New business brings fresh, organic microgreens to Bolton

Written By ALYSSA PARKHILL

Local business, Caledon Roots, is providing local, and fresh microgreens for the residents of the community to order online to anywhere in Bolton. 

Caledon Roots began in October of 2016 by Sarah Leslie and sister-in-law Natalie, who formed the idea and began growing her own microgreens in help further her career. Natalie works as a chef at a banquet hall. 

“She's a big believer of consuming organic products and offering them to the guests at the banquet hall, as well so her and my brother, Eric. We went through the trial and error of learning how to grow and harvest them correctly without the use of pesticides and chemicals and the banquet hall is now our biggest client, ordering from us on a weekly basis,” explained Leslie. “During this process, we realized how much potential there is for these products so they asked me to come on board to help with sales, marketing and the creation of our online ordering platform. Since our official online launch (earlier this month), we've been out delivering orders every day to local residents, banquet halls and restaurants.”

Microgreens are the smaller versions of greens and vegetables and hold an immense share of nutrition. According to Leslie, the most nutritious part of greens and vegetables are the leaves and stems before they fully sprout. The larger they grow; the less nutrients are there. 

“For example, we offer beet microgreens, so a customer will receive a miniature version of that before the actual beet grows. Our most popular product is pea shoots. They taste just like peas and are very sweet. All microgreens can be used in salads, sandwiches, smoothie, pesto's etc.,” said Leslie. 

Caledon Roots has an online shop where residents can order right off of their website, and it will be delivered right to their doorstep within that day. 

“Since we have now perfected growing organic microgreens, we decided to open a home delivery program where local residents can order from us directly online and we'll deliver right to their door at a time that is convenient for them,” Leslie explained. “Our ordering system is quite simple as we offer free same day deliveries if ordered before noon and our customers can choose a two-hour window upon checkout. Customers can also order a delivery for a future date as we have a calendar of available delivery dates and times listed on our checkout page.”

She added, “Since our launch, we have been approached by local church groups, farms and community programs asking if we can offer our products to their memberships as well. We look forward to working with each and every one of them this year.”

Living a healthy lifestyle with organic produce can be expensive and hard to find natural, and local for a decent price. For Caledon Roots, they find it important to be able to produce and sell their own grown microgreens for affordable prices that won't break the bank. 

They source their seeds for their microgreens from British Columbia and Saskatchewan, and even packaging is made within Canada, priding themselves on supporting our country any way they see possible. 

“What makes us stand out as growers compared to a supermarket is that we are harvesting our customer's orders the morning of their delivery. You simply can't get any fresher than that. Lately, we've been harvesting and packing orders 30 to 60 minutes before we head out to deliver because we want to make sure our customers are getting the best, every time,” said Leslie. “When you purchase your microgreens from a super market, your products are being handled by multiple people before it even gets to you. We are growers and packers of our own product. We are the only ones handling them from seed to your front door.”

Caledon Roots is currently holding a promotion for new customers to buy two microgreens and get one free when using code WELCOMETOCR on their website. They are continuing to grow new products and recommend the community to sign up for their email notifications to keep them informed. They are also offering ‘Grow your Own' microgreen kits in the near future so customers have the opportunity to grow their own organic microgreens in the comfort of their own home. 

For more information on Caledon Roots, please visit caledonroots.ca.