January 2019 Honest Slate by Honest Weight Food Co-op

Honest

SLATE

HWFC’s community newsletter january 2019 Published monthly by the Communications Committee to promote transparency, report without bias, and sustain community among Membership • Staff • Management • Governance Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Avenue, Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 honestslate@honestweight.coop • https://www.honestweight.coop/

January

“May wonder, compassion and gratitude abound.”

events

•Jan. 16 Coffeehouse Open Mic •Jan. 18 Albany Shindig •Jan. 21 Entries Due for Art Show •Jan. 22 New Owner Orientation •Jan. 26 New Owner Orientation •Jan. 28 Membership Meeting

help WANTED Help Honest Slate delve into and dish on the Co-op’s latest events, department news and what’s on shoppers’ minds. Currently we seek Co-op community members for • Writing • Web expertise • Research • Note-taking • Interviews • Graphics Contact us:

honestslate@honestweight.coop.

We welcome:

Suggestions Letters to the editors, Ideas for articles & features.

(see page 10)

Our 2019 wish list begins on page 5. What will you wish for?

attn:

staff

owners see pg. 3

Soup’s on for NEC’s

January survey: pg. 5

•moving forward• Our first 2019 edition brings you news on wellness and environmental issues; Co-op events; announcements and much more. What do you wish to see featured in Honest Slate this year? What would you like to see happen at Honest Weight—more cultural events, discussion groups, classes? Let 2019 be a year to communicate: let’s help each other circulate information accurately, promote growth, and confront challenges together as a community.

•

Happy New Year!

•CONTENTS• Zero Waste.................................. 2 Attention: Staff Owners!.............. 3 Coffeehouse News ..................... 3 Wellness Wisdom ....................... 4 NEC Survey ................................. 5 A Wish List Sampling................... 5

From the Board .......................... 6 How did donuts manage to appear in three consecutive issues? See pg. 6.

Committee Corner ...................... 7

G here

Albany Shindig!............................ 9

Your ideas

belong right •h•e•r•e•

YOUR ART

goes

honest slate belongs to you.

Board Decisions........................... 7 A Fond Farewell .......................... 8 Q&A/Suggestion Box .................. 9 Care to Share? .......................... 10 Email: honestslate@honestweight.coop

https://www.honestweight.coop/

Honest Slate

Creati ng a

Zero Waste

HWFC by Courtney Semoff

The Environment Committee

at HWFC is striving to find reliable ways to bring the Co-op to Zero Waste status. In late October, the committee submitted a 13-page report to the Board with its findings and recommendations on how to make that transformation possible. These recommendations received a very positive reception at November’s Board meeting, and the effort is moving forward. Here are some large-scale success stories that have inspired this effort.

Festival volunteers have proved

to be a valuable asset in facilitating this Zero Waste initiative. They run sustainability stations, educate the public, and sort waste. In 2018 the Folklife Festival reduced the waste sent to landfills by 91% since this initiative’s 2007 beginning. Twelve tons of recyclables and 17 tons of compost were rerouted and used for new and better purposes than putrefying in a landfill.

2018’s Zero-Waste Smithsonian event in Washington, D.C. saw 12 tons of recyclables and 17 tons of compost rerouted. In September this initiative showed up in Albany and through the combined efforts of Zero Waste Capital District—a new volunteer coalition made up of groups and organizations including Sierra Club Hudson-Mohawk Group, PAUSE/360.org the

January 2019 League of Women Voters, Save the Pine Bush, the Solidarity Committee of the Capital District, Radix Ecological Sustainability Center, the city’s Office of Cultural Affairs and the Albany’s Department of General Services—Albany’s Riverfront Jazz Festival was set to be a Zero-Waste event. Vendors were required to use compostable or recyclable materials, food scraps were collected for compost, and multiple separation stations with dedicated volunteers were set up throughout the festival. At each station tips were provided on how one can compost and recycle to continue working toward a Zero-Waste environment at home. While some of these practices are in place at HWFC our Co-op has not yet become a Zero Waste establishment. The success of Zero Waste progress at these big public events demonstrates that with shared vision, passionate volunteers and strong commitment it is entirely possible to accomplish this goal!

Every year the Smithsonian holds the Folklife Festival, which represents different cultures through music, food, and crafts to help preserve the various cultures that coexist within the United States. The event is hosted at the National Mall in Washington D.C. attracting millions of people; despite the vast numbers, the huge amount of food, and the potential waste that is produced, the festival rose to the challenge and was presented with the 2017 Sustainability Excellence Award by the American Association of Museums. How is this possible? The initiative began in 2007 when a recycling program was put in place and vendors were asked to switch over to compostable materials and by 2016 almost 100% of the vendors were compliant. (Utensils and clear cups can be made from corn-based plastic to create a compostable solution to petroleum-based plastic.) The project “banners to bags” took old festival banners and created them into reusable bags for participants. Free water stations are provided throughout the mall to encourage the use of refillable water bottles. Extra food gets donated to food banks and biodiesel makers receive used cooking oil. Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

January 2019

attn: HWFC

Honest Slate

Staff: Are you an HWFC Owner?

In March, Staff will petition Member-Owners to

sign a petition which, if successful, will allow three Staff to serve on the Board rather than the current maximum of two. Your signature in March will count ONLY if, by the end of February, you

• Have attended an Owner Orientation, • Have purchased at least part of an Ownership Interest and are up-to-date with payments, and • Have three hours in your hours bank

· Once you have three hours in your bank, usually from the Owner Orientation, it should remain there and confer Member-Owner status and voting eligibility while you are on Staff.

2019 timeline: End of February—MO’s must have attended orientation and be up-to-date with payments March 13—Petition with 40+ Member Owner signatures must be submitted, to be placed on the Agenda for the next Regular Membership Meeting (RMM) April 2—Board of Directors meeting; the Board will set the Agenda for the upcoming RMM April 8—Notices for the RMM will be mailed April 28—Date for the Regular Membership Meeting *Must have 2/3 vote from the MO’s in attendance to make a change to the Bylaws BYLAWS 410.3(b) “No more than two employees may serve on the Board at any given time” CITATION: 240.2, 340.1, 342.1, 342.4, 342.4(a), 342.7, 343.6(b), 410.3(b), 600

Complete an Owner Orientation in January or February so you’re eligible to sign the petition in March and vote in April!

Be on the lookout for the petition this March.

It will propose changing the word “two” to “three” in Bylaws 410.3(b): “No more than two employees may serve on the Board at any given time.”

Staff hopes to submit the petition to the Board by March 15th to provide ample time for the Board and GRC to review the petition and add their proposed change to the agenda of the April 28, 2018 HWFC Regular Membership Meeting (RMM). The RMM agenda will be discussed at the April 2 Board meeting and must be approved in time to be mailed to the Membership at least 20 days before the meeting, by April 8th.

Sign up for Orientation at the Front Note the Location and day change: This event is now in the Café at the Co-op and it now happens on the third WEDNESDAY of the month.

Desk or email Yevette Buddeau at memberservices@ honestweight.coop for an Orientation schedule.

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

January 2019

Honest Slate

Words of Wisdom from

Wellness:

IMMUNITY

> > 2019 < <

><><><><><

story and photo by Courtney Semoff Every year people across the country create New Year’s resolutions that tend to be tossed aside by the time the calendars flip over to February. The majority of these resolutions are health-related: whether to exercise more, eat (less, better, vegan, keto), quit smoking, etc. However, it has been proven time and again that the most successful alterations we can make for our health are lifestyle changes with a long-term commitment. Therefore, Alex Mytelka has suggested the best ways to go about creating a healthy lifestyle change regarding one’s immunity; the first step in an effective maintenance health regimen. Alex Mytelka is HWFC’s Grocery and Wellness manager and is passionate about the topic of immunity as he, like most of us, “hates getting sick.” He has not been sick over the last two years and fully credits the regimen he maintains. However, as he pulled bottles of helpful supplements off the shelves stating, “I use every one myself,” he wanted to remind everyone that “Supplements are called supplements for a reason.”

The first thing Alex has Employees ask a customer who comes in looking for cold and flu relief is, “How much water have you had today?” If it’s 2 o’clock in the afternoon and the answer is none, they will ask that customer to go have a couple glasses of water in the café and then come back and speak to them. Alex stressed that he does not take extras of his everyday supplements when he does become sick and he warns customers against doing the same. Preventative measures help one not to get a cold in the first place; overdoing preventative measures once you are sick will not get rid of an illness faster. The most effective preventative measures that Alex recommends are: 1. Drink water regularly, 2. Choose a variety of colors in the produce department when creating your menu for the week, 3. Avoid sugar (it will make a cold last longer), 4. Take your preventative supplements regularly even when you feel healthy. In the case of an illness, Alex adds Dr. Schnuffie’s Get Well Urgent Immune Support and Kick-Ass Immune Activator spray on a daily basis.

For more information Alex recommends coming into Wellness to speak with any of the knowledgeable Employees there, attending the variety of classes hosted by the Education Committee at HWFC, and referencing material by Tim Ferriss, a selfhelp author who is a big fan of TheraZinc products. On Dec. 19 Dr. Schnuffie (Dr. Alan Ingles) himself came in from Massachusetts to teach a class on the topic of immunity right here in HFWC. He spoke about stress management and the body’s reaction to stress; how dietary sugar harms immunity and triggers inflammation; the importance of good sleep, and proper vitamin and mineral intake.

Dr. Schnuffie’s is named for Alan’s daughter. The name was chosen (against all professional branding advice) because it is “comforting, fun, and memorable.”

He explained that while Elderberry Syrup by Fat of the Land Apothecary, Quantum Health’s TheraZinc Spray, Bio Align’s Herbal Defense Complex, the Mushroom Immune Supplement by Honest Weight, and Dr. Schnuffie’s Stay Well Daily Immune Support are all a key component in his everyday lifestyle, a few factors allow all of those things to work to the best of their ability.

><><><><>< “How much water have you had today?”

From left to right: Fat of the Land Apothecary elderberry syrup, Quantum Health TheraZinc Spray, Source Naturals Wellness Formula, Honest Weight Mushroom Immune, Dr. Schnuffie’s Stay Well, Dr. Schnuffie’s Get Well, WishGarden Herbs Kick-Ass Immune.

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

January 2019

december

results:

Thank you to all who participated in our December Survey. It gave us some insight into what changes many of us are planning to make in the New Year. We hope that most will come to fruition but let’s forgive ourselves if they are postponed or delayed, as some always are. Increasing the amount of organic foods, eliminating foods that contain additives and preservatives, and going vegan or vegetarian were among the top dietary resolutions highlighted in the survey. Most respondents pledged to reduce the use of plastic and strive to avoid foods with additives and preservatives.

organic foods

ü going vegan/vegetarian



plastic additives & preservatives

What’s on your Wish List for 2019? “Ask Food Service about their soup selections: ingredients; preparation, and sales.” “Please use a compost company that can handle biodegradable bags, gloves and utensils. “ “I would like to see the Co-op move back to values-based thinking—where we consider planet and people above profit and ego. Plus sell marijuana 2019!”—Anonymous

Honest Slate

NEC e y v Sur

Does your taste in foods change

with the seasons?

JanUaRY 2019 We know that eating foods in season and grown in your locality have immense benefits, and according to some studies, our metabolic process changes with seasons as well, particularly in the winter. Some of the many benefits of eating in season and local are: 1. Allowing produce to ripen fully before harvest allows development of optimal nutritional benefits. 2. Foods in season are more abundant, taste better, and are less costly. 3. They lower the “load” on the environment by eliminating cost of transportation. 4. Buying locally strengthens the economic base of the community and promotes its cohesiveness. 5. Small farms promote biodiversity, that, among other benefits, improve the quality of the soil and nutritional content of the produce as a result.

new survey

Our pledge to local, seasonal and small scale farming is spelled out in the Food and Product Manual. Because so many of us depend on the coop deli for our nourishment at times, we would like to find out what your favorite menu choices are and what you wish was “on the menu” that currently is not. And a reminder that our committee welcomes any suggestions for future survey questions. Please contact NutritionComm@honestweight.coop with any suggestions.

Happy and Healthy New Year.

To participate in our January survey, go to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/MZLHM5X

questions: 1. Does your diet change with season and if so, how? 2. Are there foods that you eat more of in the winter and if so, which? 3. What is your favorite soup in the Co-op deli? 4. What is your favorite main dish in the Co-op deli? 5. Are there any foods or dishes currently unavailable, that you would like to see on the prepared foods menu? If so, let us know which.

Member-Owner

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

Honest Slate

From the Board

Do We Care About More Than Ourselves? “This is apparently true: People who buy or even see pictures of organic, healthy food are more likely to be ungenerous, judgmental and self-interested than people who buy or see pictures of standard and unhealthy foods.” This is one of the conclusions reached by author Rachel Herz, who studies the psychology of neuroscience in her book: “Why You Eat What You Eat: The Science Behind Our Relationship With Food.” “Ms. Herz cited studies showing that people who go to Whole Foods—the Mecca of self-righteous shopping—tend to behave badly in the parking lot. Buying organic foods feels like you are doing a good deed and you feel like you are morally licensed to be a jerk because you have done your good deed for the day.”

January 2019 The Honest Weight Food Co-op Statements of Conscience talks about wider concerns, stating our commitment to:

Board of Directors member Russell Ziemba photo by Drea Leanza

“[This] book would be worth reading to help understand our psychological basis of eating and food selection.” These statements of supposed fact appeared in a review of Rachel Herz’s book by Daniel Neman of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Tribune News Service [TNS]). This review was reprinted in the Albany Times Union’s Food Section Thurs., Nov. 8, 2018. The article was entitled “Eating urges not always about hunger: Author discusses the science behind our relationship with food.” These conclusions and others in the review were definitely intriguing, and could perhaps help us understand our food choices and why we make them. My own belief has been that people who care about the quality of the food they eat—organic, fair trade, local, cruelty free—also are more likely to care about the Earth and fellow sentient beings, including other people. This caring would make them more generous, less judgmental, and more empathetic: not the opposite.

Do you care about the health of the Earth, other people and fellow creatures as well as yourself?

• Our food policy, which reflects buying practices for food and body aids with consideration towards moral and ethical production, environmental stewardship, healthy living, and safety. • Help our community learn more about growing, choosing, preparing, and using natural foods. • Learn and teach about alternative ways of living that are healthy for ourselves, our community, and our planet. • Encourage an environment where ideas and philosophies can be generated, shared, and expressed freely. • Support, embrace, and celebrate the diversity of our community. • Provide our customers with knowledgeable staff and a positive shopping environment. • Donating five percent (5%) of our net profits per year to local non-profit organizations. I’m not sure that using Whole Foods shoppers as a representative group for all people who buy and eat organic and healthy food is statistically reliable. It is true that there are people who care only or primarily about themselves. Their healthy food choices are meant to enhance their own health, not that of the planet or anyone else on it. Are they representative of the whole organic and local foods movement? Is their driving behavior in the parking lot of Whole Foods indicative of their behavior generally? I haven’t yet read “Why You Eat What You Eat,” so I am only referring to what appears in the review in the Times Union. I think her book would be worth reading to help understand our psychological basis of eating and food selection. What I would like to ask Co-op Member-Owners, Employees and shoppers is: Do you care about the health of the Earth, other people and fellow creatures as well as yourself, or are your buying choices generated primarily or solely out of self-interest? What are your observations on this? I hope this can inspire some letters to the editor of Honest Slate and the Times Union on this topic and help us come to a greater awareness of our actions. —Russell Ziemba

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

Honest Slate

January 2019

COMMITTEE CORNER: Monthly HWFC Meeting Summaries

Full Committee Reports are routinely posted on the HWFC website once approved by the Board.

by Janet Sorell

This is a summary of preliminary committee reports submitted to the Board of Directors for the Jan. 8 Board meeting. Committee reports are available on the HWFC website upon Board approval.

The GRC reviewed the possibility of establishing proxy voting for people who cannot attend Membership Meetings. This issue was reviewed by HWFC attorneys in 2013 who advised we not allow proxy voting due to our incorporating documents and corpor ate structure. Staff are able to leave work to vote, and our Bylaws (310.2) stress the importance of participating in Membership Meetings. The GRC has asked the Board to create written procedures for committees, including workplan protocols and consequences for not adhering to protocol. The GRC has asked the Bylaws Panel to review Bylaws 330.5 and 461.3 vis-à-vis approval of Elections & Nominations Committee Manual by the Board or by Membership.

Personnel Committee (PC)

The PC identified readers for its proposed changes to the disciplinary process contained in the Employee Manual and continues to work on related sections.

Communications Committee (CC)

The CC continues to solicit contributors (writers, photographers, M-Os, staff) to Honest Slate, HWFC’s electronic newsletter. As of November 2018, the NEC began publishing its monthly survey in Honest Slate. As of January 2019, Honest Slate will be made accessible to the visually impaired.

Arts Committee (AC)

The AC will be hosting four shows, generally of ten weeks each. The next show, Roots/ Routes, will start in February.

Membership Committee (MC)

The MC is looking for new Member-Owners to join the committee and also for someone to appoint to Bylaws Panel.

Elections and Nominations Committee (ENC)

The ENC seeks a facilitator to conduct a workshop about serving on Boards in general and HWFC’s in particular. The January Membership Meeting will include a vote on whether to add another statement to our Statements of Conscience. The ENC is working on the ballot. The ENC seeks an update on the status of the Board Manual which has been in progress for some months.

Nutrition and Education Committee (NEC)

The NEC will follow up with HWFC management on: (1) the progress of establishing an informational kiosk at the Co-op; and (2) feedback on the draft glyphosate brochure. The NEC hopes to work on PFA’s in packaging with the Environment Committee.

Board Meeting Decisions HWFC’s Board of Directors approved the following at the 6 p.m. Board Meeting Jan. 8, 2018:

•The decision to adopt a new anti-harassment policy was affirmed. • Information was requested of the CCO & CFO about the impact of the minimum wage increase as of January 1, 2019 on Co-op staff. • The Environment Committee was approved to work with management and operations to create clear signage about what can and cannot be placed in our recycling stream and to look at ways to decrease our use of plastic bags in our waste stream.

The NEC formulated questions for its three-question survey, which will appear in the January issue of Honest Slate.

Environment Committee (EC)

The EC submitted three proposals for Board approval: (1) Dual stream recycling and composting poster language to be posted in each department; (2) Immediately discontinue use of plastic bags for single stream recycling; (3) Adopt policy to minimize disposable glove use to only when required by health code or when advised due to a given situation.

Finance

Finance submitted a Year to Date Profit and Loss Summary that showed $92,628.52 in net income from July – November 2018.

•

happy new /

Governance Review Council (GRC)

\ year from /

• The Board voted to hire Carol Ostrow as a consultant for a term of four months to create the Honest Slate newsletter. • The Notice to the Membership of the January 27th Regular Membership Meeting was edited and approved to be sent to the GRC.

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

Honest Slate

Goodbye, Grocery Guy: An Unlikely Story Ours was an unlikely Co-op friendship, forged in Honest Weight’s aisles when we both worked in Grocery. We struck up spontaneous, animated conversations on a wide variety of relevant topics from grocery operations to alternate universes. I think his favorite all-time subject had to be the life-changing Mandela theory. I hadn’t quite heard of it until he first mentioned it, but it quickly won me over. After all, I am 100% sure of my clear double-take at finding library books titled “Berenstain” Bears in the mid-90s—having previously known the series under an altered name (it’s true; Google it). But I digress—like my friend so often did, and with great glee. His name was Kurt Lehner and he worked as a receiver at Honest Weight until July 2018. He used to joke about how no one would believe we were friends because we came from different worlds. He was a down-to-earth guy working the warehouse while I handled the hallways, prowling the committee beat, trying to comprehend the Co-op’s assorted nuts and bolts.

Submissions Policy We welcome articles & contributions. Email HonestSlate@honestweight.coop Word limit for contributions is 500 words unless otherwise requested. Material is published at the discretion of the Honest Slate team; only signed work is accepted; items are subject to editing for length, grammar and style. Any articles deemed controversial in nature shall be reviewed before publishing. Writers must substantiate claims with facts and avoid inflammatory language. Articles regarded as attacks or otherwise harmful to individuals will be returned to the writer for non-personal rephrasing.

Kurt used to say that together we could change the Co-op, and I agreed. Of course we never devised a work plan, but we did share perspectives from our respective corners. We got along so well, in fact, that we had to be mindful not to chat too long among the aisles. We’d yak and go back to work; and then suddenly, up he’d pop in another aisle with yet another new anecdote or joke to tell—kind of like a resident jack-in-the-box, only with more dignity. After I switched to non-Grocery time investment, I’d only see Kurt when I came to shop and take a class— scanning each aisle quickly on my way in to find him and share a quick hello (usually me yelling “Hi! I’m late for yoga!”). So alternatively, we’d try to phone. But the oddest thing about our friendship was that at some point his phone suddenly became unable to send or receive calls from my number—and only my number. When we finally met up in person to test it, I texted him in real time and it went straight into the ether. Some bizarre glitch was preventing us from communicating electronically.

Articles referring to HWFC policies and practices will be referred to the appropriate individual or body prior to publication. We will consider unsolicited material including letters to the editors but encourage individuals submit article ideas or outlines before writing. Spontaneously submitted articles are not guaranteed to earn time investment or acceptance for publication and are subject to the same editing practices as assigned work. NOTE: Letters to the Editors are welcome any time and do not require approval. Please contact Honest Slate with questions, comments or suggestions: honestslate@honestweight.coop.

January contributors: Yevette Buddeau Nicole Collins Rebecca Dinhofer

Alena Gerli Elisa Grimm Carol Ostrow

Courtney Semoff Janet Sorell Russell Ziemba

January 2019 “It’s almost as if the universe were trying to keep us apart!” he exclaimed. At that very moment, a diligent worker came up and reached between us to stock items, literally separating us and only increasing the absurdity. I’m pretty sure it was an Annie’s pasta product. It was mystifying and hilarious. So I hope you’ll understand that because our reunions were random, I didn’t know he had passed away until autumn. Now as I clear my desk at year’s end to write this, large lovely snowflakes waft and collect on the roof outside my attic office, and I am somehow less heartbroken than before. Kurt was goofy, gangly, generous of spirit, and always greeted me with a grin. His easygoing manner and slightly countercultural take on life were utterly charming. Goodbye, unlikely friend; So glad to have known you. — Carol Ostrow

•

Keep in mind our triple bottom line: people, planet & profit. Statement of Purpose: Honest Slate is a platform for communication among HWFC Staff, Management, Membership and Governance—promoting transparency, reporting news without bias, and sustaining community. Articles in Honest Slate are for informational purposes and are not intended to diagnose or treat disease. Opinions expressed in Honest Slate do not necessarily represent the views or policies of Honest Slate or Honest Weight Food Co-op. All contents ©2019 Honest Weight Food Co-op; any material appearing in Honest Slate may not be reproduced in any form without the express written consent of HWFC.

Honest Weight Food Co-op • 100 Watervliet Ave. Albany, NY 12206 • 518-482-2667 • https://www.honestweight.coop/ honestslate@honestweight.coop

January 2019

Q &A

from the Suggestion Box Don’t see your comment here? Check the bulletin board in the café. Q: Could you have English muffins as a choice on the make-your-own sandwich papers at the deli? Thanks! J I ♥ English muffins! A: We’ll look into expanding our bread options to include English muffins. Thanks for the suggestion. Q: Dried aloe vera for snacking in Bulk? A: We’ve seen dried aloe vera powder available, but we have never seen dried spears as a snack item. We’ll keep our eyes open to see if it becomes available. Have you ever dried it yourself? Q: I love that the Fog City Macaroni had shredded cheese instead of the chunk cheese. Better distribution of cheese. J A: That was a mistake. The Fog City is one of our long-standing favorites. We like to offer consistent recipes for our followers. Q: Thank you so much for the delicious Thanksgiving meal that you catered!!! You made our holiday J Thank you for getting Oatly in the store. It’s hard to find & you did it. A: Thank you for taking the time to let us know! We’re glad to provide. We’re glad that you appreciate Oatly. We’re trying to get it back. The supply is very limited. Elmhurst is a comparable option.

Honest Slate Please try to identify specific products or flavors when you request a new item or category. Q: The Love pistachio company is owned by the same people that are responsible for Fiji Water. Why are we supporting such evil despicable alleged humans? A: We’ll monitor the news for further developments in the Love pistachio story. For now, we prefer to let shoppers make their own informed decisions. Q: Less large, giant hunks of meat in hot bar—more chopped meat with veggies! A: We’ll look at rotating more of the mixed casseroles such as lasagnas into our selection as they call for more chopped meat.

Q: Y’all are neat. A: Thanks. You’re so sweet. Q: Make a space on this board for COMPLIMENTS! Hot bar has been extraordinary lately; esp. 2 weeks ago…curried tofu, BBQ seitan stew. Everything was great! A: We always appreciate praise! Thanks for taking the time to compliment our hot bar. We prefer to intersperse the various suggestions and questions.

ion Q: 1. Have suggestions Locat cards located closer to Location the suggestion board (if Location you want to encourage

Q: Please carry Kite Hill Greek style yogurt. I special order but know others would love it. (Plain—unsweetened!!) A: We’re looking forward to bringing in Kite Hill Greek style yogurt after the holidays.

suggestions/questions). 2. Grape flavored Zevia (no calorie) soda. 3. More smoothie options + flavors. Thanks! A: 1. We keep the suggestion box at the service desk because we encourage shoppers to talk with the Front End first. Then, please write suggestions if not addressed. The board is for suggestions that we’ve been able to respond to. 2. We’ll look into adding grape. 3. What smoothie options would you like to see?

Q: Put a French or Catalina dressing on the Salad Bar for those who don’t eat dairy or eggs. Thanks! A: We offer a few non-dairy and non-egg dressings. We’ll keep your suggestion in mind.

Q: Please look into ground flax seed hulls—more nutritious than seeds! A: We have not seen ground flax seed hulls offered by any of our bulk suppliers. We do carry ground flax seed in Wellness as well as Barlean’s high lignin flax oil.

Albany Shindig! When:

Friday, Jan. 18 7:15 - 9:30 p.m.

Where: First Congregational Church 405 Quail St., Albany Coordinated by: Paul Rosenberg 518-482-9255 paul@homespun.biz