Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op is an organization that offers local produce to the community each Saturday at a fair price. Created by Sally Stevens and Tanya Jolly in May 2006, the organization sought to provide healthy food at an affordable price. Therefore, the BBFC is run by volunteers and contributions made by participants. Since its start, the BBFC has grown from two distribution sites to hundreds in 16 states. In 2011, due to popular demand, most sites started to offer 100 percent organic produce to participants.
BBFC offers 50 percent vegetables and 50 percent fruit that fills a laundry basket each contributor brings to the site. Buyers can also purchase other items such as local baked goods, oils, and specialty packs such as tropical baskets for an additional fee.
Some pick up sites in the area include Kraync Motors in Price, Dow’s Karate & Fitness in Ferron, and Jim’s Auto Service in Helper. For a full list of distribution sites, go to www.bountifulbaskets.org and select that “Locations” tab.
Getting involved with the BBFC is easy. Simply go to www.bountifulbaskets.org and follow the new participant instructions to get started. There is a small start up fee for each new user. Each week thereafter the cost is just $15 and a $1.50 processing fee for produce retailed at approximately $50.
Because BBFC is based solely on the hard work of its volunteers, the organization asks that participants volunteer if physically able. To volunteer, participants just arrive at the site one hour before the scheduled pick up time. They help organize produce and prepare it for distribution. It is requested but not mandatory that participants volunteer every seventh time they purchase a basket.