The pandemic disrupted everything. Climate change weather events are affecting everything too. These issues were growing prepandemic and they are not going away. This gives us all a great opportunity to reevaluate how we operate. Growing and shopping local keeps money and economic security generation in our community. It also uses less fossil fuels for transportation which means less greenhouse gas emissions in our air. Reimaging our local operating system will indeed inspire new business and new technology. How can we not be excited at the possibilities?

Voting is so important. We get to vote right now through! Voter Registration Information | Guilford County, NC Voting for candidates that put people and planet first will give us the opportunities for thriving biodiversity, poverty elimination, and ensuring that clean air and water are ours to care for. We can even reverse climate change by how we eat. How cool is that? Co-ops, farmers markets, and local farmers provide that opportunity for us. Change is life and a life well lived has lots of changing and growing happening! Demand is also huge factor. If you see any food advertised on TV, just avoid buying it. Any company that can afford a national TV commercial is most likely taking shortcuts. Those shortcuts are on the backs of workers and our precious environment that sustains us. Actually, just kill your TV and go outside instead. Vote for change, vote for healthy local foods, vote for our lives!

What else can I say? “The hippies were right”!

Recycling, composting, walking, biking, gardening, sharing food, buying from companies that are taking sustainable actions (check out: B Corp Certification demonstrates a company's entire social and environmental impact), and many more are critical steps that we can all take in adapting to a new cultural norm of caring for the very environment that sustains us 12 Ways to Live More Sustainably. Reminder to Owners - you get rewarded for making these purchases at the Co-op! You are automatically enrolled in our Taproots Rewards program, which was designed to reward you for making those better choices. Click this link for more information: Become an Owner - Deep Roots Market

Why am I even bringing this up? People, we have all the power. Understanding this power and how to use it cooperatively with our dollars and votes is so important to take it back and make a better future. Deep Roots Market literally exists to serve this purpose. Also, I just started grad school for Sustainability and Environment for the purpose of educating people on the importance of Co-ops for a sustainable future and I am all fired up!

More good news? You all have raised enough money now that we can increase the LIMe discount! Starting November 1st, the discount will go up to 20% off! I am so proud of our front end team who really owned this program and push to ask! Also, THANK YOU!

I have so much more to share, but I do not want to scare anyone off with a long note, so I will end with a fun teaser. Next year’s Annual Owner Meeting is going to be an amazing event offsite. Mark your calendar for May 6th, 2-5pm. We are super excited to show you a good time! More details are coming to you after the new year. We want to celebrate cooperation and thank you for making it happen!

See you in the aisles,

Nicole, GM