What is the Vegbag Scheme?
2018 marks the 20th year of the Vegbag scheme here at the University of Aberdeen. Currently operated by the Shared Planet Society, the VegBag cooperative is a volunteer run initiative to make local organic vegetables more accessible to students, staff and the wider community. We source our vegetables from Lembas Organics, a farm near Stonehaven.
How does it work?
You can place an order for a VegBag at the Corner which is open weekdays 12-2pm in the Students’ Union Building, or online through AUSA’s website. A small VegBag is £4, and a large one costs £6. The order must be placed before 4pm on Tuesday to receive the vegetables the following week.
Collection is always on Tuesdays 12-4pm in the Corner.
What’s in a Vegbag?
What is in the VegBag varies from week to week and depends on the season, but there is always a variety like beetroot, apples, kale, potatoes, squash and mushrooms. And the vegetables can have quite a different feel to supermarket veg! Carrots are muddy and come in a much wider variety of shapes and sizes. But your time that goes into cleaning them, pays off the minute you taste these delicious organic veggies! It’s recommended that you bring along your own reusable bags, to help reduce waste!
5 reasons to get a VegBag!
- Cut down on food miles! The majority of the vegetables are locally sourced so have had much lower emissions due to transport compared to the average from a supermarket. Local and seasonal food which has not travelled distances in a preserving environment and been subject to artificial ripening often tastes fresher and retains more flavour.
- Healthy body – healthy mind! We are recommended to eat at least 5 portions of fruit or veg each day, but the availability of easy snacks can make this hard. From summery smoothies to warm winter broths, there are many creative ways to get all the valuable vitamins! What will next week’s random mix of produce inspire you to make?
- No Chemicals here! All the vegetables are organic which makes them more sustainable and free from chemical pesticides and fertilizers. So they are not causing additional damage to ecosystems or human health.
- Waste not, want not! The strict criteria supermarkets have for fruit and vegetables means a lot gets wasted. But a twisted carrot and an oversized courgette will do just fine in a casserole.
- Ditch the plastic! Are you sick of unnecessary plastic trays and wrapping? Our oceans sure are! Well, with VegBag they are not included. Instead of single use plastic wrapping the vegetables are delivered in returnable crates or recyclable cardboard.
Living in Hillhead Halls? – Watch this space!
Students living in Hillhead have told us that they would like to have VegBags available closer to home! We are working on making this happen by introducing a collection point up at Hillhead. Keep your eyes peeled for our social media sites for info coming up soon!
Volunteering
We are always looking for volunteers to help run the project, if you help out for an hour on Tuesdays to sort the veg, take sign ups, run the stall or clean up afterwards, you can get a large VegBag for £4. If you have a car and can collect the vegetables, we will cover fuel costs and you’ll get a free large VegBag!
Get In Touch! (abergreen@abdn.ac.uk)
