What a box this week!

Asparagus, Strawberries, Zucchini (first of the year), Garlic Scapes (super rare), plus enough other stuff to make the best fathers' day spread on the block.

What are garlic scapes? Garlic scapes are the tender stem and flower bud of a hardneck garlic plant. (Hardneck garlic is the kind of garlic that typically grows in Canada and the northeastern U.S.) Scapes first grow straight out of the garlic bulb, then coil. When harvested, they look like long, curly green beans.

Friends, Folks, and Fam,

This is our time.

We are looking at fields full of plants that you and I will be eating over the next 6 months.

Peppers both sweet and hot, Eggplant, Blueberries, Okra, Greens, Onions, B-Sprouts, Taters and Maters, Sweet Corn, Melons and many more.

https://www.livescience.com/strawberries-linked-to-hepatitis-outbreak

Just read this article.

Do I trust the FDA? No
Do I trust the news source reporting it? No

Doesn’t matter…neither of those things are the point.

The point is, we continue to be threatened by the very system that we built to feed us.

Let’s address a giant clickbait story that is circulating right now about “supply chains”.

It’s very easy to say that there is going to be a food crisis/shortage/problem in the coming months/years because the world is in turmoil and there are wars happening in places that export 25% of the world's wheat supply etc.

Look again at that last statement.

Anything jump out at you?

If you are not making the best salads on the planet right now, then you are doing it wrong.

Let me throw you some “Pro Tips”...

-Never let it run out…just keep adding to the salad bowl you made the day before

-Keep all the “wet” ingredients separate…your leafies will stay dry that way

The first crowns are up and out of the ground so you know what time it is!!!

“This is the dawning of the age of asparagus, age of asparagus, assssppparrrraaaaagggggguuss!!”

There’s not quite enough for everyone but trust me, the weather is prime for massive output so over the next couple of weeks you are going to get PLENNNNTY!

It’s been a while since we gave you a “State Of The Union” here at YB.

We just saw our first harvest of asparagus! Only around 10 pounds but that is a good sign for weeks to come…
We have been developing a new website/sales platform that will allow for a much easier shopping experience.

WE DID IT WE DID IT WE DID IT WE DID IT WE DID IT!!!!!!

Ramps are HERE!! FRESH FOOD!! The earth is producing again!!

This is the time of year I get really excited for - the start of Spring! Spring had always been my least favorite season growing up (so. much. rain.), but now that I really understand the fresh food cycle I realize those cool temps and rainy mornings are what marks the start of an incredible year of food.

Our business is one of constant communication. We have to know what’s happening in the fields and on the farms so that we know how to plan our boxes each week. We then try and communicate that to you so that you can know how to plan your meals and menus.

For months it seems that we have heard and seen the same things…the same things you have been patiently eating each week through the winter.

The temps are slowwwwly turning…when looking at the 10 day forecast, I see some consistent 60’s and 70’s on the horizon.

You know what that means??

Asparagus crowns!!...and you know what that means??

It’s that time of year. I’m almost positive that if I looked back at newsletters from prior years, I would see these same words.

Basically, we are stuck in limbo. We are living off of our stores from last year, eating fresh greens that can be grown under protection during the winter months, and WAITING on all the fresh stuff that Ohio has to offer.

Cod Liver Oil

-Salmon

-Swordfish

-Tuna Fish

-Orange Juice

-Dairy Milk

-Sardines

-Beef Liver

-Egg Yolk

-Mushrooms

-Yogurt

What a random list huh?

This is what I found when I googled, “foods high in Vitamin D”.

We are at that time of year in Ohio when it becomes perpetually gray. Theoretically, the sun is supposed to be out longer right now…but doesn’t it seem like the skies have turned to concrete and the temperature just always says 45 degrees??

For the past 18 months, we have been working behind the scenes on some SUPER SECRET STUFF.

Essentially it’s a bunch of stuff to make our customer experience much smoother when you are trying to browse, purchase, and pay for your orders.

It will allow us to create customer rewards programs, faster deliveries, lower delivery fees, and easier “sorting”, as you try and find the things that you are shopping for online with YB.

Pi Day

After a couple of months of gray skies, cold temperatures, and NEVER-ENDING ROOT VEGGIES, we finally are able to break it all up with Pi Day Box!

Next Monday is March 14th. That’s 3/14. 3.14. Pi. Pie. Pizza Pie…see how we got there?

After being sick in bed for a week, this week's box looks so important in terms of the nutrients we need in our house to get on the mend.

Anymore, the oranges and apples don’t even make it to the weekend. That’s just an easy lunch for the kids along with some chicken broth and cut-up carrots.

The onions and garlic go in absolutely everything, (even if they don’t belong) as they have so many healing properties…if you ask my wife, garlic could literally save the world..AND HAS!

Another beautiful freezing Ohio day!

Since Benji is on the road this week, the newsletter is coming to you via Erin.

If this is your first week with us, WELCOME! Below you will find the possible veggies in your shares this week, as well as storage tips and recipes. For past newsletters, you can always check the blog, where we post them each week after sending them to your inbox.

Thank you for the continued support of this foodshed, and we hope you enjoy the fun fruits and veggies we have headed your way!

Over the last couple of years, we have seen what it looks like to have shortages in the food supply chain. Whether it was beef, chicken wings, romaine, or cream cheese, we have seen what can happen when a few things collide to create a perfect storm of distribution issues.

We find ourselves in the middle of winter!

The snow fell hard last week and we were able to get all the food out!

Now, looking ahead, let me tell you about what will happen over the next couple of weeks and months.

In our usual weird way of connecting with great growers, we have found a Mennonite group out of California that sent us some oranges and lemons to put up against our Thorpes products coming out of Florida.