Rural Canadian food co-op, close to N.D., opens a year-round store with local farmers' goods

Our friends north of the border have developed an interesting version of a rural food cooperative. Rural Roots, which opened Oct. 26 in Boissevain, less than an hour from North Dakota, is Manitoba's "first grocery store that features only locally-grown produce and product," Bill Redekop reports for the Winnipeg Free Press. The co-op "is an extension of the farmers market concept -- but indoors and open year-round." The store, which is about the size of a master bedroom, is run by volunteers. It opened without any government support, using sponsors to buy all the necessary equipment. (Rural Roots Facebook photo)

"The goal is to promote local production and 'to make food personal and transparent,' board member Casey Guenther said, Redekop writes. "So, if you're looking for a steak for supper, you can go to Rural Roots' freezer and buy 'local beef from Vicky Neufeld,' as it says on one side of the freezer. If you want fresh bread, you might pick out the flax loaf 'baked by Christine Fehr.' There are photos and bios of all its small-scale farmer-suppliers." Other items include hot sauce, rice, cheese, oils, milk and dairy products, flour, lamb, and fruits and vegetables. (Read more)