On March 17, the residents of Brantford will have a new space to buy fresh food, Farm Boy is coming to town.
The store, which will be located on King George Road, promises to be a one-of-kind experience. Farm Boy boasts of an assortment of fresh produce, butcher quality meat, sustainable and eco-friendly seafood, artisan cheese, variety of organic dairy products, a 60-item salad bar and in-store bakery.
“What we’re going to bring to Brantford is what the customers in Brantford are lacking. They’re going to have a great fresh experience, great fresh produce, a custom butcher shop. We’re going to have the best assortment of cheese. We’re going to have a salad bar. They can get fresh sushi, custom pizzas – people are going to love it,” promises Jeff York, CEO of Farm Boy.
Stores similar to Farm Boy, such as Whole Foods Market, are often praised for their selection of high quality, organic foods, but have a notorious reputation for being increasingly expensive – and sometimes, downright unaffordable.
York assures that this is not the case with Farm Boy, “Our buyers are buying every day from everywhere, we’re constantly looking for the best quality at the best price. It’s because we’re looking consistently, every day. So we’re talking to the farmers, we’re talking to the markets, we’re all around.”
Farm Boy promises to offer high-quality food at supermarket pricing, sometimes even lower. According to a survey conducted by Field Agent Canada, Farm Boy was also voted as Canada’s favourite grocery store.
Natalie Anderson, who acts as the Healthy Lifestyles Committee Co-ordinator for Laurier Brantford, shares her opinion on what the opening of Farm Boy might mean for Laurier students, “I think some of the biggest challenges faced by students when it comes to healthy eating is the cost of healthy food and the convenience of it. Many students have low budgets and busy schedules so quick, cheaper foods often become the easiest and more popular choice.”
However, the one downside is the location of Farm Boy. For students, grocery stores such as FreshCo are much more accessible due to their proximity to campus. “I don’t personally think that many students without access to a car will go out of their way to go to Farm Boy. I would think that students who have access to a car might make the trip more often to access the foods offered by Farm Boy. The Brantford Farmer’s Market is already close by and offers some of the same foods so I think this would be a better and more convenient option to students living on campus,” says Anderson.
