Viroqua Food Co+op Blog

Pack for a snack or a meal!

The quandary that never ends: When does a snack qualify as a meal? A sandwich doesn’t need a plate or cutlery, but can gratify even the gluttonous! Although – hard salami, slices of cheese, some fruit, and a favorite beverage can fill one up... So, which is it? A snack or a meal?

I love snacks and the more they keep my energy levels consistent, the more likely I am to keep them on hand! If you’re hopping on your bike this summer, keep a snack “go-bag” ready. I keep a cloth bag of reusable cutlery, one sharp knife, a dish towel or reusable cloth napkins, all wrapped in a beach towel or table cloth that can convert into a lawn blanket – and perhaps a resealable container, to save some snacks for later!

When you get to the Co-op, now all you need to grab is a protein, a fruit, a carb’ if you enjoy a good cracker or bread, and a 4-pack of whatever wets your whistle!

Bike Repairs – On the Go!

Minnesota-based bicycle rack manufacturer Dero describes themselves as “bike parking nerds.” We love that! Dero’s mission is to populate the world with bicycle infrastructure. While they may be fulfilling such world-wide dreams, they have also claimed their stake right here at the Viroqua Food Co+op.

Our friends at local nonprofit Vernon Trails donated this Dero Fixit Station to the VFC in 2018. We’re so glad to see it be utilized by our fellow bike riders, more and more each year.

Each year, the Vernon County Cooperative Association (VCCA) awards $500 scholarships for area high school seniors to continue their studies at a two- or four-year institution of higher education. Applicant’s parents or guardians must be members of, or employed by, a VCCA Member (see list*).

Greetings Dear VFC Community! 

As I write this, fields are being worked, greenhouses are filling up, and sheep and cows are being let out on pasture. It has been a long winter and a long year and our efforts are turned toward the growing season. As a food co-op, we place our greatest aim on providing our members and community with healthy food. Our co-op and Garden Center are here to help grace our gardens and tables with the sweet summer celebration of flowers, fruits and vegetables. 

As our lands start teeming with life again this spring, what legacy are you leaving behind on this – our community’s – green pasture?

I’m a native who moved away – far and wide for what I considered a long time. Now, I call my resettlement back in Viroqua a long time (8+ years in the Marketing department at the VFC). It’s through my travels and time spent elsewhere that I appreciate more fully what it is we have here – one of the “greenest pastures I’ve found yet!”

In the Driftless region, we are blessed with ample numbers of local farmers growing and producing everything from vegetables and fruits to dairy, hops, wheat, and more. It is only fitting that VFC’s most local brewery – Driftless Brewing Company – is focused on creating tasty sustainable ales and lagers that are rooted in local agriculture.

Update: 40 Acres & A Mule Project

In the 2020 Autumn Pea Soup Newsletter, we featured the 40 Acres and a Mule Project headed up by Uptowne Café’s (La Crosse) owner Adrian Lipscombe. This project is raising money to purchase at least a 40-acre farm for black farmers to produce food for the local food industry, serve as an outlet for black foodways, and be a safe haven to secure the legacy of black foodways.