A pair of local residents are taking the “fresh is best” approach to food.
Ryan Rusnak and Craig Fry have formed Healthy Harvest Ontario, a business, which aims to deliver Chatham-Kent-grown vegetables to consumers each week.
Fry, who farms 500 acres in the Dover Centre area, has been supplying produce to grocery store chains for years, but says Chatham-Kent’s geography makes the direct-to-home delivery service option an attractive one.
“Not everyone in the big cities has access to farm market produce, but we’re lucky enough to live in an area which produces some of the finest vegetables in Canada, so why not take advantage of it,” he said.
Rusnak said the service will appeal to people who want fresh, healthy vegetable options but don’t have the time or ability to drive into the county. “We have a wide variety of vegetables, and at $25 per week, we can save up to half the cost and give you the convenience of home delivery.”
Fry said out of necessity, grocery chains have products shipped to large centres for processing and then have to ship them across the province or country.
“The produce that you buy in a grocery store can be 10 days old,” he said. “We will be picking the orders one day and delivering them the next.”
Rusnak said Healthy Harvest will operate on a subscription service to ensure consistent quantities are grown and picked.
“We’re accepting orders for the 2014 growing season right now,” he said. “People can like us on Facebook or e-mail me at ryanrusnak@rocketmail.com to get more information.”
for fairness, there are others providing a similar service in this area, River Bell Market Garden being one I can think of