GMZ - Marché de solidarité régionale de l'Outaouais

One of the things that I found most intimidating about changing my eating habits to a more local and organic beat was the simple challenge of finding what I needed without having to quadruple the amount of mileage I had to do to get it. What's the point of buying local eggs if I have to drive 45 minutes one-way to get them?

So along came the Marché de solidarité régionale de l'Outaouais, a fantastic concept that was started in Sherbrooke and that has been taken up in the Outaouais. Here's the deal: the MSRO is a common online marketplace where local producers of every sort (veggies, bread, fish, meat, milk, cheese, mushrooms, sprouted legumes and grains, honey, maple syrup, cranberries, wine, etc.) display their wares, and where you can browse and pick and choose what you'd like to buy on a weekly basis. Not everybody's organic, but a lot of them are, and everyone's from the region, so you're eating locally. Basically, every week, you visit the website, check off whatever you'd like in your weekly basket, and either on Thursday or Friday, you drop by the pick-up point (on rue Frontenac in old Hull on Thursdays, or on rue Notre-Dame in old Gatineau on Fridays) and get your goodies! It costs $20 a year to be a member, and they charge a small percentage on your overall bill just so they can keep things running (just FYI, you pay the same kind of charge on the cost of the food you buy at a regular grocery store).

Since Marc and I have been members of the MSRO, we've been enjoying tons of stuff including some fantastic organic veggies, local cheeses, Le Coprin mushrooms (fabulous!), beautiful local maple syrup and, on the occasions where we do eat meat, amazingly flavourful grass-fed, antibiotic-free beef (if you're gonna eat meat...)

So I highly recommend giving it a try. All you've got to lose is twenty bucks and a drive to old Hull (or old Gatineau). Just remember that you're eating locally, so the fruits and veggies do get a bit scarce in the winter months (but the root veggies and potatoes are plentiful!) and the meats are almost always frozen, as the producers can't risk spoilage. 

Finally, I can't say enough about the farmers and producers themselves. Often present at the old Hull pick-up point on Thursdays, they're always happy to discuss their products with you, and may even have some samples for you to try. I find it a great privilege to be able to meet and speak to the person who is directly responsible for the food I'm about to eat. And it's reassuring to know my tummy is in good hands.

I do hope you give it a try. I'm still very happy I did.

About GMZ