What is this place?

Right now the Community Fruit Co-op comprises of me, Jolene Simko, debatably Ayla Fenton, and Ivan Stolikovich (by virtue of being the person who talked me into it)

HOW DID THIS COME TO BE?

I took over management of a closed e-mail group previously run by local artist & musician, Wendy Luella Perkins. Run for the last few years with friends and neighbours only, I decided to open it up to the community winds, to see what/who comes up to keep it moving.

The fruit order is sent via Tara Neufeld in Godfrey who has the direct relationship with the farmers in Niagara. All fruit is organic. 

Wendy Luella was able to reliably find drivers for gas money alone or no compensation whatsoever. As a non-motorist myself and with different/younger circle of friends and acquaintances, I can't just rent a truck, I know many folks who are only able to afford this fruit as a work trade.

With that in mind, I've raised Wendy's $2/box fee to $5 to offer modest compensation for those who volunteer to be involved in the coordination, sorting and delivery. After Wendy Luella backed out last year, no one has come forward, so at the 11th hour (and with some notable prodding from Ivan Stolikovich) I stepped forward.

Ideally, I'd like this to become an ad-hoc co-op as I can't reliably be available next year, or even next month, do keep this running. Please 

HOW IT WORKS:

It is really touch & go, with 2-4 order periods per year, 48 hours notice to order, and less than a week to pick-up day. Since joining the list a few years ago, I've learned quite a few tips and tricks to cooking/freezing/preserving on such short notice. That will likely be a separate post.

These contraints are the main reason this group exists more as a community service than a business - and why we can access fresh organic fruit at +/- $2lb.

Each ordering wave starts with an email out to the big list letting you know what is available for this order. You submit your individual order by the deadline.

Orders are compiled and sent to Tara. When the order arrives, volunteers drive 45mins north of Kingston to Taras with CASH (meaning we are fronting up to $3000 for orders not paid in advance) pick-up the fruit (which is often over 1000lbs of fruit) and bring it back to the pick-up location for sorting.

In my experience (last 3 years), the fruit has been excellent quality and delicious. If you are not satisfied with what you receive, please let us know asap and we will pass that on to the farmers through Tara. Likewise if you love what you get, let us know. Farmers love to hear feedback on what they grow.

We usually have two-four orders in a summer: a variety of fruit at different times, which MAY include cherries, plums, peaches, nectarines, grapes, and pears.