Amidst the rising concerns and precautions surrounding the spread of coronavirus, on Monday, March 16, at 11 a.m. Mayor Michael B. Hancock made the announcement that Denver bars and restaurants are to forgo typical dining in practices for eight weeks, effective at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, March 17, (eerily a typical food and drink driven holiday: St. Patrick’s Day). Just a few hours later, Governor Jared Polis made a similar call to action for the entire state of Colorado, reaffirming the same mandate be in place for the next 30 days, at minimum.
To refer to these times for the food and beverage industries as difficult sounds like we are minimizing the situation but, our eating and drinking establishments immediately began initiating alternatives with curbside pickup, to-go options and delivery in an attempt to combat the stifling effects of these imposed, socially distant business models.
Meanwhile, while meat and other foods in our grocery stores are becoming harder to come by, it compels us to dive head first into what it really means to “support local.” Not only do these businesses require your patronage to continue to stay open but now utilizing resources such as your local farmers and ranchers is also seemingly imperative.
“I think it’s a great opportunity for people to learn about these local systems that maybe they have to, out of necessity,” says Mike Preisler, Founder of A Grazing Life. “Hopefully they’ll be a lot of new people who will take advantage of that and after all the dust settles they’ll still have those connections and support.”
We Have the Meats:
- Frost Livestock offers beef, lamb, eggs and local honey with ranch pickup at 17825 Hanover Rd, Fountain, Colorado. See their full product list online here.
- Corner Post Meats “Meat for People who Give a Damn” offers self-service ranch pickup (10165 Hodgen Road, Black Forest, CO) on Saturday’s from 10 a.m. until noon/delivery nationwide of beef/pork/turkey/lamb and wild-caught fish with free shipping for all orders over $150/under 35 lbs. in Colorado.
- Sangres Best Beef in Westcliffe, Colorado, raises sustainably ranched beef with free shipping in Colorado on any 10 lb box of your choice/ pickup in Colorado Springs available Tuesday – Friday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Jian Cold Storage (717 Nichols Blvd) *Call Roger with your ETA on the day you choose: 719-510-7579
- Ranch Foods Direct, formed by Mike Calicrate, former rancher & family farm advocate, sells high quality, naturally raised beef directly to customers at retail locations (1228 E. Fillmore Street
Colorado Springs, CO 80907 & 4635 Town Center Drive
Colorado Springs, CO 8091) sourced from small regional farmers and artisanal food producers.
Eat Your Vegetables:
- Hunt or Gather is a membership based “buying club” that allows you to purchase local organic organic fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, packaged items, and more direct from producers at wholesale prices. For info on becoming a member, please email huntorgatherivywild@gmail.com
- Taproot is a producer-managed cooperative that refers to themselves as “a farmers market at your fingertips 365 days a year,” with a focus on the distribution of bio-regional foods from over 70 Colorado family-run farms and ranches that includes: Valley Roots Food Hub (San Luis Valley, South Central Colorado & Chaffee County), Arkansas Valley Organic Growers (Pueblo & Colorado Springs) & Peak to Plains Food Distribution (Colorado Springs).
- The Growhaus believes that “healthy food is a right, not a privilege,” and provides weekly food boxes with organic produce, free-range eggs and bread available for doorstep delivery in Denver. In addition, visit The Growhaus’ donation page to donate an emergency box to families in need.
We are all in this together:
- SAME Cafe is a donation-based, fair exchange restaurant/non-profit in Denver (2023 E. Colfax Ave) with the mission to “create community through healthy food access,” regardless of the ability to pay and is still providing their typical meal services to-go.
- Denver Food Rescue & Colorado Springs Food Rescue provides food access, education and production. Visit this page for information on public No Cost Grocery Programs and Hunger Free Colorado for more information.
“Maybe it’s a silver lining,” says Preisler. “So that people better understand that I can get my stuff right from these producers and ranchers all the time.”
