It used to be that ordering from a family farm required you to take a drive down a country road.
Welcome to the present, where you can conveniently order from the farm with one fell swoop using clickfork.ca.
Chantal Lewington of Dalew Farms in Lavigne started the initiative with a team of farmers six years ago when the Eat Local Sudbury initiative stopped servicing the area.
A year later, in 2019, Chantal took over the ownership of clickfork.ca and is now the organizational lead. It’s run as a private business in partnership with a number of suppliers from the northeast region.
“It was too much back and forth requiring the separate packaging of orders and deliveries. The new concept takes out a lot of that logistical work,” she says.
Customers order their meats, produce, local coffee and other products from places like North Bay, Earlton, Azilda, Cache Bay, Lavigne, Restoule and more.
“It really spread its wings during the pandemic,” Chantal adds.
The bulk of the customers are in Sudbury and North Bay, so Click Fork offers community pick up locations, as well as direct delivery for a fee.
Here in Sudbury, the designated pick up location is at the Sudbury train station downtown, between 5 and 6 p.m every second Wednesday.
Chantal says they fill about 100 orders on a biweekly basis with the most popular items being produce and meat products.
“We even have a certified kitchen now on the farm and prepare canned goods, frozen vegetables and pre-made meals like roast beef and chicken dinners from the freezer that are available for purchase,” she adds.
Chantal wasn’t always a farm owner and the face behind Click Fork.
After growing up in Hagar, she studied to be an x-ray technologist.
The aspirations to run a family farm came in 2004, after meeting her husband Dave, who raised beef and pork with his family in southern Ontario.
Their three children are also invested in farm life. Daughter Olivia manages a flock of laying hens and sells the eggs at the farm gate and on Click Fork. Her other daughter assists with kitchen and farm chores, while their teenage son helps where he can.
She says that while there is a lot of public interest from vendors hoping to sell their product on Click Fork, she also needs to ensure there is no duplication of product.
“Our farm is also known for grass-fed and grass finished beef. People have confidence in our products and they need to vet all other products to ensure they are free and clean too,” says Chantal.
Click Fork has future expansion plans that include website upgrades and a wider northern Ontario reach.
To learn more about Click Fork, visit its website at clickfork.ca to join the mailing list.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
