One of Hearts

Oh my dearest Rainbow, how I love thee. I have indeed counted the ways, and we are now at the last.

So far this week I have given 4 reasons why I have made Rainbow Grocery here in San Francisco my sweetheart, one for each day.

Monday – It’s 100% vegetarian friendly.
Tuesday – They have an amazing bulk section which allows me to cut down on packaging.
Wednesday – An awesome variety and abundance of Fair Trade, Local and Organic goods.
Thursday – Free recycling of batters, CFLs and Ink Cartridges

Today, the last and most important reason I am smitten with this little grocery store.

#5 Knowledgeable and helpful staff –

In almost all the other grocery stores I’ve been to there has been a lack of staff. I’d have to run to the service desk or flower department to have someone paged to the cheese isle, and run back to the cheese isle just to find out they have no idea what a Ski Queen is, let alone whether or not they ever carried it.

photo credit to Itzpapalotl

That doesn’t happen at Rainbow! No need to wonder what the most tasty bulk peanut butter is, what face soap might be best for your skin, or where they keep the exotic spices. Just look to your left or right and ask your friendly neighborhood Rainbow Grocery employee.

There always seems to be at least one person in every department who knows at least a little bit about the department they’re in. I’ve asked questions regarding frosting, local fruit versus non local fruit, peanut butter, potatoes (I can never remember what potatoes are for boiling and which are for baking and such), cheese, make-up, and many other things. Not once have I been disappointed in the answer I’ve received. Even when the answer to my specific question isn’t known, I’m left with at least a little bit of knowledge on the general subject or an A+ alternative to what I want. How’s that for service?

So that’s why I ♥love♥ my local co-op grocer. There are many other reasons I could have gone on about when it comes to Rainbow Grocery, but these are the most important ones for me. I hope I have at least got a couple people out there to look into their own local market/ co-op. I feel it’s important to support and be patrons of little places that are doing their best to take care of their employees, their cities citizens, their community and their world.

If you want to know more about co-ops I would check out Cooperative Grocers Magazine’s “about co-ops” section, or do a Google search on “co-op grocers in the US” or wherever you happen to call home. If you’re looking for a co-op near you CoopDirectory.org might help get you on your way to a spectacular local grocer. Want to know more about Rainbow? Check out their website.

photograph taken by Itzpapalotl and used under creative commons.

Three reasons I am oh so fond of Rainbow Grocery in San Francisco covered, two more to go. For those just joining me in this numerated list of love, let me share what’s going on. This week I am letting everyone know that my grocery store, Rainbow Grocery, an employee owned co-op, is far better than any other grocery store anywhere, ever.

Reasons for love Monday through Wednesday -

#1 – It’s 100% vegetarian friendly.
#2 – They have an amazing bulk section which allows me to cut down on packaging.
#3 – An awesome variety and abundance of Fair Trade, Local and Organic goods.

Thursday is a good day for number 4, which actually has nothing to do with food, but other awesome services my darling Rainbow provides…for free.

Photo credit to Armisteadbooker

#4 Recycling for batteries, used ink cartages and CFLs – How many of you know its important to make sure your compact fluorescent light bulbs get to your local CFL recycling/handling facility? Until a few months ago I had no idea.

CFLs contain mercury, and while in small doses it’s not terribly harmful; if you drop one light bulb it’s not the end of the world, having millions of CFLs in landfills cracking open can poison ground water, and end up in our oceans and lakes. They can also break in garbage cans, trucks, and in storage containers, exposing anyone who handles these items to a toxic chemical.

No need to fear though, if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area you can drop your used bulbs off at Rainbow Grocery! It’s in the mission, which is pretty much in the center of everything, so it’s likely at some point you will be passing it. If you don’t live in San Francisco, a few IKEA stores will take your used bulbs off your hands, or you can check out Earth 911 for somewhere in your area.

More on how Rainbow captured my blood pumping muscle to come!

photograph taken by Armisteadbooker and used under creative commons.

It’s Wednesday and we’re midway through my reasons for making a local co-op by the name of Rainbow Grocery, here in SF, my sweetheart. I’ve given two reasons already which were…

#1 – It’s 100% vegetarian friendly.

#2 – They have an amazing bulk section which allows me to cut down on packaging.

Today, reason #3 -

Lots of Fair Trade, Local, and Organic goods –In their book, A Slice of Organic Life, English socialite, environmentalist, and editor Sheherazade Goldsmith and her contributing writers make a lot of excellent points on the benefits of buying local, fair trade and organic goods. Rainbow has each in abundance when compared to many of the other markets and major chain grocers out there.

“Air-freighting fresh produce has more than trebled in the past 20 years and, if the current shopping trends continue, we may rely on foreign imports for most of our everyday goods.”

While I do believe this statement is more about Goldsmiths native country of England than it is about other countries, it’s something I believe we should all keep in mind. According to A Slice of Organic Life “… the UK could meet over 70% of its eating needs by using food produced in that country, currently half of all the food consumed there is imported.” Why?

Rainbow carries Jams and jellies from California, honey from Marin County, artisan soaps from San Clemente California, Northern California Cheeses, local bakery treats from Kika and other local sweet makers, tasty San Francisco and Napa Valley beers and wines, and tons of organic fruit and veggies from here in California and neighboring states in the US. The list goes on and on.

I’m not saying importing and exporting is bad, it’s an integral part of the world’s economy and relations between countries. What I am saying is I think all countries could benefit from being a little more self sustaining in all aspects of life, you know, fewer pointless wars and such.

This week I am declaring my love for Rainbow Grocery here in San Francisco. Yesterday I mentioned the first reason I dig this little market. It is now time for yet another reason why I have eyes for this employee owned co-op.

Reason #1 – It’s 100% vegetarian friendly.

Tuesday, reason #2 -

photo credit to D'arcy Norman

An amazing bulk selection equals less packaging. – The California Waste Management Board states “Every year Californians generate 66 million tons of solid waste, of which approximately one third is packaging.” Add 49 other states and the rest of the world to that the numbers get quite ridiculous. Buying in bulk, and cooking and baking from scratch can help cut down greatly on the packaging that ends up in our landfills.

Rainbow offers quite a variety of tasty goodness in bulk; teas, coffees, dried fruit, various sugars and flours, pasta and pesto, nuts and granola, oils, vinegars, preserved lemons, soy sauce, nut butters, candy, beans, cookies, tofu, soups, and a lot more (including shampoos, lotions, and other body products). You can bring your own containers, or purchase re-usable canvas bags and glass jars as you go, which you can then bring back with you next time when you’re all out of tasty cashew butter or delicious dried date pieces.

More tomorrow!

landfill photograph taken by D’arcy Norman and used under creative commons.

photo credit to Amit Gupta

And if your local co-op grocer is half as awesome as Rainbow you should too. This week I’m sharing 5 reasons why I love Rainbow Grocery here in San Francisco, and why I think you should at least “like it like it” too.

Monday, reason #1 -

Everything is vegetarian friendly. – Can you believe that? FRICKEN EVERYTHING!! Having been a vegetarian since I was 12 I have become very quick and very thorough at scanning labels on food packaging to check for animal derived ingredients, but it is SO nice to not have to worry about that. No animal rennet in my cheese, no hidden chicken or beef broth in my vegetable soup, no gelatin in my cereals. The only meat found in this veggie friendly grocery store is in their pet food, and I’ve only known of one person who ate dog edibles and enjoyed it, so I think we’re good on that!

More to come tomorrow, when I let you in on the second reason Rainbow Grocery has captured my heart.

photograph taken by Amit Gupta and used under creative commons.