EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — If you’ve ever wished grocery shopping could feel a little more like supporting your neighbors (and a little less like another errand), Desert Spoon Food Hub in El Paso is built for that.
Desert Spoon Food Hub was started 10 years ago by Patsy Stallworth and her daughters.
Stallworth said the mission was to source local organic produce from small farms in the area.
What began with a $30 produce box is still going strong, but the options have grown.
In addition to the box, the county funded a grocery store, Spoon Flower Grocery, where shoppers can buy produce in person.
Customers can also order online and add extra items beyond vegetables.
Stallworth said shoppers can add things like “fideo and some nuts,” or sourdough, focaccia bread, buns and tea pills made by Chef Mateo Herrera, a semi-finalist for the James Beard Award, who makes them fresh every week.
Orders can be delivered to your home for $6.
Desert Spoon has also launched a kids-focused effort to make healthy eating more fun.
Stallworth said the organization started a program called “Taster Space” about three years ago to help children build a relationship with healthier eating.
El Paso’s Desert Spoon Food Hub marks 10 years, founded by mom and daughters
The box includes crafts and recipes tied to seasonal items.
Working with the library, the program will include each seasonal fruit or vegetable in a clear envelope along with a craft and recipe.
Stallworth said families will be able to check it out like a book and keep the pamphlet.
Stallworth said the program will be available through participating libraries, with details posted online.
“It’ll kick off in March,” Stallworth said, adding that it will be free.
To help make organic food more affordable, Desert Spoon collaborated with the Sustainable Food Center in Austin and runs Double Up Food Bucks.
Stallworth said Desert Spoon is “the only story in El Paso that has double-up food bugs,” adding that Bodega Loya in San Elizario and Chico Farm in Socorro also has it.
Desert Spoon accepts SNAP, and Stallworth said anyone who pays with food stamps while the store is open gets 50% off all fruits and vegetables.
“We do all need to be able to eat healthy. Everyone,” Stallworth said, calling it part of food equity in El Paso.
Spoon Flower Grocery is located at 1714 Yandell Dr. in Central El Paso.
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