Green Spotlight:  Notes From Nancy Grant

The usual advice for wise energy use includes saving gas by planning your driving route carefully to avoid backtracking.  But what if you’d like to leave your car or truck out of your errand-running loop altogether? Here are three good ideas:

Shank’s mare – This old-fashioned country term means using your own two legs for travel. Whether you’re starting from home or your workplace, just put on comfy shoes and it’s right foot, left foot all the way to the co-op. If you’re new to walking outdoors, you’ll find it’s quite different from a treadmill–traffic and signals to watch for, people to chat with, birds to watch–but you can estimate that each half mile will take ten to fifteen minutes. The return trip may take a bit longer because you’ll have the added weight of whatever you bought. A child’s wagon or other wheeled contraption to pull along can be a big help.

Bicycle – Whether your human powered two-wheeler has one gear or twenty, when you arrive at the co-op you’ll find a sturdy bike rack near the front door where you can park it safely. Before you leave, take a minute to balance your load of shopping bags in your front handlebar basket or pannier baskets over the rear wheel; small bungee cords or carabineer clips will help keep your packages in place as you pedal.

Bus –The co-op is on MVTA’s bus route #442. Help planning your public transportation travel route is just a click away at or www.mvta.com.

Bonus tip: In the store, look for the display of reusable thermal bags to carry your purchases home. Available in two sizes and costing less than a single gallon of gas, they’ll keep your hot items toasty or your frozen items icy cold.

Energy journalist and blogger Nancy S. Grant is a member of the Cooperative Communicators Association.

Click here to read the Valley Natural Foods Green Report 2010.

Be greener in 2011 with the new Do It Green! Magazine. The new 2011 Do It Green! Magazine offers over 100 educational articles on living green plus a directory of MN green businesses. This guidebook features articles written by Minnesotans on topics such as electric cars, rainwater collection, eating local, green building, eco-friendly gardening tips and much more.  This guide is Minnesota’s only comprehensive guide to green and sustainable living.

Do It Green! is now available at Valley Natural Foods. Look for it in the magazine rack where other publications are sold, by the registers.

Although Earth Day is celebrated annually—this year, it’s on April 22, 2011—many folks consider the entire month of April to be ”Earth Month.” So how about beginning Earth Month by entering to win a year supply of Seventh Generation Cleaning Products?

There will be a drawing for two lucky winners on Earth Day (A generous supply of Seventh Generation coupons for free products will be awarded as prizes). Look for the Yay Earth Day! drawing box here at Valley Natural Foods to fill out an entry form—you can find it near our demo kiosk. Drawing will take place on Earth Day, April 22.

Want to win something even bigger? You can enter to win a $10,000 Green Home Makeover from Seventh Generation by visiting their website at www.seventhgeneration.com/EarthDay and entering their “Green Your Town Sweepstakes!

Green Spotlight:  Notes From Nancy Grant

In every department at Valley Natural Foods Co-op, staff members have found many ways to use energy wisely and prevent waste, while still providing the best service and highest quality foods.

Have you thought about how you could put some of their good ideas into practice at home?

Did you know that the biggest energy user in your kitchen is the refrigerator/freezer?

The temperature in the refrigerator compartment must be set between 36 ˚ and 38 ˚ F. In the freezer, the safe temperature range is between 0 ˚ and 5 ˚ F. That’s because the point of keeping foods cool is to prevent the growth of bacteria. Resetting the temperature controls to use less energy is not an option.

Instead, check to make certain that the gaskets around the doors seal tightly. A dollar bill shut in the door should take a good tug to pull out. Repeat this simple test in different spots all around both doors. If you find a gap, call an appliance repair service to fix the problem.

When it’s time for spring cleaning, don’t forget to vacuum behind and under your refrigerator –dust build-up can interfere with your appliance’s performance and waste energy.

A common energy-saving tip recommends letting cooked foods cool partially before putting them into the ‘fridge. But food safety guides note that these items can quickly become dangerous at room temperature. A smart compromise is to read package labels and cookbooks carefully, then set a kitchen timer to remind you when to put leftovers in the refrigerator or freezer.

The University of Minnesota Extension Service offers great tips about food safety and energy efficiency at www.extension.umn.edu.

Energy journalist and blogger Nancy S. Grant is a member of the Cooperative Communicators Association.

Click here to read the Valley Natural Foods Green Report 2010.

Green Spotlight:  Notes from Nancy Grant

Can a food co-op add sustainable ideas to its daily operations? Sure, the co-op encourages food producers to take the best care possible of their land and natural resources. But what about other opportunities for a “greener” approach?

At Valley Natural Foods the hunt is on to find ways to take better care of the environment right here in the store.

The first good idea: Replace the paper towel dispensers in the restrooms with electric hand dryers to cut down on paper waste. The second good idea: Encourage office staffers to use e-mail and other computer technology as often as possible, then print documents on paper only when absolutely necessary. Throughout the co-op, the idea is to use a little less paper, please.

Simple steps like these are part of a much larger effort to put the sustainability concepts in the co-op’s FRESH values statement into daily practice. Each greener choice must also make solid financial success, to support a healthy financial bottom line for co-op member-owners. In every department, managers and employees are making new, greener ideas part of the work day. The co-op recently published its first online Green Report describing these new approaches.

Watch for more ideas about energy efficient lighting, recycling programs, energy-wise choices for food storage and preparation (in the co-op’s kitchen and yours!) in upcoming issues of Healthy Updates.

Energy journalist and blogger Nancy S. Grant is a member of the Cooperative Communicators Association.