Lobstermen from Maine are coming to cook for us at Valley Natural Foods with a truckload of fresh lobster. When one of these lobstermen is not catching marine treats, he is cooking them as a chef. On August 4, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. he will be in the store to show you different ways of preparing the fresh Maine lobster.  

At Kennebunk Lobster, the lobsters are shucked in a way that makes them unique and affordable. They are shucked raw with a technology that was developed after Hurricane Katrina, which prevents bacteria on the body of the lobster to contaminate the meat. Kennebunk uses this technology to ensure the meat is fresh and clean. With Kennebunk Lobster you have raw shucked tail and claw meat that is fresh, clean and natural.

Kennebunk Lobster is a family run business with a long history of passion for these sweet crustaceans.

Come check out the demo and then purchase some lobster meat to try at home!

Dakota Woodlands is Dakota County’s one and only homeless shelter. This is no ordinary shelter because it not only gives homeless families a home, it also gives them the resources they need in order to find and maintain a stable work and home life.

Member owners of Valley Natural Foods voted to contribute the 2008 Co-op Community Fund (CCF) to Dakota Woodlands. Valley Natural Foods’ Co-op Community Fund is one way you can donate to causes that are here in your community. Read more about the CCF.

This October Dakota Woodlands will be hosting the Fourth Annual Flying Home fundraiser event. They will be auctioning birdhouses that have been decorated by donors. Last year they were able to raise $50,000. Valley Natural Foods will be contributing a birdhouse decorated by staff members in addition to the CCF donation.

If you’d like to give where you live, look for cash donation cans at the registers during August and September or visit Dakota Woodlands web site.

Save money, prevent extra waste, and drink healthy. Use a refillable bottle for your drinking water. It not only saves you money on purchasing bottled water, it also cuts back on the waste from manufacturing new plastic bottles and discarding old ones.

It may sound surprising but tap water is just as safe, if not safer, than bottled water. And it’s cheaper and easily attainable! So this summer while you’re eating local, try drinking water you know is local in your refillable bottle.

Valley Natural Foods carries Quench bottles, which can last for years and are made from food-grade stainless steel. Beginning August 1 Quench bottles will be 15% off, while supplies last.

Need a boost to your career search? Maybe all you need is a creative way to describe your experience or a tip or two to improve your interviewing skills.

Beginning Monday August 10 from 4-5pm, Valley Natural Foods is holding a four-week resume building workshop. You’ll learn the basics for writing a resume, drafting a cover letter and techniques for interviewing. There will also be peer feedback as well as one on one feedback from the instructor.   

Please note that this workshop is not intended for individuals to gain employment at the store, it is only a resume building service offered to help individuals in the community.

Register now! Space is limited and is expected to fill fast. Contact Paula Sahin at hr@valleynaturalfoods.com.

Valley Natural Foods’ human resources manager Paula Sahin will lead the resume building workshop. She is an active member of the Society for Human Resources Management, holds a B.S. in human resources management and an A.S. in business. She has more than nine years of professional leadership experience.

We’ve reached the final week of 5-2-1-0! Are you ready for the new challenge?

This week’s challenge:

Zero drinks with added sugar.

Lucky for us fruit juice and water are already naturally delicious without adding in all those sugars. Maybe kids can even juice the free fruit-of-the-week they receive for participating in Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0.

Don’t forget to stop in at the end of the final week with your star chart to receive your final prize, a jump rope!

More information on Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0.

The kids are fired up about eating healthy this month with Valley Natural Food’s 5-2-1-0 program.

With a free piece of fruit each week and a free jump rope at completion of the month, who couldn’t have fun with Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0?

Don’t forget to stop in for your free fruit this week!

This week’s challenge:

1 hour of exercise a day

Open the shed and get out those bikes, play freeze tag, or go for a swim. Get out and exercise for one hour each day this week.

More information on Let’s Go! 5-2-1-0 .

In no particular order kiwi, cranberry, blueberry and strawberries are arguably the best four fruits, period.

It’s hard to lay a claim as to the best tasting fruit, but according to an article published on Associated Content, these four fruits are the best out there because they’re high in antioxidants, high in fiber and low in calories. Don’t know why that’s a big deal? This article not only tells you the qualities of the fruits it also explains the lingo, like what is an antioxidant, a free radical and folic acid.

Kiwifruit can thin your blood, cranberries can prevent kidney stones, blueberries have the most antioxidants, and strawberries contain the most vitamin C than any other berry — Read more in this article: “Four Best Fruits: Healthiest, Nutritious, High in Antioxidants and Fiber, Low in Calories.”

Team up with the co-op and other locavores across the country in challenging yourself to eat food grown and produced from your community.

The Eat Local, America! challenge is beginning August 1, 2009. Stop in Valley Natural Foods to receive a free limited edition bottle-cap pin or magnet crafted by a local artist, when you sign up for the challenge.

Throughout the month of August we’ll be in local mode. You will find local menu ideas and tips on our website, and our weekly Fresh Meal Solutions will focus on local ingredients. Follow us online at http://www.golocalatvnf.gather.com/!

You’re building a treehouse with every green stamp you collect and donate through Valley Natural Foods’ Green Stamp Program.

From July through December, those stamps, which are worth $.05 each, will be donated to the construction of an outdoor classroom for kids through ISD 191 Early Childhood Programs. Each month, as the Outdoor Classroom receives donations, they will build another part of their Tip Top Treehouse, which is a part of a larger outdoor classroom plan.

They are working endless hours to end what they call “Nature Deficit Disorder.” The outdoor classroom will educate children in a fun way. Their brochure says,

“Outdoor environments promote active learning through play and hands-on exploration in the curricular areas of math, science, literacy, art music and movement, social skills and visual-spatial skills. Nature provides a convenient and readily available source of learning materials.”

Donate to our Green Stamp Program  by following these simple steps:

1. Pack your groceries in a bag (any bag) you bring into the store.
2. Receive a green recycle stamp on your receipt from the cashier.
3. Slip your stamped receipt in the Green Stamp Box near the store’s exit.
4. Valley Natural Foods donates $.05 for every stamp to make the Tip Top Treehouse a reality.

The Minnesota Valley Humane Society is usually trying to find homes for pets, but right now they have their eyes set on a new home for the Humane Society in the old Maxsun Furniture building on County Road 42. They’ve been in their current location on County Road 13 since 1991 and are severely over-crowded, lacking space for their training and education programs.

On July 13 the Burnsville Planning Commission voted against a unit development change that would allow the Humane Society to move in the old Maxsun Furniture building.  There is still one more meeting with the city council on July 21 that will ultimately decide. Despite the lack of city support, the Humen Society continues to push.

They’ve created a grassroots campaign that Burnville City Council member Dan Kealey is quoted in the Star Tribune saying, “It’s probably one of the best grassroots campaigns I’ve seen. They are very confident in their case.” 

Visit the Humane Society’s web site to learn more at www.mvhspets.org.