The Ties That Bundle

There are infinite things on a farmers’ to-do list. As soon as one gets checked off, at least three others appear in its place. The work of a farmer is never done – it’s a true labor of love that gets food from the earth to our tables. 

Growing food takes a lot of materials – including some that non-farmers might not even think of! For example, imagine a beautiful bundle of fresh spinach. How is it possibly going to stay together in the grocery store without a twist tie!? 

Twist ties are a tiny – but important – piece of the complex puzzle that is modern small-scale farming. Eat Local First provides them to farmers as a token of appreciation and gratitude for their work.

Jessica Hernandez, owner-farmer of Griffith Farm in Sequim, uses Eat Local First twist ties as part of her business. Griffith Farm grows organic fruits and vegetables to feed their community through CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). They started their farm as a way to introduce their kids to growing their own food, and then it grew to so much more. 

As she explains, “There are so many things us small farmers need to think about: planting, weather, customer needs, equipment maintenance, water rights, weeding, pests, storage, bags, twist ties, and much more. We are so grateful and humble to use the Eat Local First twist ties and have one less thing to worry about while sharing our love for eating and growing locally!”

Another farm using Eat Local First twist ties are Small Acres Farm in Everson WA. Small Acres is certified organic and strives to be as ecologically responsible as possible. They produce a diverse array of vegetables, fruit, fermented products, eggs, and even luffa sponges! Their products can be found at the Twin Sisters Market, Birchwood Market, online orders, and their CSA membership. And you can find the Eat Local First twist ties around their gorgeous produce! 

Three other farms in Everson also package their veggies with Eat Local First twist ties – Daydream Farm, Mariposa Farm, and Flynn Farms. All these farms are run by small teams, folks who work from dawn to dusk tending their fields to grow food. 

And these twist ties *tie* together folks throughout the state. Across the Cascades in Ephrata WA, Cloudview Farm is a community-centered non-profit education farm – also using Eat Local First twist ties! They serve the communities of the beautiful Columbia Basin, providing an online farm store to purchase their organically-grown seasonal produce for local pick-up. They also offer family farm adventure days and educational field trips for school and community groups.

While twist ties are small in the grand scheme of farming, we’re still honored and excited to support our local farmers with the little things – so they can keep nourishing our communities!

We hope you take notice when you are shopping for your local veggies – the ‘Eat Local First’ logo on our twist ties also helps you as the consumer to identify truly local foods, grown and harvested from your local farmer.

They give you a clear signal that you are supporting your local farms and food communities. Want to give a shout-out to your favorite local farmer? Use the hashtag #eatlocalfirst when you post a photo from your latest #markethaul, weekly #CSA share, or even while shopping at your local farm stand or co-op!