Apothecary’s Pick – Hudson Valley Harvest

These days, almost nothing in the supermarket is grown the way it was fifty years ago. Most meat comes from Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO), yielding heavily medicated, hormone infused proteins. Factory produce farms sell you processed flavorless vegetables that look good but are tasteless and are nutritionally compromised. CAFOs and factory farms take a heavy toll on the environment and in recent years we’ve seen these giant food companies besieged by recalls.

Luckily for us, Hudson Valley Harvest was created in 2011 to provide a reliable source of local, all-natural food to the New York City (and surrounding areas) marketplace. They couple the highest-quality products from a collection of sustainable, small-scale farms across the Hudson Valley with modern distribution and sales efficiencies to offer a unique, cost-effective local food source.

Hudson Valley Harvest believes in keeping food close to the source, both by keeping it local and by minimal processing. They feel that – and we agree – keeping things simple and food grown from the ground and put on your plate is the healthiest, best way to nourish yourself and your family. Hudson Valley Harvest only works with farms and product from the Hudson Valley. This isn’t the easiest way to do things but they believe that it’s the right way.

Getting your food from Hudson Valley Harvest means you can finally count on easy access to the incredible bounty of the Hudson Valley: fresh, flavorful local food. In contrast to national distributors who mix produce and meat from multiple regions into one untraceable national inventory, they operate locally. Everything you get from Hudson Valley Harvest will be transparent and traceable to its source. Each package tells a unique story: the variety of vegetable or breed of animal, the farm of origin, the farming methods used, and the distance traveled from farm to processor.

Everyday we learn more about irresponsible — and often cruel — commercial farming practices. Product recalls seem to happen weekly. Supermarket shelves are packed with highly processed products that, to us, barely resemble food. Hudson Valley Harvest is different. Their farmers produce food — good food. For a farmer to make it into their network, they have to respect the earth and the animal, and cherish that a harvest reaped from such respect is unparalleled in quality.

We know food has gotten confusing. Put simply, food that travels the shortest distance from the farm to your plate is healthier and tastes better than conventionally grown meats and produce.

To find out more about Hudson Valley Harvest, check out their website: http://www.hv-harvest.com/. You can also find a list of locations on their site where their products are sold. To get you started, try Adams FairAcre Farms in Kingston, Wappingers, Newburgh and Poughkeepsie, Bistro-To-Go in Kingston, Vinnie’s Farm Market in Saugerties and Red Hook Natural Market.

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