Mission, Vision, and Values

beachgreens is a mission driven company based in Long Beach, California that delivers organic and sustainably grown produce direct from local Southern California farmers to your house, apartment, or workplace in the Greater Long Beach area.

We strive to make organic and sustainably grown produce more readily and easily available in our busy lives through education of ourselves and our community, and through relationships conducted with honesty, integrity, respect, and with a commitment to sustainability.

We envision beachgreens to be a small part of a larger picture of a just and sustainable food system, where farming is a viable occupation and all have access to clean and healthy food.

We value the health of ourselves, our community, our customers, our farmers, and our employees. We value the fulfilling life created by taking the time to cook, eat, and share within our community.

History

I started beachgreens in July 2007 in an effort to make organic and sustainably grown produce direct from local farmers more readily available for the average busy person in the Long Beach area.

I grew up in Long Beach, and having recently moved back home, wanted a way to share my passion for discovering and experiencing good food. Out of necessity, my enthusiasm for healthier ways of eating started at age 15, when I was diagnosed with a chronic kidney disease, and told to watch my sodium intake. Now 15 years later, living free of kidney disease, I feel this diagnosis helped direct my path of the last few years—I studied nutrition at U.C. Berkeley, trained as a chef at the Natural Gourmet Institute in Manhattan, and recently received a Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship from the Bainbridge Graduate Institute in Seattle, a school on the forefront of teaching sustainable business practices through its MBA program.

My previous experiences include working in organic farm certification and on organic farms around the country, in restaurants, as a personal chef and caterer, and as a cooking instructor. I worked to develop our network of community and school gardens with Long Beach Organic in 2002 to 2003. Ultimate fulfillment for me comes from connecting the farm to our forks. I love cooking, I love farming and gardening—what a better idea for a business besides the intersection of the two! A start-up company delivering local organic produce seems a logical step.

My Turkish heritage deeply influences my love of food, as has traveling and living in different cities. I’ve experienced the common denominator that food is for us humans, no matter where we live or what we eat.

Opportunity

The community of Long Beach is near and dear to my heart. I feel there are many opportunities in our everyday lives to live in a way that is healthier for us, healthier for the earth, and all the while still being convenient. I am excited to introduce beachgreens as a small part of this larger picture.