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Our co-op connects to more than 30 food co-ops and start-ups to build a more healthy, just, and sustainable regional food system in New England. We do this through through our participation in the Neighboring Food Co-op Association (NFCA). If you are not yet a member-owner of the Old Creamery Co-op, we invite you to join during Co-op Month with the more than 90,000 people like you who own their local grocery stores in New England.

Co-op Month is also an opportunity to connect with other co-ops in our region and around the world. From food co-ops to farmer co-ops, worker co-ops to credit unions, and housing co-ops to energy co-ops, cooperatives make a difference in people's lives every day. You can "Go Co-op" by joining your local co-ops and credit unions, purchasing co-op products and services, and supporting local cooperative businesses.

 

To learn more about the co-operatives in our economy at our co-op, just look for the "Go Co-op" signs on our shelves, identifying items produced by co-ops. You may be surprised by what you'll find, including dairy products from Cabot Creamery and Organic Valley, fresh produce from Deep Root Organic Co-op, fairly traded products from Equal Exchange, beverages from Katalyst Kombucha and Green River Ambrosia, and naturally fermented vegetables from Real Pickles.

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October Is Fair Trade Month

To celebrate Fair Trade Month, we have many products from Equal Exchange that are on sale for the entire month. Check out the Chamomile and Black Teas, bagged Small Farmers Trail Mix, their Very Dark Chocolate bar, the return of their Hot Cocoa and Spicy Hot Cocoa mix, and the new staff favorite: dried Pineapple.

Why Fair Trade? We know of eight very good reasons. Click on THIS LINK and scroll over the eight images for a snapshot of why Fair Trade is such an important global movement.

When you know a product comes from a country with economic challenges and/or exploitation, BUY FAIR TRADE.

Many Fair Trade products are grown organically and are therefore GMO FREE
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October Is Non-GMO Month


To celebrate, we have dozens of non-GMO products on sale from 25% to 40% off for the entire month.

We believe we all have a right to know what is in our food, and we work hard to minimize or eliminate GMOs in the food we make at the Creamery.

For the past couple of years we have made a concerted effort to track down sources of non-GMO ingredients such as chocolate chips, jams, peanut butter, and ketchup. While some ingredients would be too expensive to replace with non-GMO alternatives (very few of our customers would be able to afford mac and cheese made with all-organic cheese and butter), we have MANY offerings from our deli and bakery that, to the best of our knowledge, are GMO-free. Ingredient listings for most of our baked goods are available from the deli staff, and they can also give you ingredient lists for most of our prepared foods.

 

We have updated our "What the Creamery Kitchen is doing about GMOs" that is posted near the deli, and we would be happy to give you a copy to take with you. You can also read it by clicking on THIS LINK.

 

Please let Emmy know if you have questions or thoughts about our ongoing efforts to bring you information and choices in the foods we serve (email: [email protected]).

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New in the Store


Big Picture Farm Goat Milk Caramels: we usually have cheese from this lovely Vermont farm, but now they've got candy makers on their team turning their goat milk into delicious chewy caramels wrapped in fun line drawings of their goats. We have three flavors, their original Sea Salt, Cocoa Latte, and Seasonal Honey & Cider, that you can buy by the each, as well as a lovely boxed set of 11 caramels in their truly amazing Maple Cream flavor.  

 

We are pleased to bring back locally grown and organic fresh ginger from Old Friends Farm in Amherst. This is some of the most delicious ginger we've ever tasted--and you don't have to peel it! It's so fresh and young that you can grate it/cut/eat it with the skin on--we have found that we love to pop it in the freezer because then we can grate it into recipes and it doesn't get dry and hard in the fridge. We will have it in the produce case for as long as we can, but we are also bagging and freezing it for the winter. So if you don't find it in the produce case, look for it in our freezer!

 

Look on the shelf for Kitchen Garden's new hot sauces: Sriracha and Habanero Sriracha. We love supporting our local farmers! They bring us great veggies all summer long, and now you can buy their hot sauce to bring a little fresh spiciness to your winter meals.

 

Guyette's Buttercup: Harry Guyette was a local farmer from Plainfield. We are proud to bring you a winter squash that he developed and raised for decades, saving the seed from his crop and replanting it again in the spring. Crabapple Farm in Chesterfield was gifted some of his last squashes almost ten years ago and they have been carefully selecting the best squashes and saving the seed and growing it in isolation from other squash. This is a delicious buttercup-type squash, typically green-skinned but often with beautiful red streaking. It is sweet and delicious, a dry and nutty squash with no strings; it is perfect for pie, roasting, or mashing.

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Help Stock Up the Bagshare Bags for the Old Creamery Co-op

 

The Creamery was the first location at the start of The Bagshare Project in 2007 and the first and only venue to go bag-free. Our Co-op saves lots of trees every year by this simple act of sharing and remembering to bring a reusable bag.

 

Join us for a Bag Sew on Saturday, October 11, from 10 am to 1 pm at the Sewing Center

in the basement of the Cummington Community House. No sewing experience is necessary. Sew up some bags and chat with friends and neighbors.

 

R.S.V.P.:

[email protected] (Leni) or [email protected] (Peg)
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Capital Campaign Exceeds Goal!

 

Our incredible community has done it again! The last few days of September and the first few days of October were feverish. People were rushing to deliver both gifts and member loans to help us take advantage of the match challenge and to meet the September 30 deadline. A few folks asked for a grace period; we agreed.  We are confident we will collect the outstanding pledges and loans, and when we do we will have met our 2014 capital campaign goal and succeeded in strengthening our Co-op's ability to meet the needs of member-owners and the broader community far into the future.

 

Summary Status

$219,098 - Loans and Gifts already received and matched

  $15,372 - Loans, Gifts, and Matches to be collected this week

  $15,000 - Loans and Gifts pledged for later this year (not matched)

$249,470

 

That is $4,470 above our campaign goal!

 

Of course the major engine that propelled us to and past our goal was the $62,820 in matching funds provided by the most generous supporter we could imagine. We were closing in on halfway to our goal when this match challenge was offered. You, our member-owners and supportive community, did the rest.

 

For the campaign...

 

We received 23 member-owner loans from $1,000 to $15,000 for a loan total of $143,000.

 

We received 83 gifts ranging from $5 to $10,000 totaling $43,650 Combined with the challenge match, that's $106,470 in total gifts.

 

Where exactly is this money going?

 

Here is what you have accomplished with your generosity:

  • Paid off 2013 construction debt
  • Paid off prior year accountant debt
  • Paid off the $100K short-term Florence Savings Bank loan
  • Installed an ice cream awning
  • Installed a kitchen cooling unit
  • Restored Camille and related exterior lighting
  • Set aside funds for future landscaping work
  • Set aside funds for future exterior and interior painting
  • Replenished an operating reserve, necessary for our slower seasons

 

 

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Stay in touch, continue to tell us what you think, and help where you can.

 

For questions about Co-op membership, product requests, suggestions, or other feedback, please send a note to [email protected].

 

If you'd like to contact the general manager, send an email to [email protected].

Would you like to volunteer to help the Co-op from time to time? Send a note to [email protected] and Jack Nelson, our volunteer coordinator, will add you to our growing list. Jack will send out a call for assistance when we have a need.  

   

If you'd like to contact the Co-op's Board of Directors, send an email to [email protected].   

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Help us spread the word! Encourage your friends to sign on to receive the Creamery's weekly email newsletter. Better yet, encourage them to become member-owners of the Co-op. You can forward this email to your friends and relatives (for best results, use the "Forward email" link in the white space at the bottom of this page). Rest assured, we won't clog their inboxes and we will respect their privacy. We will not disclose your or their email addresses to anyone else. You can unsubscribe at any time. Thank you for your interest, commitment, and support.  

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Your continued patronage supports the ongoing success of our community-owned, values-based cooperative. Thank you for supporting the Old Creamery Co-op as a member-owner, as a shopper, as a friend. We value every contribution to the success of the Old Creamery Co-op.

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Quick Links

Creamery Specials and Sales                    Bulk Purchase Program  

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445 Berkshire Trail

Cummington, Massachusetts 01026

413.634.5560