A Dash of History... from Terrence Moore

Years ago, I was approached by two Lincoln VISTA volunteers. They wanted to use the basement of my record store, Dirt Cheap, to distribute bulk and organic foods to the Lincoln community. They set up their garbage cans in the basement, fought off the cockroaches, and were a success. Big bags of food came in and small bags of good healthy food went out with a large number of people.

If I have my story and history correct, this VISTA project evolved into a food buying club that was located in a church basement. After a couple of years it was apparent that this project could become a real store, and after much hard work--voila!--Open Harvest magically appeared on Randolph Street.

The thing that strikes me about then and now is how different things are and how much they are the same. Open Harvest sells much more food now to a much larger number of people, out of a much nicer storefront. What has not changed, though, is the desire for good, healthy, chemical-free food plus a desire for information and facts about a healthy body, about healthy foods, and about the food system from whence these foods come. Open Harvest provided that information and those products 25 years ago, and continues to do so today, with the same level of commitment.

Thirty years ago Arrowhead Farms in Texas was one of the first organic large-scale operations in the country. The VISTA volunteers ordered direct from them and the goods were delivered to Lincoln. Arrowhead organic products are still found on the shelves of Open Harvest, but they arrive in a more roundabout way. As the world of healthy food and co-ops change, so will Open Harvest, yet we will remain committed to providing members and non-members alike with good food and the information to use it wisely.