| |
Canada’s premiere Fully-Certified retail facility
In every corner of Sunworks Farm and Blush Lane Organics stalls, located in the Calgary Farmer’s Market, you’ll find captivating, fresh, pure foods that offer undeniable and certifiable bliss in every bite.
Featuring 1,000 square feet of strictly packaged fruits, vegetables, breads, meats, eggs and dairy products. Sunworks Farm and Blush Lane have just recently been approved as certified handler of organic products, the first retail store in Alberta if not all of Canada at a Farmers market level, to achieve ‘Certification of Organic Operation’ as a handler.
“Every inch of our retail space, from the food we grow or purchase and sell, to the way the food is handled, follows a specific protocol,” says Matt Paulson, co-owner of Blush Lane with wife Erin and her parents Sheila and Ron Hamilton, owners of Sunworks Farm near Camrose, who supply the fresh meat, poultry, eggs and dairy products for the store.
“Our practices are continually checked out by a third-party inspector and we are not allowed to mix any non-organic food with organic food, like you would find in most stores. That means the customer is always guaranteed that every item we sell is the real organic thing, fresh from the farm and handled carefully. Once you bite into an organic apple, radish or tomato, you can see and taste the difference,” Erin Paulson adds.
Sheila Hamilton, whose family farm produces organic beef, pork, bison, poultry and lamb, says she’s proud of the fact that all their products are Alberta raised. She also believes official organic certification of their market stall adds more credibility and power to the organics movement.
“People tell me they trust us and the food we provide — that it’s safe and wholesome for their family. They see that we raise our animals in a clean, healthy, humane environment and feed them certified feed that we make ourselves. The taste is truly authentic,” Hamilton says.
“Our butchering facilities are Certified Organic to maintain the organic integrity of our meat. We even make sure the butchering practices are done with dignity and respect for the animal; this reduces stress which fits with our philosophy of humane caring for our animals.” Sunworks Farm and Blush Lane Organics have been embraced by discerning Calgarians concerned about the safety and handling of their family’s food. Their reputation comes from having passed rigorous inspections as outlined by the United States Department of Agriculture *(USDA) National Organic Program (NOP). Currently, Canada is finalizing a nationally recognized organic standard, which should become regulation by March 2006.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Colleen Lawrence, Program Manager of Organic Certifications with QMI Organic Inc. in Edmonton, facilitated the Sunworks Farm and Blush Lane organic qualification process. “Sunworks Farm and Blush Lane have stepped way ahead, their certification ensures the organic integrity of the food they sell. With organic certification, you know all practices have been checked and certified right up from the farm to the store level. Most traditional and organic-style stores can’t claim that, yet,” Lawrence says.
“Blush Lane only purchases produce from other certified growers, washes, prepares, packages and labels produce with safe water, and refrains from using heavy duty pesticides or unapproved chemicals to wash the produce, floors, coolers, and walls. It’s a truly natural approach that will eventually catch on,” Lawrence says.
“People are becoming knowledgeable and empowered. They spend a little more to ensure they are eating food that is uncompromised. The number of allergies, auto-immune deficiencies and chronic illnesses are on the rise and we’re all recognizing the need to eat pure and simple. It’s a health choice that consumers are demanding and retailers will eventually have to cater to,” she says.
Retail sales of organic food products in Canada have experienced a 20 percent spike in growth every year for the past decade. Pundits put this year’s sales of organic items at more than $800 million, while organic meats, such as chicken and turkey, are booming at 30 per cent growth. Conventional stores have had to keep up, by expanding their shelf plans to accommodate 18 per cent more organic products.
Their passion for providing healthy food for their customers inspires them to search for even more products that hail the message of clean living and production practices. We’ve been dreaming about opening a facility like this for years. We’ve always said we would offer 100 per cent organic because that’s what we believe in and what the people are asking for. This is the new standard and we plan on setting the pace for the rest of the industry,” Ron Hamilton concludes.
|
|
