Organic Sprouts & Microgreens

Hiring: Sprouts and micro green kitchen
Company: Salt Spring Sprouts and Mushrooms
Location: Salt Spring Island, Gulf Islands, Capital Regional District BC

Salt Spring Sprouts and Mushrooms seeks an enthusiastic individual to work in our sprout production kitchen.

Work days involve preparing our organic sprouts for farmers' markets and wholesale clients on and off island. The work takes place indoors and in a relaxed, music, conversation and podcast-infused commercial kitchen environment. You will primarily be processing and packaging sprouts into individual market units and for larger wholesale accounts, harvesting microgreens and preparing our delicious “sprout rolls” and dressings for the farmers' markets we attend. Work days typically average about 6 hours in length. We attend 3 farmers' markets per week and have wholesale clients on Salt Spring Island, in Victoria and the Cowichan Valley.

While we are not certified organic, we follow organic practices. We use certified organic seed for all our sprout and microgreens production and we do not use any pesticides, herbicides or synthesized fertilizers in our gardens. We, unrelated to our paid work, compost all of our food and yard waste, make compost teas, and use mulch to increase soil fertility in our outdoor permaculture gardens. For more than a decade we have planted and tended a wide array of both ornamental and edible trees, shrubs and plants to increase our food security, support our aesthetic vision and to nurtue an increasingly wide array of microorganisms, fungi, insects and birds. We value both people care and earth care in our approach to gardening and food production.

Specific qualities we are seeking in applicants include: positivity, ease in working with/sharing space with others, fast and efficient approach to work and being a vibrant extrovert is highly valued while working at farmers' markets. It is also advantageous to be able to perform physical tasks in the gardens like digging, pushing heavy wheel barrows and turning compost. Perhaps most importantly, folks who share a passion for health, wellness, nature, community building and homesteading will find this experience both inspiring and enriching.

We require our employees to work a minimum of one farmers' markets per month. Ample training is provided for this specific task before one would be expected to work a market on their own. A drivers license is essential in this regard. We are ideally seeking an applicant with great market presence who would like to work more markets, but competency has to be established.

Extra curricular land projects, which are totally volunteer based, may include compost-building, irrigation, cover cropping, humanure, soil building, planting, weeding, harvesting, seed-saving, etc. Opportunities abound to spend time on land projects. Investment is flexible and rests on an individual's desire to learn, explore and expand their knowledge through engagement and self-direction.

Term: We are seeking to fill this position from April 1st until the end of October, however there are opportunities to extend beyond the summer based on a check-in/review. Please do not apply if you are unable to commit to the whole term.

Hours per week: We require a minimum commitment of 3 days (approximately 18 hours) per week and 1 or more market shifts per month.

Wage: We offer a starting wage of $22/hour potentially rising to $25/hour based on a performance review after two months. The opportunity to live on a thriving permaculture homestead and learn from experienced land stewards is also a major benefit for those wishing to pursue a homesteading lifestyle.

Accommodation: We have rental space on our homestead for either a couple or an individual and can discuss the specifics during our interview.

Apply — Please respond with a little information about yourself, any relevant past experience, interests/hobbies, and why you are interested in pursuing this opportunity. Candidates need only apply if they are able to commit to the full season (April/May until the end of October). Please also provide a resume in your application. Please mention you saw this at FoodWork.ca. Apply to: sssprouts@gmail.com