Manly Food Co-op Blog and News
All of the content on our website is created by our community. If you love to write, are interested in healthy living, the health of the planet and would like to contribute, please send an email to: marketing@manlyfoodcoop.org. Energy points are available for your time spent contributing and preference is given to our members when choosing contributors.
Christmas Gift Ideas
Christmas gift ideas can be tricky at the best of times, but especially if you're: a) on a budgetb) trying to be planet friendly Our clever staff and volunteers have been busy making up a super selection of Christmas gift ideas to cover a range of budgets. Pop in to...
A Sustainable Christmas
Jen, our shop manager, has given us some amazing ideas on how to prepare a sustainable Christmas and how to create hand-made sustainable gifts. Jen is also running her own catering business, Zing Fresh, and is all about sustainable sustenance that looks beautiful. She...
Cheeky Pea Falafel
Cheeky Pea Falafel balls are one of our best sellers at the Co-op. The week beginning 5 November 2020 will feature our falafels as Product of the Week and means they're priced at 25% off - bringing them down to 92 cents each! This is also a good opportunity for us to...
Composting your kitchen food waste is easy!
When food waste is composted it turns into healthy, nutrient rich soil that is medicine for your garden or pot plants. Less methane, and no leachate!
Walnut Miso Broth (Serves 4)
Adapted from an Anna Jones recipe, this simple miso broth is both regenerative and full of flavour. The killer twist of it is the walnut miso paste. The umami flavours of miso and the crunch of walnuts completely transform this dish into a bowl of satisfying flavour....
Umeboshi Plums and a Japanese Snack
Have you heard of Umeboshi plums? One of our members recently wrote to comment that, "Your Ume plum is the best in Manly!! Thank you for providing us the healthy Japanese products." Along with the comment Mayumi shared a traditional recipe for a cleansing dish called...
How To Wear and Care for Your Mask
We actively encourage the use of masks when you shop at Manly Food Co-op. Like most grocery stores, it's very hard to socially distance when shopping at your Co-op. Wearing a mask adds an extra element of safety for everyone. As a zero waste advocate we also strongly...
A COVID Safe Co-op
Your Co-op has come a long way since declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11th, 2020. After initially closing to set up an online order system, we have gradually opened up the shop. We are now operating near normal, and it's easy to forget how far we've come....
Tips for a Plastic Free Life
These tips are designed to go hand in hand with our recent posts about Plastic Free July that you can find here and here. Going plastic free is a journey, and we can all use a few handy tips now and then to help us through. Shopping Tips Get into the habit of shopping...
Plastic Free Entertaining Ideas
Plastic free entertaining sometimes feels like an impossible ideal. If you google party or celebration you will be confronted with a sea of photos that almost exclusively include plastic. Plastic balloons, plastic streamers, plastic cups and plates and more. And for...
Celebrating All The Things (Covid-style)
It might not feel a lot like a time for celebrating at the moment. And indeed it is not for a lot of people. But we feel like it's important to acknowledge all that we've been through in the past four months. Every single one of us has dealt with curve balls they...
Plastic Free July 2020 – Pick One Thing
The way I figure it, everyone is on a plastic free journey of some sort. We live in a community where we have an amazing local co-op stocking our favourite plastic free groceries. Not everyone has this luxury. The important thing for us at the Manly Co-op is to make a...
Have a Very Eco Christmas
What is an eco Christmas? And how do you go about creating your own eco Christmas? Did you know that Christmas is THE most wasteful time of year? Workers at Kimbriki, our landfill site on the Northern Beaches, dread Christmas. The additional waste generated...
Gift Ideas for an Earth Friendly Christmas
Gift ideas can be a struggle for anyone living a busy life and juggling 101 different tasks in the lead up towards Christmas. We’re here to help you live a zero waste lifestyle, including at Christmas. When it comes to thinking about Christmas gifts,...
Christmas Canapés
Christmas canapés can be tricky at such a crazy time of year. It’s also hot which inspires an appetite for all things oceanic. Riding the wave of the Ocean Festival we have put together a great catch of quick and easy recipes using various seaweed varieties...
Coconut Yoghurt Smoothies
These coconut yoghurt smoothie ideas will drive you cocoa nuts! Enjoy these great recipe ideas from Jen @caterzingfresh. Whenever serving at the Co op, I love to share my ideas on ways to use the products people are purchasing. Recently, I shared how amazing the...
Momma Kombucha now available!
We are excited to announce that the Manly Co-Op now stocks the locally made Momma Kombucha. There are three flavours available in a 270ml bottle size, the flavours are: Rooibos craft kombucha with: organic beetroot, organic ginger and organic applesorganic...
Beauty by Base Alchemy
Base Alchemy is a beauty and wellness apothecary grown from naturopathic philosophies, naturally derived pure ingredients, enhancing the body and mind from within. Kobi and Jenna hand blend unique plant extracts, herbs, botanicals and earth for gorgeous skin, vitality...
Are Pollinators Facing Extinction?
By Gaby Ho Why do we need pollinators? Did you know that pollinators such as bees, wasps, beetles and birds pollinate two thirds of Australia's food crops?! Insects and bees carry pollen from one part of a plant to another to facilitate fertilisation. Without them...
Sourdough Making Class with Staple
Have you always wanted to know how to make sourdough bread? Then we have the right class for you. James Partington, the maker of the sensational and award-winning Staple bread (read more about him here), will run an exclusive Co-Op member-only class for us at a...
Ulu Hye Nut Mylk Tasting
Join us on Saturday August 31 at the Manly Co-Op and taste these unique products from Vasia's Ulu Hye Nut Mylk range. Vasia will be showcasing her different nut mylk bases and demonstrate how easy and quick it is to make your own nut mylk. A small glass jar makes up...
It’s a Journey towards Zero Waste
By Yvonne Pflieger So good to see that there is so much interest in Zero Waste Living. We had a great turn-out last Wednesday at our Zero Waste Living workshop with Keelah Lam, our own queen of zero waste. She has grown up with zero waste and has been re-living zero...
How to Make Your Own Dishmop
A dishmop is a great alternative to Chux sponges and dishcloths as well as plastic bottle brushes and they are easy to make yourself. All you need to create your own dishmop is cloth (ideally recycled like an old tshirt or towel), 1 dowel of around 30cm length, two...
Vote for Us! My Community Project Grants
We are so excited! We have been shortlisted as a My Community Project. Now it's your turn to vote for us so we can receive the funding! 🙂 Your Manly Food Co-Op has applied for $24k in the liveable communities category (to “improve the local amenity and environment”)...
Swap for Good Expo
By Yvonne Pflieger Northern Beaches Council held a Swap for Good Expo on Monday, July 1 for local businesses and organizations across the Northern Beaches who are looking for solutions to fight the War on Waste together. Craig Reucassel, known from ABC's War on Waste...
Feminine Hygiene is Changing
By Meredith Gee Even though about half of the world’s population is female, menstruation is still a relatively taboo topic. On the journey towards zero waste it is one of the hardest topics to find information about. Divacup estimates that 240 disposable pads, liners...
Plastic Free July 2019
By Yvonne Pflieger Have you signed up to Plastic Free July yet? Or have you participated before? Now is the time to get involved. This campaign was launched a few years ago by a small council team in Perth, and has expanded across the globe with millions of people...
We’re going High Tech: Your Co-Op App
We are so excited to launch our own app! And we believe we are the first food co-op to have an app in Australia! Head over to mfcapp.org to use it on your phone. No need to download anything, you can use it straight away. So what's so good about our app? You can:...
We Won – NSW Business Chamber Regional Awards
By Yvonne Pflieger How exciting is this!?! Your Co-Op has won not just one, but two Awards in the 2019 Sydney Metro Regional Business Awards, run by the NSW Chamber of Commerce. Excellence in Social Enterprise and Excellence in Sustainability Our directors Meredith,...
Meet Our Volunteers
By Roxy Jeffery Meet one of our Super Volunteers, Michael Wynne. It’s a smoke filled late afternoon in Manly due to burning off in Western Sydney. Michael appears on his bike. He secures it about half-way along the beach and suggests we walk along to what he fondly...