Athens Locally Grown Offers Healthy Local Food For Online Purchase

by Rachel Bailey
04/04/2008

Kevin Cale's knees are starting to hurt. He's spent the better part of the afternoon kneeling on the cement floor of the garage at the Roots Farm in Winterville, Ga., carefully cleaning and sorting carrots. In a few days, these plump Boleros and long, sweet Mokums will be joining fresh meat, dairy, eggs, produce, honey and more at the site for Athens Locally Grown's weekly pick-up.

Athens Locally Grown, founded by Dan and Kristin Miller of Heirloom Organics in 2001, provides a way for Athens-area residents to easily find and buy locally-grown, seasonal organic foods. The variety found on the website is startling: lamb, honey, goat cheese, milk, eggs, oyster mushrooms, arugula, even homemade pet treats are all produced just outside the Classic City.

Athens Locally Grown's food comes from many area farms. Some, like the Roots Farm, are just a 15-minute drive from downtown. Others are as many as 75 miles away. No matter the distance they have to travel to sell their products, the online market is a resource for farmers as well as buyers. "For most of our growers, this is their primary market," said Eric Wagoner, the designer and administrator of Locally Grown's website.

So does Athens Locally Grown work? An account is required in order to buy food from the market. Membership fees amount to $25 per household per year, but prospective members are allowed to test the waters by placing up to two orders before paying dues. An email is sent to all members every Sunday evening listing what is available that week. Orders must be placed on the website, by phone or by e-mail by 8 p.m. on Tuesday, and pick-ups occur each Thursday from 4:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. near the Kroger on Alps Road in Athens, Georgia.

The website has a few kinks to work out. After trying to place an order for eggs and granola and receiving a notice that the items were sold out, I ordered the same products from different farms. When I arrived to pick up my order, the eggs from both the farms were there waiting for me, but neither granola was anywhere to be found. Though I was disappointed not to sample the homemade granola, the eggs I took home, all different sizes and ranging in color from white to brown to slightly green, were delicious.

At the core of Athens Locally Grown's beliefs is the idea that small family farms are good for the overall health of society. Members and non-members alike have the opportunity to see this social force in action and become a part of it by lending a hand at the Roots Farm, which is located in Winterville, Ga. Starting in April, the farm will accept volunteers from 8 a.m. to 4 p. m. on Tuesdays and Fridays and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays. More information can be found on their website.

Like farming itself, buying from Athens Locally Grown requires a little bit of patience and flexibility, but the variety of products and the opportunity to get more intimately acquainted with where the food we buy comes from makes this online farmers market a shopping alternative worth considering.

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