Wendy’s Country Market and Furnace Falls Farm Partner in Local Food Initiative, with Support of the Greenbelt Fund

Wendy’s Country Market (aka Wendy’s Mobile Market) and Furnace Falls Farm are working together to improve the year round availability of local food. Their collaboration has received financial support from the Government of Ontario, in partnership with the Greenbelt Fund.

“When local food is most plentiful, farmers have the fewest resources available. Much food is un-­harvested, wasted, or marked down for quick sale,” says Wendy Banks, owner of Wendy’s Country Market. “Working alongside local producers, we can develop strategies to reduce waste and maximize the value of the harvest.”

Wendy’s Country Market is developing a line of prepared foods – jams, jellies, preserves, dried foods, grab­-and­-go meals, and frozen entrées – tailored to the needs of our restaurant and household delivery clients, and our retail customers. “We are looking forward to working in collaboration with our clientele,” says Chef Mark Beacock. “We want to develop recipes for local foods that meet today’s tastes.” Products and recipes will be tested in each of our communities.

The partnership is also developing a local food storage facility in a retro­fitted barn on Furnace Falls Farm. There we will offer season-­extending, value­-added services to local farmers, preserving crops for future processing and sale through flash freezing, drying, and in cold storage.

Offering a wider variety of local food year ­round will maintain the health of our distribution system, enable its growth across the seasons, and ensure customer retention.  Our new products and services will add value to farm produce, develop the market for local food, and reduce waste – all while making it easier to eat local, year­-round.

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