By STEVEN JUPITER
PITTSFORD—“I want to get people to have an awareness about local food,” said Hilary Lambert, co-owner of Unity Wellness Farm (formerly known as H.A.M.M.S. Farm) in Pittsford. “We want to help people get reconnected with the land and the good food it provides.”
Lambert’s goal at Unity Wellness is to build a community of food growers, food makers, and food consumers who understand where their food comes from, how it’s grown, and how it can enrich their lives. Not only does she grow and sell food and produce, she teaches classes: cooking, agriculture, Christmas wreath-making, and outdoor camp for kids, to name just a few.
Lambert and her partner began the farm back in 2010. “We started super small, with just a few chickens,” she said. The bucolic spread now encompasses a main house, barns, outbuildings, and several fields of produce. Sunflowers were just coming into bloom when I visited on a recent Tuesday for the farm’s signature program.
Unity Wellness has begun what’s known in the farm world as a REKO, a type of market where local farmers and other food vendors bring their goods to a central location to be picked up by folks who have pre-ordered online. The benefit of this model for the consumer is that they can purchase exactly what they want from multiple local sources but travel to a single place to pick it all up at once. The benefit to the vendor is that they need prepare and bring only what’s already been spoken for rather than risk waste by bringing goods that don’t end up selling.
REKOs also differ from CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) in that the consumer doesn’t pre-pay for the whole season and get a share of what the vendor produces. Instead, consumers in a REKO ring need not spend any money until there’s something offered that they’d like to purchase. So, the consumer can order foods from purveyors in Brandon, Proctor, Chittenden, and Hubbardton, for example, and pick it all up at a set time at Unity Wellness in Pittsford.
Consumers find out what’s available every week through the farm’s Facebook group, where vendors list what they’re offering and consumers state what they want, if anything. There are approximately 400 members at the moment and there’s no requirement to purchase every week. There’s no fee to join the group.
Tuesdays are pick-up days for consumers. The vendors arrive shortly before 5:30 and set themselves up in the graveled lot behind the main house. From 5:30 to 6:30 pm, folks show up and approach the vendors they’ve ordered from. Since everything is pre-ordered, it’s usually ready to go. Payment is made in person.
“It’s fresh. It’s very good,” said John Gray of Proctor.
“Hilary’s cookies are to die for,” added Liz Gray, John’s wife.
Dale and Whitney Christie, also of Proctor, have been buying from the farm for 6 or 7 years.
“The education part of it is just as important as feeding people,” said Dale. “Hilary has motivated us to garden. Her effect on the community has been wonderful.”
“The REKO is the best thing since sliced bread,” said Lin Reuther of North Chittenden. Ms. Reuther was there to pick up two bottles of raw milk from vendor David Atherton of Hillside Springs Homestead in Middletown Springs. “My husband makes yogurt and mozzarella from it. You can taste the difference,” said Ms. Reuther.
Mr. Atherton (no relation to Pittsford Town Manager David Atherton) says that raw milk tastes better and is often easier for people with lactose issues to digest. He personally tests his milk for pathogens and is required to drop off samples at a state lab in Randolph every two weeks.
Stephanie Davis of Birdseye Bees & Poultry in Brandon was there with honey, lip balm, and eggs. Her farm also offers CSA whole chickens. She’s been involved with Unity Wellness for 3 years.
“This REKO has helped a lot of people understand where their food comes from,” Davis said. “It’s a great network and a great community.”
Stephen Chamberlain of Dutchess Farm in Castleton was on hand with produce he grows in greenhouses and picks right before he delivery to customers. It’s his first year selling through the REKO.
“Hilary has great connections,” he said.
Ellie Holden of Valley Acres Farm in Proctor grows flowers and had buckets of snapdragons on her table, as well as some candied nuts.
“The REKO is really special,” Holden said. “You can plan your shopping ahead of time. I have to bring only what I know is already sold. I don’t have to waste flowers, bringing more than I know will sell and watching them wilt.”
Amber Rocke of West Rutland is a home baker who sells homemade pizzas, which she brings frozen. Her popular offerings include white sauce with tomatoes and pepperoni, and brussels sprouts with bacon. It’s her second year in the program.
“This is a great group of people,” she said. “Customers seem to be very happy across the board.”
In fact, the customers do seem to linger and chat with each other and with the vendors they’ve gotten to know. It’s a low-key environment in a lovely setting.
“People need to change their mindset about food,” said Lambert. “They don’t have to find food at the supermarket. We have beautiful products and it’s pretty affordable.”
