Summer is berry season!  Berries not only taste good, but they are good for you too! (How often does that happen?!?)  The Purple Carrot is offering you the chance to buy fresh blueberries to enjoy now and freeze for those winter months when fresh berries aren't so plentiful or tasty.

Now through Tuesday, July 23rd, you can order a 10 lb box of fresh blueberries and they will be ready for pick-up Thursday, July 25th at the Purple Carrot Market building (53 E. Broadway, also known as the Victor Mall).   These delicious blueberries will cost Purple Carrot Market owners just $35/box while non-owners can purchase a box for $40/box.  Non-owners: save yourself $5 on each box of berries by becoming an owner today!  Becoming an owner is easy through our online store.  There are many more benefits to ownership beyond savings on berries!

Everyone wanting berries needs to pre-order and pre-pay so that we have enough berries.  The easiest way to order is to go to our Online Store and select the number of boxes and pay online.  If you're not the type to order online, please send us an email at purplecarrotmarket@gmail.com with "Blueberries" in the subject line and we will arrange payment with you.

You’re invited to a Local Foods, Local Places community meeting & planning session on ​June 24-25, 2019 at the Initiative Foundation, 405 1st St SE, Little Falls, MN 56345.

This community workshop is on the topic of local food and its potential for strengthening our local economy, supporting healthier people and neighborhoods, and revitalizing our downtown. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) have selected Little Falls for the Local Foods, Local Places technical assistance program, which will result in an action plan for strengthening our local food economy and enlivening our downtown.

A team of these agency partners and their consultants will join local stakeholders to conduct a workshop in Little Falls on Monday, June 24th and Tuesday, June 25th. Your participation and knowledge of the local area is needed to help make this event a success. The workshop will bring together many key stakeholders from throughout our region to develop an action plan primarily around, but not limited to, these goal areas:

1. Grow the number of residents and business owners who participate in the local food economy and recognize its contribution to economic development and downtown revitalization.
2. Improve operations, infrastructure, and coordination of the local farmers markets to attract more growers, makers, and buyers.
3. Reduce barriers some residents face to accessing and eating fresh, local food, e.g., cost, transportation, knowledge about food preparation.
4. Raise awareness of Little Falls as a regional destination for tourism and local food. The workshop will include presentations on community livability and the roles that local food plays in supporting it, plus small group working sessions and discussions on the community’s vision and goals, and specific actions for reaching them. The workshop will lay out an action plan for moving forward.

• Who: Local residents, community leaders, and elected officials, along with representatives of EPA, USDA, and other federal agencies.
• What: Discussions on local foods and community livability, group work sessions, and networking that will result in a Community Action Plan.
  • Day 1 Community meeting: June 24th, 5:30-8:30 pm. Light supper provided.
  • Day 2 Action Planning Work Sessions: June 25th, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Zoomski’s box lunch available for $9 cash with RSVP.
• Where: The Initiative Foundation|405 1st St SE, Little Falls, MN 56345
• RSVP: bit.ly/LittleFallsLFLP
• Questions: Contact Little Falls Convention and Visitors Bureau, 320-616-4959, lfcvb1@lfcvb.com

Your expertise, experience, and enthusiasm for the community and region will help make the workshop a success. We
look forward to seeing you there.

Sincerely,
Local Foods, Local Places Steering Committee:
Natalie Keane, Purple Carrot Market
Birdie Pederson, Little Falls Farmers Market
Elise Carey, Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls
Jon Radermacher, City of Little Falls
Arlene Jones, Sprout MN
Kris Vonberge, Little Falls Convention and Visitors Bureau

Purple Carrot Market owners are invited to the 2019 Annual Meeting & Social on Monday, June 17th on the lawn of the Rosenmeier House (Convention & Visitors Bureau at 606 1st Street SE, Little Falls). Starting at 5 p.m., a hot dog picnic will be served courtesy of Allison White Insurance (Owner #179). The Annual Meeting will begin at 5:45 pm and the agenda will include election for Board of Directors, consideration of changes to the co-op's bylaws, and an update on what's happening with the Purple Carrot.

To learn more about the proposed changes to the Purple Carrot's bylaws, please click here.  To meet the 2019 candidates for the Board of Directors, please click here.

Owners unable to attend may receive an absentee ballot by emailing the Purple Carrot at purplecarrotmarket@gmail.com.

The Purple Carrot Market's Board of Directors proposes a change to the co-op's bylaws that changes the number of seats on the board.  All owners are encouraged to review the proposed changes and plan to attend the Annual Meeting on Monday, June 17 to discuss the change and to cast their vote.  Click on this link to review the proposed changes.  Provisions for absentee voting will be sent to owners prior to the meeting.

If you need a paper copy of the proposed bylaw change, please email the Purple Carrot at purplecarrotmarket@gmail.com.