At my house this week, we've had one in bed all week with the flu, and another with a sniffle. The rest of us are steering clear....and taking our Elderberry Syrup!
Which is why I am so excited to tell you about our newest Vendor Partner!
Paula, at Mackey Meadows, is ready to provide your Elderberry Syrup and Elderberry Tincture needs...and more! She will have herbal remedies, among other things, available soon!
I cannot say enough about Elderberry products, but this is what Paula shares about her products:
Elderberry syrup is known as a powerful cold preventative and remedy. Just one cup of berries contains about 58% of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. It's also a great source of antioxidants — which may protect your cells from damage.
One study of 60 patients administered 15ml elderberry or placebo syrup during the flu season in 1999-2000, and those using elderberry saw their flu symptoms ease four days earlier than those using the placebo.
- Helps boost the immune system
- Fight and protect against bacterial infections
- Fight and protect against viral infections
- Reduce the symptoms and duration of a cold or the flu
- helps clear sinus infections
- has natural diuretic effects and promotes bowel movements
- anti-inflammatory properties
- anti-carcinogenic properties
- eases symptoms of allergies
- high in antioxidants
- high in vitamin A, which makes it great for healthy skin
We hope you'll give Mackey Meadows' products a try this cold(er) weather and sniffle season! Boost your immune system as we begin to gather and celebrate holidays with our loved ones, so you can keep yourself (and them) from passing anything around!
You can even give Elderberry as a gift!
So give the gift of an immune boost to yourself or someone you love, or just stock up your home medicine cabinet for the winter! Either way, you'll get a quality product from Mackey Meadows, which you can have delivered thru Alabama Farm Co-op!
We've been so busy behind the scenes of this co-op! There is much to accomplish just to get rolling!
As we look into business and tax laws, farm pickup and customer drop point routes, and create the processes for taking your orders and passing them to the farms and vendors, we still keep reminding ourselves of our TOP priority.
We aren't here for the sales. And we aren't here because we like driving many miles every week to multiple farms.
We are here because we have seen with our own eyes that there is a missing link between farms and many consumers. It has been said on our website already that consumers WANT to support and get their food from local farms, and the farmers WANT to get their products to the consumers. But the price--for each--is too high, sometimes. The drive is too far, or takes too much time from their busy lives and schedules, to make shopping directly at the farm possible for the consumer. And the same thing is true for the farmer--it is too far, or takes too much time away from farming, to make delivery possible.
And THAT is why we decided to create Alabama Farm Co-op. We have witnessed what happens when someone provides excellent service between the farm and their customers!
Creating a system that does what it says it will do, while representing the farms and farmers to customers in a relational way, is the top priority here. We aim to keep our processes simple, so that we can focus more on executing them well, and with integrity, for the win-win of the farms and consumers!
We know, we know....If you have checked out our website, you have heard us say all of this before. And we will keep saying it--because we want to always remember WHY we do what we do. So many are cheering us on to succeed in our efforts, because this co-op will aid them in their own desire to support local, eat local, eat real food, eat clean, and more!
If this describes you, then YOU are why we are here.
We look forward to serving you soon!
--Melissa
What better way to enjoy dinner, than by the glow of candle light?
You can get what you need for your meal through Alabama Farm Co-op, and now you can also get the candles!
We are thrilled to tell you that Golden Belle Candle Co. has joined us as a vendor partner! Check out the scents they offer in candles or wax melts, and find one that you can enjoy!
No doubt, with these cooler temperatures of fall and these candles glowing, you're in for a "Cozy Night In" during the "Snuggle Season"! They may even last you til the "First Frost"!
And while you are shopping for those you love for the upcoming gift-giving, you can make your plans to bring someone "Breakfast in Bed" at their "Farmhouse"! They will give you "Peppermint Kisses", and you'll "Jingle AL the Way"!
We hope, too, that it will give you a "Southern Velvet" touch to read about where Golden Belle Candle Co. donates a portion of their sales. These candles will light up someone else's life, too!
--Melissa
When the Smith family could no longer get their favorite soap in the stores anymore, they went on a quest. They were trying new products, in hopes of finding one that would give them that clean feeling, but without leaving a residue or dry skin behind.
Their quest came up empty, so they decided to create one!
You now have the opportunity to get some of their Pure Olive Oil Soap and/or their Paraben Free Moisturizer from Smith Family Resources through Alabama Farm Co-op!
We are thrilled to have Smith Family Resources as our newest Vendor Partner, and this just adds to the variety of products you can get as you one-stop-shop here for your food and other needs!
--Melissa
P.S. Don't forget! Half-price memberships go thru December 31st, 2023! Beginning January 1st, 2024, they go up to $30! While we think this is still a good value, we want you to save your money! The discount will almost pay for your renewal next year! Don't miss out!
A farmer asked me, "What makes you different than [other named delivery service]?"
My answer started with a question: "Do they deliver to doorsteps?"
"Yes," he said.
"And do they drop the box on the porch and walk away?", I asked.
"Yes, they do."
"Well...therein lies the biggest difference. I know how important it is to have contact and build relationships with the customers. In fact, this is VITAL. If you don't have contact with the people, you may have *orders*, but you don't have *CUSTOMERS*."
***
I got to see, firsthand, how a lack of customer contact can lead to a decrease in sales (or repeat sales). Even as this co-op grows, we will maintain a focus on providing the touch that customers need and want, but definitely don't get from the box left on their porch.
We will be taking orders by phone (or email) at the start, so that we can provide direct contact with customers, get their orders right, and be able to tell them good things about YOUR farm and/or products. (I say "at the start" knowing that we may do it this way forever!) Having good customer contact is really important to us--and we know that it is even more important FOR you.
Since you are busy farming (or making or baking), it will be up to us to be sure that each customer gets the care and attention that they need. We will do our very best to welcome each customer by name, to communicate well, and to provide the support that they need to get the products that they want to get from you!
***
We would love the opportunity to work with you as one of our Farm or Vendor Partners, and the opportunity to serve your customers (and the new ones we bring to you) well! If you haven't yet, apply to be one of our vendors by filling out our Producer Information Form, and we will contact you to discuss having you part of Alabama Farm Co-op!
--Melissa
