Vermont’s Bounty

It is an easy argument to make that the movement towards organic food, local food, and slow food have their origins in Vermont.  After all, Vermont had never really changed—its farmers have been growing genuinely quality and natural food all along.  For visitors on a quick trip through New England, including Vermont, finding those goodies can be a challenge.  As some locals explained to me, finding great food items involves being in the know.  Your local library may be connected with someone who makes great local jam; someone on the outskirts of town may have the best stash of Grade B maple syrup.

I discovered all this on my own as I drove to Farmington, Maine a week ago.  As I passed through towns like Chelsea, Corinth, and Bradford, I had a heck of a time finding good local products.  Much of the lucrative wares are sent outside the state or consumed by locals.  Nevertheless, at the end of my trip, I found a great place that serves as a crash course for Vermont products.

City Market and the Onion River Co-op is a 16,000 square-foot community-owned grocery store in downtown Burlington, Vermont.  The store boasts fine cheeses, fantastic local produce, and that awesome Grade B maple syrup that is hard to find outside the state.  I lost my restraint and scored some great local cheeses, and saved myself from awful airport food by grabbing a sandwich for the flight.  But the best finds were the delicata squash that I purchased—they are gorgeous and I cannot wait to sauté them.

The co-op works with over 1000 vendors within Vermont, and about 3000 people pass through the store daily.  The operations rely on a patronage fund, which allow folks to buy equity in the store—the beauty of this arrangement is that dividends that are possible through purchases work out as non-taxable income.

When you only have a few days as I did in Vermont, the reality is that you are not going to find all the secret stashes of great Vermont products—a stop at the co-op is a necessary stop before you board that airplane home.

Where to stay in Vermont: skip the bed and breakfast routine and book a room through airbnb.com.  My first night was in Randolph, a charming down about an hour’s ride from Burlington’s airport.  My hosts (out of respect for privacy I will not say their names, but they are the only ones offering a room in Randolph – the title is ‘”Stay in the Heart of Vermont!”) were fantastic—they mapped out a driving route, served up a fab breakfast and coffee in the morning, and the house—and room in which I slept—is beautiful and spacious.