(originally sent May 18, 2010)
PEDAL PEOPLE NEWS MAY 2010 Contents: * Welcome to this newsletter * New container recycling rules * Farm share delivery * Warm weather compost and You! * Serio's Friday lunch deliveries * Pedal People and the Village Bicycle Project ** WELCOME TO THIS NEWSLETTER ** Starting this month, we are sending out a monthly (or less frequently) e-mail newsletter. Some of the things you'll find in this and future newsletters are changes to what's accepted for recycling in Northampton, pricing updates, new services we'll be offering, and maybe some stories from the road. We've subscribed all our regular recycling & trash customers. If you'd like to stop receiving these notices, there's a link to click on at the bottom of this e-mail. ** NEW CONTAINER RECYCLING RULES ** The Springfield MRF (Materials Recycling Facility, www.springfieldmrf.org) is where all our paper and containers recycling gets processed. They have recently made some changes to the list of what containers are accepted for recycling. This poster illustrates it best: http://www.springfieldmrf.org/8x11recycling_poster.pdf Many of our customers have been placing clamshell food containers (used to package berries, salad greens, etc.), plastic trays (like those that mushrooms and tofu are often packaged in), plastic cups and plastic egg cartons in their recycling. Please instead place these low-grade plastics, which are not accepted at Springfield MRF, in your trash. YES: Metal cans, foil, milk and juice cartons, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles, jars, tubs and jugs. Labels are ok. NO: Styrofoam, plastic trays, clamshells, light bulbs, flower pots, molded plastic, plastic cups, eye glasses, hangers, plastic utensils, CDs, plastic bags, motor oil or anti-freeze bottles, and plastics over 2.5 gallons. ** FARM SHARE DELIVERY ** Pedal People is now offering farm share delivery from two local farms and a local food delivery service: RED FIRE FARM in Granby offers certified organic CSA shares June through October, plus egg, flower and fruit shares: http://www.pedalpeople.com/index.php?page=54 VALLEY GREEN FEAST collaborates with local farmers to bring farm goods such as local vegetables, meat, dairy, fish, eggs, flour, jams, syrups and baked goods to your doorstep. Pedal People delivers for them in Northampton: http://www.valleygreenfeast.com ENTERPRISE FARM in Whately offers certified organic summer and winter farm shares. Here are some words from them: "In the summer, Enterprise Farm offers a Local Share -- this consists of 100% Massachusetts-grown produce. With 80 acres of certified organic vegetables, we provide everything from arugula to zucchini. We're really excited about several crops we're planting this year we've never grown before -- celery, strawberries, colored peppers and more herbs than ever before! We also work with partner farms in the neighborhood to supplement the share with local fruit, berries, sweet corn and onions. In the winter, Enterprise offers an East Coast Share. Since 2007, we have been partnering with small organic growers from Prince Edward Island to Florida to source fresh vegetables from within 1,000 miles. This is 500 miles closer than the average produce travels before it reaches the store! You can sign up to be a seasonal or year-round member." Pedal People will deliver in Northampton for $4 per week. Sign up link: http://www.enterpriseproduce.com/farmshare/western-mass-csa.htm For more information, check out Enterprise's website at http://www.enterpriseproduce.com or call Katey at 413-824-2776. ** WARM WEATHER COMPOST AND YOU! ** As summer weather approaches and the thermometer climbs, we enthusiastically encourage customers who participate in our compost program to line their buckets with a paper grocery bag - it makes washing out the bucket a snap, and cleaner, less foul-smelling compost buckets make for happy families and happy Pedal People riders! ** SERIO'S FRIDAY LUNCH DELIVERIES ** We are now doing Friday lunch deliveries for Serio's Market. Serio's is trying to transition from car deliveries to bike deliveries. We've wanted to expand the general delivery aspect of our business since we started, and this might be our big break! So call Serio's for Friday lunch, and maybe a pedal person will show up. ** PEDAL PEOPLE AND THE VILLAGE BICYCLE PROJECT ** Our goal is to collect 500 bikes, fill a shipping container, and send them to rural Africa! The Village Bicycle Project has made a difference in thousands of lives and we're excited to join the cause. "In Africa, a bicycle can make all the difference. Riding a bike is four times faster than walking, the only choice for millions of Africans. People with bikes get to schools, markets, farms and health care in one-fourth the time, improving their lives and economic futures." We need your help!! SPACE: We need a spot to store these bikes. A 20 ft. x 30 ft. space will do (we stack 'em up), even an outdoor space where we could tarp them would work as a last resort! BIKES, BIKE PARTS, TOOLS: Once we have the space, we'll start collecting bikes, tools, etc. Let us know if you've got anything to donate and we'll let you know when we start collecting. VOLUNTEERS: We'll need help collecting and organizing parts/bikes. We'll also need help loading the shipping container when it arrives. If you'd like to volunteer we'd love to have you on board! Learn more about the project: http://www.villagebicycleproject.org