New Bulk Stores I am loving

You know that old expression, when one door closes, another opens? Well it came to mind when I went to my favorite shop to buy olive oil, Joie d’Olives in Pointe Claire village and found that it was closing.

I came home empty handed but with the resolve to look for a place to buy olive oil. I knew that I could go to Frenco on St-Laurent Blvd but travelling that far to get olive oil did not seem very efficient. Fortunately, I was able to find two new shops selling oils and vinegar in Lachine. The Canal du Vrac opened in 2019 with the mission to be ecological and zero waste.

It is a beautiful little shop with everything that you need to get started on your zero waste journey.

They have thought of everything. I particularly love their dental hygiene section. I have been using silk dental floss but found that it broke easily. The bamboo dental floss, with a cardboard container, is much stronger. My husband is even using it now!

Forgot to bring containers? They’ve got you covered.

As promised, they sell organic sunflower oil, olive oil (from Tunisia) and balsamic and apple cider vinegar in bulk. You can even buy tamari sauce!

Surprisingly, it can be difficult to find pasta in bulk. I was excited to see that they carry a range of pastas:

They even sell milk in bulk. The milk is from a local dairy, Chagnon, located in the Eastern townships in Waterloo, Quebec:

http://laiteriechagnon.com/en/contact.wphp

You can also buy organic eggs, feta and tofu in bulk.

I was very pleased with my visit to this friendly shop located between 9th and 10th ave. at 935 rue Notre Dame in Lachine. They are open every day.

Just two blocks over on 735 Notre Dame is the cooperative Les 3 Mats. This is a community run cafe / bulk store with very friendly personnel as well.

They also sell olive oil (from Portugal) and sunflower oil as well as 3 different vinegars:

They have a small bulk section and also sell some zero waste fabric bags, containers, feminine hygiene, bar soaps and cleaning equipment. They also carry a range of cleaning products, cleansers, lotions and detergents in bulk from the company Pure:

My husband is not a fan of the unscented laundry detergent that I have been buying in bulk so we purchased mango scented laundry detergent from Pure. The scent and cleaning meets my husband’s exacting standards (did I mention that he was the Earl of Laundry at our house?) and this is no small feat. We will be back.

By the way, I am not receiving any payment for promotion of these bulk stores, however, I know that small businesses like these need our support to survive. I hope that the fate of these stores will not be that of Joie d’Olives. I will continue to purchase products from these stores as I believe in what they are trying to achieve.

Challenge for the Week: No matter where you are, I would encourage you to support small businesses with an ecological focus such as these ones. Consequently, I would ask that you please visit and purchase from these stores or similar ones in your neighborhood. As consumers, it is important that we support businesses that meet our desire to protect the planet.