizing alarms for various needs.

If you’re stuck somewhere with no cell signal though you’ll have to rely on your memory and hope it’s better than Roslyn’s.

Market Chit Chat

We all know that rain is as important to your plants as sun and nutrients, but like anything else, too much of a good thing can spell trouble. Many times a healthy plant can come back from being beat down to the ground by a pounding rain, BUT . . . whatever crop might be nearly ready for harvest won’t fare as well. We ask your understanding with our growers as they are on the front lines dealing with this force of nature while growing nutritious food for all of us.

Does anyone need Aloe? One of our customers has offered to share hers. Just drop a note to marketat dothan@gmail.com if you’d like one.

This Week’s Grower Notes

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

AVALON FARMS: Not going to whine about the rain, but as you will see I have reduced my offerings of tomatoes and squash for this week. Blueberries and blackberries are hanging in there although extra water reduces the sugar content.
 
New this week we have Zipper peas, Pink Eye peas, Dragon Tongue beans and Garlic.
 
Our Sassy Apricot Habanero Jam would make a great addition to whatever you’re grilling this weekend.

Danny’s Greens All the cool weather crops have come to an end which means we won’t have any carrots/cabbages/beets, etc, for a while. For the time being our summer salad mixes are the only thing we have growing.

Sandy Valley This rain is killing us! All the watermelons we intended to have available to me Market have burst in the field from absorbing too much water.

Footnotes

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Welcome Hawkins Homestead Farms!

It’s been a while since I first heard of this farm through one of our customers. At the time I wondered why I’d never heard of them and whether their farm practices were in line with our Market values. Now that I know I’m super impressed and excited to welcome them to Market at Dothan!

“Our family specializes in fresh eggs, pastured chicken, and organic seasonal produce you’ll be happy to eat! We are a small urban farm that started out trying to find a way to feed our own family in a healthy and sustainable manner. It’s so important that we know what we’re feeding ourselves, where our food comes from, what it ate, and how it was raised or grown. Our birds are spoiled rotten! The majority spend their time free ranging in our backyard pasture. We let them out early in the day and they are locked up once they go in at night. We do supplement with a Non-GMO feed for our egg layers and a Non-GMO Organic feed for our meat birds which is rationed each day. In addition, they also receive treats in the form of organic herbs and vegetables from our garden with some occasional black oiled sunflower seeds, which they love. We try to find a use for almost everything here, so we compost our scraps and our chicken manure. Doing things this way has enabled us to re-purpose and grow some wonderful goodies in the garden. We are committed to the care and health of our animals and the food we grow. We never use antibiotics, growth hormones, or pesticides. Our produce is grown from Non-GMO Organic seed and a few Non-GMO Organic started plants. We take pride in what we do and are happy to say that what started out as food for our family has blossomed into food for yours.” 

Soil Workshop Review

Last week another grower and myself made a pleasant drive to Opp, Alabama and found ourselves temporarily lost on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere after the GPS delivered us to the wrong place. Fortunately I had a phone number and we weren’t too far from the workshop that Mayim Farms was hosting.

It proved to be a very valuable visit! We learned about soil biology and how to make compost tea that helps both plants and soil thrive.

While Organic/Sustainable growing methods continue to gain popularity, some of the methods used by our Market Growers do not fit in the “box” created by traditional big-agra methods. It goes far beyond substituting a bad chemical for a less bad Omri approved one. The heart of organic farming is the soil because a healthy soil will produce a healthy plant that puts forth good fruit. (Hmmm . . . sounds like the beginning of a Bible Lesson!) For all their “scientific” ways of manipulating soil to produce thousands of pounds of perfect 4 inch or 4 oz. tasteless “whatevers”, the quality our growers produce is off the chart in comparison. We are blessed indeed!

Footnotes

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

Feel free to share this Market Newsletter with anyone you think might be interested in the superior products we offer.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

Food Smart/Food Safe

When I was a kid my dad gave me a little green book that was published by his employer. At that time his employer was the USDA and he was a food safety inspector. I kept the little book for years and wish I still had it. I don’t know if it was intended for kids or not, but I LOVED the little educational cartoons. The main character was a nasty looking germ and he showed up in all kinds of places where safe food handling was not practiced. My favorite was Mr. Germ wearing a straw hat and sitting on a toilet seat with a fishing pole . . . a comical reminder to ALWAYS wash your hands after visiting!

Food safety was an issue then and it remains an issue today. I think public awareness is probably greater now with increased communication and educational outreach. And well it should be! All of us with Market at Dothan are committed to bringing you the healthiest food in the Wiregrass with no chemical or pesticide residue, but nature being what it is it’s still up to each individual to handle, store and prepare it properly.

That being said, what follows are hints, tips, websites, resources, etc that we hope will be a blessing and help for you and yours.

Hats off to the USDA whose ongoing efforts continue to help keep our country’s food systems safe. If you’ve ever visited a third world country (Haiti in my case) you should have a profound awareness of the great good they’ve done for us through the years.

Health.gov goes into a bit more detail about kitchen practices and offers additional resources.

If you are brave enough to check youtube.com videos about washing fruits and vegetables, you’ll find everything from expensive ozone machines to recommendations NOT to wash your produce! Ridiculous! We like this tried and true natural recipe:
1 cup water
1 cup distilled white vinegar
1 tablespoon baking soda
20 drops grapefruit seed extract (available at Whole Foods or your local health food store or you can substitute lemon juice in a pinch)
Combine all ingredients in a large container. Then, transfer to a spray bottle with a pump. Spray mixture on produce (avoid using on mushrooms), let sit 5 to 10 minutes and rinse.

Kraft Foods has their own Top 10 list.

There is a WEALTH of information available at the FDA’s Education Resource Library.

This link is a printable Refrigerator & Freezer Storage Chart.

In Season

Have you tried Patty Pan squash yet? These versatile members of the Cucurbita pepo family are gaining in popularity as more people find new ways to enjoy them. They are in the same category as traditional summer squash, zucchini and pumpkins, but have their own unique taste and characteristics. Our customer, Angelica G. advises that their more dense texture helps them freeze quite nicely.

But if you’d rather enjoy them fresh . . .

Footnotes

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!