How do I feed our large and growing family?
This question is at the forefront of my brain and will be for years to come. I will lead you down my rabbit hold of research in a moment, but I have one pressing comment to make. Pierce and I used to shop at our local bulk box store every weekend. Today we purchase beef from a rancher, grocery shop once a month from Azure Standard, and support local farmers markets. Yes, we still frequent that large box supply store, but it’s for the one off items.
How did we find Azure Standard?
We had a long road to Azure Standard. Long after we moved to our current home and were researching the homesteading way of life, I ran across a Youtube channel run by Jill Winger. If you don’t know who she is, prepare to have your socks knocked off. Jill runs The Prairie Homestead, an OG blog on all things homesteading and more. The kiddos and I came across her YouTube video on how to make butter at home in 2020 and we were hooked. We watched her videos on cooking from scratch, chicken keeping, butchering meat birds, and gardening. I quickly found her podcast and never looked back.
When she released her first book, the cookbook of all cookbooks, you betcha I ordered a copy as fast as I could. I actually ordered two because living with toddlers is not typically the best for owning books. A healthy detachment from earthly goods is a common virtue we strive for in our home.
Back to Jill. One of her podcast episodes featured bulk food storage for a large family. This is how I was introduced to Jessica from Three Rivers Homestead. I was blown away by this episode and how she approaches purchasing food in bulk and long term storage for her large family. Jessica mentioned she purchases her groceries once a month from Azure Standard. What did I do that instant? I found the website and signed up for free.
What is Azure Standard?
If you’re new to bulk organic food sourcing, look no further than Azure Standard. Azure Standard is an organic bulk food supply company based in Oregon that ships your groceries and supplies once a month from their warehouse to your home or a local drop near you. It may sound crazy, but we meet once a month in a predetermined drop zone, unload a semi-truck with our drop’s orders, grab our order, and head on home. Rinse, wash, repeat every month.
How do I shop only once a month?
We slowly switched our mindset to building a working pantry and long term food storage. It was difficult purchasing food and spices once a month. Instead of buying a four pack of butter once a week, we buy enough butter to last us 1-3 months at a time. Applying this concept allows us to purchase specific pantry items in bulk once or twice a year. One month we will order 50-100 pounds of organic wheat berries and 50 pounds of frozen fruit and vegetables. The following month may be honey, spices, and 25 pounds of rice. The next month we will order 25 pounds of organic oats, molasses, parchment paper, and 20 pounds of apples. We store our working pantry bulk items in food grade buckets with lids, all from Azure.
The key is to pick one or two things a month you would normally buy from your local grocery store, and buy it in bulk. This will allow you to build a working pantry and long term supply of food.
How much of an investment is purchasing from Azure Standard?
The service is free. You can opt to pick up your groceries from a drop instead of shipping to your home. We have met some amazing people at our local drops and it has fostered a community of like minded people who share the same goals of eating clean(er) foods. As we would get low on a pantry staple, I would order it in bulk from Azure the following month.
How does purchasing from Azure Standard help us cook from scratch?
Pierce and I made the decision years ago to cut out soda and processed foods from our diet. Home cooked meals simply taste better. Once you plan your meals around what you have preserved or stored, you will find cooking from scratch to be second nature. It takes commitment and a pantry takeover, but anything worth having takes work.
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