Go Local All Year

Most Minnesota fields and gardens are frozen and snowy by now, but that doesn’t mean you have to stop buying and eating local food. You may be surprised (and pleased!) to learn about the abundance of delicious local choices available to you at your co-op. Here are some great products and food from local farms and small businesses from our region that you can find when you visit Lakewinds. Support local farmers and find a new reason to love winter!

Meat: Minnesota has an abundance of choices for sustainably raised meat. We feature many of the farmers in our store and on our website too. You can find delicious, heritage chicken from Kadejan, a wide selection of beef cuts from Peterson Craftsman Meats, turkey from Ferndale Farm, pork from Pastures a Plenty, and even Eichten’s bison!

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Cheese, bread & honey: Treat yourself to delicious cheeses from Alemar Cheese Company, Red Head Creamery, Caves of Faribault, and many others. Add locally baked bread from Breadsmith and a dash of honey from Bolton Bees, and you have a simple but irresistible starter plate.

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Honeys, Butters, & Breakfast staples: Make breakfast toast sweeter with a taste of honey butter from Velvet Bee’s or Buddy’s nut butters. Add in a fried egg from Locally Laid and a slice of savory bacon from Pastures a Plenty or Beeler’s Pure Pork for a great way to start your day!

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Sweets: Cocoa doesn’t grow in our northern climate, but Lakewinds works with local companies like BT McElrath, which uses sustainably grown ingredients in its chocolate products, such as the Prairie Dog Chocolate Bar (with butter toffee pieces and toasted almonds). We also carry local Groveland Confections – MooPies and Sea Salt Caramel Bars are decadent and delicious.

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Vegetables: From winter squash to locally grown mushrooms, you can support local farmers even in the dead of winter. Northwood Mushrooms, in Clayton Wisconsin, has fresh, dried, and powdered mushrooms. Harmony Valley (picture at top) has a variety of locally grown winter squashes through much of the winter. And there are greens from Revol and Superior Fresh that are grown locally throughout the year, too.

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Look for these products and many more this winter at Lakewinds. We strive to make it easy to find food grown and produced in our region. Visit our organic grocery store locations, grocery delivery page, Instagram, and Facebook for information about local products that help you support local farmers throughout the year.

 

Learn tips for shopping on a budget and see winter self care tips, too.

 

This post was updated in July, 2022.