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Northeast Grown, 100% organic, fermented & raw pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, kvass, and hot sauce

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Home / Community Investment Campaign

Community Investment Campaign

May 2013

Thanks to support from our community – We’ve gone co-op!

Real Pickles is re-writing the standard storyline for a successful organic food business: We’re staying small, independent & locally-owned. We’re securing our social mission for the long-term. We’ve become a worker-owned co-operative! (Read more about it on our blog.)

We are proud to report that in 2013, as part of our plan for transitioning Real Pickles to a worker-owned co-operative,  we launched a community investment campaign and successfully raised $500,000 in investments (in only 2 months!).

We want to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to the 77 individuals and organizations throughout MA and VT who chose to make an investment – and to countless others for your invaluable words of wisdom and encouragement. We’re so appreciative of all the many ways in which our community has made it possible for Real Pickles to take this exciting step.

Our official transition to a worker-owned cooperative happened May 9th, 2013 … Hurray!!

Interested in other investment opportunities?

It’s become clear in the course of this campaign that there is a significant and growing interest in investing locally and responsibly. We think this is a hugely important trend and want to let you know about some other organizations offering opportunities in our region these days:

  • Equity Trust
  • Cooperative Fund of New England
  • Common Capital‘s Community First Fund
  • Co-op Power

Also, Western MA folks interested in local investing opportunities should keep tabs on the Slow Money Pioneer Valley Chapter, a working group of PVGrows. Their mission: “The Slow Money Pioneer Valley Chapter catalyzes community-based investment in the local food system by connecting investors, farmers and entrepreneurs in order to strengthen our local and regional food economy.”

A special thanks to Cutting Edge Capital for their extensive help in developing our community investment campaign. They are assisting many businesses in raising capital from their local communities.

Want to read more?

Here’s a list of posts that have been written during our process and transition. Enjoy!

  • Oct 9, 2012: We’re going co-op! (Dan and Addie Rose)
  • Dec 12, 2012: Why I want to be a worker-owner… again (Kristin Howard)
  • Mar 16, 2013: A community perspective: Keeping it Local! (Margaret Christie)
  • Apr 8, 2013: A community perspective: Investing in a better food system! (PV Slow Money Chapter)
  • Aug 15, 2013: Real Pickles and the Path to a Co-operative Economy (Erbin Crowell)
  • May 13, 2014: One Year as a Co-op (Kristin Howard)

Primary Sidebar

Somerville Fermentation Festival is this Sunday, A Somerville Fermentation Festival is this Sunday, August 16th, and we can’t wait for all the fermented goodness! 
Come say hi to Derek and Kate who are bringing back some of the first jars of an old favorite recipe that hasn’t been made in years! No spoilers, you’ll just have to come find out what it is! 
You’ll also get to meet fermenters working with veggies, tempeh, cacao and more, plus live music and a speaker series throughout the day.
Check out @somfermfest for more details. Hope to see you there!

#fermentation #fermentationfestival #somervillefermfest #boston #bostonevents
Are you interested in organic food production and Are you interested in organic food production and making a difference in the local food system? Come join our team! Real Pickles is seeking an energetic and well-qualified individual to fill the role of Production Assistant/Backup Distribution Assistant. See the full job description and how to apply at realpickles.com/jobs Link in bio! #RealPickles #coopjobs #westernmassjobs #joinourteam #workerowned
🥒 It’s pickle season! Crisp, tangy and full of fl 🥒 It’s pickle season!

Crisp, tangy and full of flavor, lacto-fermented pickles are one of the best parts of summer. 

And they’re more than just delicious. Naturally fermented foods help support gut health and because gut health is closely connected to immune function and mood, supporting your gut can benefit your whole body.

✨ Bonus: Fermented cucumber pickles naturally contain GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid), a compound involved in supporting a calm, balanced nervous system.

So go ahead, enjoy that pickle! Savor the season, nourish your gut and give your body a little extra love. 🥒

#lactofermentation #pickles #NortheastGrown #organic
🌈🥒Real Pickles was proud to march in the Franklin 🌈🥒Real Pickles was proud to march in the Franklin County Pride parade this weekend alongside an amazing community that really showed up to celebrate! 

A huge thank you to @franklincountypride for organizing such an incredibly joyful and meaningful event, and to everyone who came out to celebrate, support and spread the love.

And if you’re still rocking a Real Pickles Pride tattoo, we definitely want to see it! 
Share a pic and tag us!

Happy Pride! 🤍🩷🩵🤎🖤❤️🧡💛💚💙💜
Who’s excited for cucumber season‽ We are! Look at Who’s excited for cucumber season‽ We are! Look at how beautiful these baby future Organic Dill Pickles are! 🥒💚

#futurepickle #organic #northeastgrown @mtviewfarm
Last week, Real Pickles staff ventured out to East Last week, Real Pickles staff ventured out to Easthampton, Mass., for our annual field trip to visit Liz and Ben (and Clover the dog!) of Mountain View Farm.
Mountain View Farm is one of our amazing farm partners that supplies Real Pickles with organic cucumbers, green and red cabbage, leeks, onions, peppers and flowering dill. Last year, Mountain View delivered more than 58,000 pounds of organic produce to us, including over 20,000 pounds of pickling cucumbers!
The land we visited last week was just a small portion of the 100+ acres that Ben and Liz farm. This particular plot is used mostly for growing flowers and vegetables for their award-winning U-Pick CSA shares. While we didn’t get to see any baby cukes at this location, Liz showed us photos of future Organic Dill Pickles growing beautifully on the farm’s leased land in Hadley, Mass.
As we walked the Easthampton fields together, we learned about some of the ways Ben and Liz are preparing for the upcoming season, including plans to make cucumber harvesting even more plentiful and easier on the crew’s bodies.
Thank you, Liz and Ben, for hosting us and for being such incredible partners in our mission to build a strong regional food system!
@mtviewfarm #organic #northeastgrown #loveyourfarmer 
📷 by RP staff, including @gillis.photography

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311 Wells St
Greenfield, MA 01301
(413) 774-2600
info@realpickles.com

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