2023 Local Harvest GAPS List
WE ARE ECSTATIC TO ANNOUNCE THE 2023 PRODUCE GAPS PLANNING IS COMPLETE AND THERE IS MORE LOCAL PRODUCE THAN WE'VE SEEN IN A VERY LONG TIME!
Earlier this year, we sent out a bunch of bummer local food e-news...
Local Food is Changing, Saying Goodbye
Local Food is Changing, Saying Goodbye Part 2
...and quite possibly because of those articles, new and returning farmers started coming out the woodwork with more oomph than ever. They committed to grow a hefty amount of produce for our co-op ❤️🥳🌱
You might be wondering what the Annual GAPs list is or why it's so important to the local food system development that we do at Great Basin? GAPs is a spreadsheet that maps out every single crop that we typically see grown in Nevada. Things like Arugula, Heirloom Tomatoes, Bing Cherries, Asparagus, Winter Squashes, etc. The spreadsheet contains the weekly quantities that we purchased from all vendors (local and non local) for our various fresh departments in the prior year.
By capturing this data each year, we are able to securely commit to the various quantities of crops we need our local farmers to grow for the co-op. Once these producer commitments have been made, we add all of the "growing and production contracts" to a spreadsheet we title: GAPs.
In the GAPs spreadsheet, the committed crops are highlighted gold - meaning we're golden. The gap has been filled; the produce is secured (barring any unforeseen growing circumstances). The crops that we still need farmers to grow are highlighted green because there is still a gap between what we need versus what is being planted for us. The actual spreadsheet is too big for this email but here is a sneak peek of the produce bounty we're expecting this year:
Farms are listed in order of when our relationship began working together, we prioritize growing contracts with the folks who have the highest amount of seniority.
Churchill Butte Organics (Stagecoach, NV) - Saffron culinary threads and bulbs for planting, various herbs
Sierra Valley Farms *CCOF (Sierra Valley, CA) - Spring Mix, baby leaf romaine, swiss arugula mid leaf kale & mixed kale, radishes - easter egg, multi-colored... he may try to do watermelon radishes, Rainbow carrots, cabbage (green), savoy cabbage - first week of July through September
Mewaldt Organics (Fallon, NV) - 400 lbs of garlic in July
Pioneer Farms (Fallon, NV) - Chinese cabbage, red and green cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi, fennel, arugula, tokyo bekana cabbage, siberian dwarf kale, red kale, red onions, yellow onions, cipollini onions, cantaloupe
"He will be the Shishito Pepper King", Winter squash - butternut, autumn frost, buttercup, fusty, pink banana squash
Avanzino Farms (Reno, NV) - Gold potatoes, red potatoes, russet, purple majesty potatoes, berman butterball potatoes, yukon gold potatoes. Winter hard squashes: Spaghetti squash, acorn, delicata, butternut, honeynut, kabocha, cucumbers (slicing and pickling), jack o lanterns, sweet corn, whole root dill weed for pickling.
Ecologica Farm (Reno, NV) - dried lavender sachets and fresh mint bundles and fresh chives
Holley Family Farms (Dayton, NV) - pints of cherry tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes, red slicer tomatoes, chard, curly kale, dino kale, lemon cucumbers, Armenian cucumbers,
Nevada's Own (Smith Valley, NV) - strawberries and other crops, plan not finalized yet.
Jamason Farms *CCOF (Battle Mountain, NV) - fresh garlic, powdered garlic, and dried chips and pumpkins
Jacobs Family Berry Farm (Minden, NV) - Blackberries August through a hard freeze & Maybe raspberries!!
Desert Farming Initiative *CCOF (Reno, NV) - eggplant (2 Italian variety, 1 Asian long variety), slicer tomatoes (purple, yellow, red - sun gold, Cherokee, buffalo sun yellow slicer, estiva red slicer, Sukkur red cherry)
Mountain Mushrooms (Long Valley, CA, behind Bordertown) - oyster mushrooms, king oyster/trumpet mushrooms, lions mane mushroom
Sterling Farms (Smith Valley, NV) - Red norland potatoes, yellow crookneck squash, zucchini, pumpkins, and more - plans still being finalized
Basseri Berri (Long Valley, CA, behind Bordertown) - pie pumpkins, butternut, acorn, buttercup winter squash, jack o lantern pumpkins
Cherry Dog Orchards (Fallon, NV) - Black thompson seedless grapes, black manuka grapes, red flame grapes, plums, apples, bing and ranier cherries, eggs,
Prema Farm *CCOF (Long Valley, CA, behind Bordertown) - curly kale, dino kale, bok choy, salad mix, arugula, hakurei turnips, radish, pea shoots, sun shoots, broccoli shoots, new potatoes, green zucchini, collard greens, cherry tomatoes, bunched carrots, basil, raibow bunch carrot, fennel, baby spinach, parsley, cilantro, dill, oregano, rosemary
Reno Food Systems (Reno, NV) - dill, oregano, parsley, rosemary, tarragon, thyme, sage, swiss mint, spearmint, chives, savory herbs, lavender, dino kale bunched, green kale bunched, collard greens, mustard greens
Tahoe Food Hub (Truckee, CA) - various GAPS to be sourced regionally
Biggest Little Mushrooms & Happy Mushroom LLC aka Biggest Little Mushrooms (Reno, NV) - Shiitake & Oyster mushrooms
Petals and Pages (Fernley, NV) - A weekly bouquet of sunflowers, feverfew, zinnia, cosmos, A weekly bouquet of specialty sunflowers, specialty zinnias, Delia's, bellflower (campanula), Mother's Day bouquets
High Sierra Microgreens (Reno, NV) - Weekly sample packs, broccoli, rainbow microgreens, amaranth microgreens
Jim Davenport's Farm (Yerington, NV) - organic garlic
Johansen Ranch (Oroville, CA) - Organic oranges, mandarins, lemons, and grapefruit (November - Feb)
City Green Gardens (Reno, NV) -
August & September - cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, Italian prune plums, herbs, sweet peppers (pimento)
Ripcord Farms (Washoe Valley, NV) - 48 bunches of carrots a week - (first week in July until the first week in October) - bunched carrots with good tops...maybe longer without freeze
Earth & Seeds Farm (Reno, NV) - Mother's Day Bouquet, tulip and variety flower bouquets
The Radish Hotel (Sparks, NV) - A variety of teas, herbs, and wellness products (plus tons of other AMAZING handmade products like granola, shampoo, scrubs, lip balms, and more!)
Pleasant Valley Farm (Washoe Valley, NV) - lettuce mix and green onions
TENTATIVE LOCAL FOOD SUPPLY - we will see how things go 🌻
Custom Gardens Organic Farm *CCOF (Silver Springs, NV) - maybe organic turmeric and organic ginger root - Nov & Dec
Lattin Farms (Fallon, NV) - maybe cantaloupe and tomatoes
River School Farm (Reno, NV) - maybe grapes and apples
💸 Member-Owner Equity Going To $400 💸
As a cooperative business, we exist for and because of you—our community! Being a member-owner of our co-op is not like other memberships. The $20 you pay per year is not merely a membership fee (like Costco), it’s a genuine investment in our community-owned business. By paying your annual equity investment, you are joining with other like-minded folks in equal ownership of a business. A business that exists as an alternative to the giant corporate chains that merely return profits to their shareholders. It’s because of your investment that we can truly focus on supporting our local farmers, ranchers, and artisans while bringing you the very best products--as you can see from our article about all of the amazing local food coming to the co-op during this year's harvest.
Equity is still just $20/year until you become a fully vested owner, which the board of directors has voted to increase full vestment to $400. Your equity payments provide the much needed capital we need to foster the growth and development of our co-op. You purchased new display shelving for the store and the new sliding front doors (remember those old heavy doors you had to wrestle to gain entry into the building?). And of course, it also purchased our salad bar (pictured below) that was set to open on March 26th, 2020 until the pandemic shut it down just one week before the grand opening. So thank you!
Here are some of the benefits active member-owners receive:
- Take 10% off one entire purchase of your choice each quarter (Co-op member-owners took over $57,000 in discounts from this benefit last year, 2022)
- Be eligible to receive surplus revenue in proportion to how much you spend (relative to all other active member-owners) at the co-op
- Be part of our owner’s buying club and receive 10-20% off shelf prices when you order in bulk quantities
- Play an active role in growing Northern Nevada’s local food system and keeping more money in the local economy, which is RAD, THANK YOU!
- We’re a democratically run organization. You can vote for board members, or even run for a seat on our board
So why are we raising equity and what’s next…?
THE FOODSHED CAFE IS COMING BACK and is going to be BETTER THAN EVER ❤️
As we discussed in our March newsletter, it’s clear everyone wants the cafe back (link to March newsletter)! Well, we’re happy to report that by this time next year, you’ll be enjoying fresh, crisp salads from the salad bar you purchased and delicious made-to-order meals filled with local and organic ingredients. Plus, reopening the cafe gives us a reason to purchase even more food from Nevada farmers and ranchers.
We’re currently in the permitting process for the new deck addition (pictured below) with construction set to start as soon as permits are approved. This new deck will provide much needed seating and amazing views of the Sierra Nevadas. We’re also planning the internal remodel, layout, and customer flow so it blends well with our No City Coffee Shop. 
We still need to raise the remaining capital needed for this project. So far we’ve raised $141,000 (in member loans) of the $300,000 we need. This brings us to the increase in member-owner equity to $400 and the call for additional member loans. If you’re excited to see the cafe reopen and want to loan us money, please email gm@greatbasinfood.coop, and we’ll reach out to discuss options and repayment terms. If you’re excited but aren’t able to loan us money, you can always pay all of your $400 fully vested co-op member-owner share or any additional equity towards your $400 full vestment* 💜. If you are only interested in paying annually to be a co-op member-owner, that is fine too. Member-owners can also pay $20 a year for 20 years to reach the $400 full investment.
Get Your Garden Poppin' Off with 🌱 Seedlings 🌱 from Nevada Farmers! 👩🏼🌾👨🏻🌾
We’ve got hundreds of local seedlings available from all of the farmers listed below.
- CUSTOM GARDENS FARM (Silver Springs, NV) @customgardensfarm
- FISK FARM HERBS (Fallon, NV) @fiskfarmherbs
- GROW UP FARM (Long Valley, CA - behind Bordertown) @growupfarm
- HOLLEY FAMILY FARMS (Dayton, NV) @holleyfamilyfarms
- PETALS & PAGES FLOWER FARM (Fernley, NV) @petalsandpagesflowers
- PLEASANT VALLEY FARM (Reno, NV)
- RIPCORD FARM (Washoe Valley, NV) @ripcordfarm
- SCRUB JAY FARMS (Reno, NV)
- STERLING FARMS (Reno, NV)
- TINY LIVING FARM (Mogul, NV)
We were searching the Internet for pictures of farmers twerking (poppin') and we found quite possibly one of the best videos ever created 😂 😂 😂 🌱 be sure to watch it all of the way through. Shoutout to Peaceful Belly for creating this masterpiece! 🙌🏽 🙌🏽 🙌🏽
Fresh Cut Organic Watermelon Hits The Grab-n-Go Case!
🍉 🍉 🍉 🍉
Summer is around the corner and the Co-op kitchen team is ready to help take a break from the heat of the day 🥵 by offering fresh cut, organic watermelon
New & On Sale! Local Grassfed & Finished Beef Chimichurri Cauliflower Rice Bowl -- $2 OFF
Paleo, Gluten-Free, Seed Oil Free
On Sale June 1st - 30th
Regular Price $14.99
25% OFF
Local Grass-Fed & Grass-Finished Ground Beef
Avanzino Farm (Reno, NV)
On Sale June 1st - 30th
Regular Price $9.99/lb
25% OFF
Viori Fermented Rice Shampoo & Conditioner Bars
On Sale June 1st - 30thRegular Prices Vary
$2 OFF
JSM (the BEST) Organic Strawberries
On Sale June 1st - 30thRegular price $6.99
(while supplies last)
$2 OFF
No City Malabar
Shaken espresso, Ice, GBCFC housemade vanilla (with organic maple syrup) 😋
On Sale June 1st - 30th
Regular Price 8oz - $3, 16oz - $5
$1 OFF
BOK TO THE FUTURE
On Sale June 1st - 30thBOK TO THE FUTURE
Regular Price $8.99
$2 OFF
New!! TTLA Sandwich
On Sale June 1st - 30thNew!! TTLA Sandwich
Regular Price $7.99
The Reno Seed Exchange Has a Seed Filled Filing Cabinet Upstairs in No City Coffee 🌾🌻
A message from Molly Brown (pictured right), Founder of The Reno Seed Exchange:
Welcome to the Reno Seed Exchange! We're thrilled to offer a unique opportunity for all plant enthusiasts in Reno. Our FREE seed exchange, located inside the Great Basin Community Food Co-op, is open to everyone who loves to grow plants and wants to share their passion with others. Our concept is simple: take some seeds, grow your plants, save the seeds, and share some back with the Reno Seed Exchange. This exchange program not only helps you save money but also ensures that you have access to a wide variety.
We believe that everyone should have access to healthy, organic produce, and growing your own vegetables, herbs, and fruits is an excellent way to achieve this goal. By participating in our seed exchange program, you'll be doing your part to promote sustainable agriculture practices in the Reno area. ~ We can't wait to see what you grow!
~ Here are some good practices to follow when participating in the Reno Seed Exchange:
- Whenever possible, try to use organic seeds, fertilizers and pesticides for your plants. This ensures that the plants are grown without harmful chemicals, making them healthier and safer for consumption.
- It's important to make sure your seeds are properly dried before donating them to the exchange. This ensures they will be viable for planting when someone else takes them home.
- It's important to label your seeds with the name of the plant and the date that they were harvested. This helps other gardeners know exactly what they are getting and how fresh the seeds are.
- When donating seeds to the exchange, make sure that they are viable and have a good chance of growing. Seeds that are too old or have been improperly stored may not be viable.
- One of the best things about the seed exchange is the opportunity to learn from other gardeners. Share your knowledge and experiences with others, and don't be afraid to ask questions and learn from them as well. Find us on Facebook.
E-GIFT CARDS... PERFECT GIFT
We've got the perfect gift for any occasion! Buy a co-op gift card online and then text or email it to your recipient. They can scan it from their phone at the register to pay for their next grocery trip. 🥳
ORDER YOUR ONLINE E-GIFT CARD
Soup's on!
All soups are made daily with ❤️ in the co-op kitchen. We use all certified organic ingredients and as much local as seasonally available.OMNI = short for omnivore.
All soups in this listing are always Gluten-free.
Anyone can shop, everyone can join!
Open everyday from 7:30am – 9pm
Great Basin Community Food Co-op
240 Court St Reno, NV 89501
775.324.6133
info@greatbasinfood.coop
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