Hello! We are very excited to be participating in our first Fort Collins Winter Bike to Work Day on December 12th. Fort Collins has a rich cycling community and to encourage cycling as a way of life Bike Fort Collins organizes both a Winter and Summer Bike To Work Day. Over a week before the actual Bike To Work Day there are all kinds of events held for local businesses and the public to engage in meaningful discussions on how to make Fort Collins a better place to ride. If you’re familiar with Fort Collins, you know there are all kinds of trails for commuting and recreating. Streets are equipped with bike lanes and the auto drivers, there is an overall consciousness of cycling in this town. If you’ve been thinking of riding your bike to work, this coming Wednesday is the perfect day to give it a try.

Roll on out for the festivities. We’ll be co-sponsoring a breakfast station at New Belgium with New Belgium, Ridekick International and Rocky Mountain Innosphere. We look forward to serving you a delicious breakfast and of course providing you with fun activities. Click on the logo to the above left to view the event poster. Cheers and see you out there on your bikes!

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The holiday season is upon us and this Friday November 23, to celebrate our local version of “Black Friday”, we’ll be participating in Plaid Friday. We will have a booth at the Opera Galleria from 10a to 2p. Come on down and enjoy the festivities!

Happy Thanksgiving and wishing you all a thankful day. Enjoy!

Wear plaid and we’ll give you 10% off your purchase!

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The indoor market season begins on the 10th of November in the Opera Galleria in downtown Fort Collins. Our first Winter Market will be the 17 November. Please click here to view our full schedule.

See you at the market! Be well.

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Last week we had the opportunity to sample our product at Alfalfa’s Market in Boulder. It’s a lovely store, locally owned and a Boulder original. I recommend you take the time to visit if you’re in the area. Their fermented foods section is the most impressive I’ve seen yet.

While there, a customer asked me about raw cabbage inhibiting proper thyroid function. Please know I’m not a health practitioner, nor do I give medical advice. I recommend you seek your trusted health practitioner for advice, testing, etc. With that said…

While researching goitrogenic compounds in raw cruciferous vegetables, I found that most of the research indicates that fermentation does not reduce the goitrogenic compounds. Conversely, numerous health benefits come from these same raw vegetables. I feel this issue along with many others, comes down to individual responsibility. Each person needs to educate themselves and make the decision that maximizes their well-being. If interested, please enjoy this YouTube video on the issue of the thyroid and raw cruciferous vegetables.

Be well,
marni w
Vital Cultured Foods

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Happy late Summer! We wanted to update you on what’s going on at Vital Cultured Foods.  The local produce has been beautiful. Our last two batches of sauerkraut have been with Ft Collins grown cabbage, both from Spring Kite Farm. Their produce is delicious and an eye pleaser as well.

Our newest batch of carrots are also locally grown goodness from Native Hill Farm. We’re excited to get more of their carrots now because they are much larger and sweet too. We currently have some mixed beets fermenting that came from here too. The beets will be available only at the Larimer County Farmers’ Markets and they will be available 8 Sept.

Along with our pickled beets, we will also have some garlic dill pickles available too. The cucumbers and dill are from Lindenmeier Farm, another small local Ft Collins farm. We are excited to bring you these limited edition ferments and stay tuned for more as we continue to work with our local farmers.

Enjoy the beautiful changing of the seasons and see you at the market!

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Vital Cultured Foods is excited to be a sponsor of Bike To Work Day next Wednesday with New Belgium Brewing and Rocky Mountain Innosphere. See you there!

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We are excited to share two new products with you: Caraway Juniper Sauerkraut and Masala Carrots. The Caraway Juniper Sauerkraut is not new to the farmers’ market goers but the look of it is new. The Masala Carrots are a new release tomorrow at the Larimer County Farmers’ Market. We will be sampling both. Please come by to give them a try.

Our Caraway Juniper Sauerkraut is the same delicious fermented cabbage with the addition of garlic, caraway seeds and juniper berries. The flavor is refreshing and crisp. The use of this sauerkraut is similar to our plain sauerkraut, it just has more of a kick. If you’re a connoisseur of sauerkraut you may like the different flavors this has to offer.

The Masala Carrots are pickled carrots and onions that have been spiced with Indian herbs and spices; garlic, ginger, lemon peel, coriander seed, fenugreek seed, cumin seed, fennel seed, Aleppo chili flakes, cinnamon, black mustard seeds and coconut flower nectar. The carrots are sliced, so the finished product is quite different and fun. We think they are excellent appetizers, great on sandwiches and perfect right out of the jar. One of my favorite things is the brine, it’s so delicious to drink and surprisingly refreshing on a hot day. We recommend you wait until your carrots are gone before drinking the brine.

We’ll see you at the market held every Saturday through October in Old Town Fort Collins and watch for these new products to hit the shelves of the Fort Collins Food Co-Op, Beavers Market and Alfalfa’s Market.

Cheers and good health to you!

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This coming Saturday we will have Sauerkraut and Caraway Juniper Sauerkraut again to serve you. Have a great one and see you on Saturday!

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As the local produce comes in we will be sharing with you a fermented treat that will only be available at the farmers markets. We will communicate with you the things that we will have and things that will be at future markets, since the fermentation process has a 2-4 week window, the anticipation will be fun.

We will be in touch and stay tuned. See you at the market!

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