Park Slope Food Coop Animal Welfare Committee

Whether you want to learn what the Animal Welfare Committee does or you'd like to join the committee, this workshop is for you!  Please join us for an overview of what the committee does for the Park Slope Food Co-Op membership!   If you'd like to join the squad, we'll be reviewing what skill sets we're looking for and letting you know how to apply!  If you can't make it and you'd like to join the squad, please keep an eye out here (or @psfcanimals on twitter) as we'll be hosting the online application on this blog.   Jesse, on behalf of the Animal Welfare Committee

Are you interested in vegan eating? In the New Year, many Coop members will resolve to change their eating habits. In recent years, there has been an increased interest in vegan eating, with people like Bill Clinton and Ellen DeGeneres touting the benefits of their plant-based diets. Growing evidence shows that vegan diets have positive impacts on human health and are better for the planet. Whether you want to commit to a vegan diet or start eating more plant foods, this workshop will help. Join us Sunday, January 12, at 12:00 p.m. in the PSFC's upstairs meeting room for an introduction to vegan eating. We will discuss recipes, shopping staples, and basic nutrition. Space is limited. Please RSVP now to reserve your seat.

Just in time for Thanksgiving, the Animal Welfare Committee's 2013 Turkey Guide is here! We contacted the Coop's turkey vendors and interviewed them about  the conditions their birds live in, then organized the information in a handy chart for members. The Guide also explains the labels commonly found on meat products, like free-range and pasture-raised, and describes the festive turkey alternatives that the Coop carries. The Turkey Guide is laminated next to the turkeys, and take-home versions are also available there. You can find a larger version of the Guide online by clicking on the AWC Guides tab at the top of this page, and then clicking on Buying Turkeys at the Coop. Piper on behalf of the Animal Welfare Committee

Our new milk guide is here! The Members' Guide to Coop Milk provides a wealth of information about the welfare of the cows and goats who produce the milk sold at the coop, along with definitions of the terms on dairy product labels like "Pasture-Raised" and "All Natural." Like all our guides, the milk guide is organized in an easy-to-read chart. You can find it laminated near the dairy case at the coop. Piper on behalf of the Animal Welfare Committee

This meeting the squad checked in our work calendar for the remainder of 2013. What will we be doing for the rest of 2013?  The Milk Guide is done and will be posted to the blog shortly.  The laminated version is already up in the co-op!   We'll be starting the Chicken Guide next   We're considering whether we have the bandwith to commit to a seasonal Turkey Guide , as we did last year Some items are already in our pipeline for 2014: A workshop for those interested in eating vegan - this was a request from our co-op membership when we hosted the committee info sessions last year.  Scheduled tenatatively for January 2014, we'll be gathering resources for the "Interested in Eating Vegan?" workshop Beef Guide - we're slated to start the Beef Guide in 2014 We also discussed a Communication Checklist for the information guides we produce.  When we come out with  a new info guide, we want you to know!  So we brainst...

At our end-of-July meeting we discussed the final steps for producing our Dairy Milk Guide and Plant-Based Milks Guide. We brain-stormed ideas for promoting our informative Guides to Coop members, including a link from the Coop’s website to this blog. We also planned subjects and discussed the schedule for upcoming Guides. Piper, for the Animal Welfare Committee 

This month we set up the production schedule for layout of our new Milk Guide, including the plant-based milk alternatives information that will appear at our blog and in a small handout available in print in the Coop. We participated in a brainstorming session about a logo/identity for the committee and will reach out to another Coop committee and discuss their helping with our logo production. We also prepared a preliminary outline and promotion calendar for our January 2014 workshop, "Eating Vegan at the Coop." Deborah, on behalf of the Animal Welfare Committee