So, this afternoon, I visit the store. The owner is Mdm. O. And I spent 45 minutes chitchatting with the owner. She is very friendly.
One would always associate organic food with high price. Yes, old Asians are quite cheapskate. I could imagine if my mother was with me. She would comment on the price.
Honestly, there's a bit difference compared to regular food. Of course if one were to comment about the honey, or maple syrup, it's more expensive. By maple syrup, I mean the original maple syrup from Quebec, Canada... not maple flavoured syrup, which is regular sugar cane syrup infused with maple flavour. And the honey is organic honey, imagine how much nectar to collect. And regular honey bees are sometimes fed with syrup. Yes, a bit expensive, but for the flavour, why not.
I told Mdm O that I buy organic foods only for the taste. They taste different, well, better. I told her, I don't really care about GMO's but sometimes opt for organic foods for the taste, variety (yup, regular honey vs alder honey and wilderness honey and acacia honey... more variety). And sometimes, I use organic goods for cosmetics and fish keeping, such as organic sea salt.
She started the business this week. She did it to cater more people with organic foods. And this area is a strategic place as it is situated near a slightly upper class neighbourhood, and it's on the way to the new township. People would stop by on their way back home. And she consume mostly organic food for health reason. According to her, it's worth her money to feed her family with organic food than to use the money on medication. Good point. She added that, she used to suffer from hair loss (alopecia??) eating GMO food.
It's good to have a place to buy brown sugar or organic ramen or extra virgin coconut oil (my staple... it's food and cosmetic in one bottle) or vinegars nearby. Prior to this, I have to drive further to get this stuff. The distance is nothing but the parking coupon is what I dislike. Well, at least our parking fee here is less complicate than inn the big city. So, I have to call that store to confirm if what I need is available and the price. Other than that, another store would be Dr. Transgender franchise. Not that I am against transgender, it's very expensive. Well, considering the rent in town, in the shopping mall. But I still get my brewers yeast from Dr. Tranny's store.
I bought aloe vera jelly from Mdm. O. It's konjac. Sometimes called as konyaku. I asked her if she had tried gelatine before. As she haven't tried one, I told her gelatine jelly is less QQ than agar or konjac. And we love our QQ texture. I've tried aeroplane jelly and that port wine jelly, I like the taste, but not the texture. It's flimsy, kinda like our tofu curd, except tofu curd is creamier (like!!!). Agar is less QQ than konjac but still better than gelatine. What is QQ? Basically, it's firm, you can bite into but not as hard. Chewy. But not like chewing gum. Another QQ thing would be tapioca pearl. It's hard to describe in one word. One have to eat agar/konyaku jelly, or nata de coco to feel it.
It's good to talk with business owners especially new ones. They are more than happy to tell you about their products as it's a mode of promoting their business. That is, if they are not busy. And to me, it's an exchange of idea. I told her that I substitute margarine with chilled coconut oil (they are solid if stored if the fridge). And buzzfeed video on coffee and coconut oil. Yeah, it's a win win situation. They get new ideas from customers and customers get new ideas from the business owners too.
So support your neighbourhood business.
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