The Source Bulk Foods, Dickson

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Posted 2017-09-04 by Sue W ⇒ follow

The Source is a health food, bulk food franchise that is located in the suburb of Dickson, less than 10 minutes north of the city. After opening the first store in 2012, this popular franchise now has over 30 stores around the country. This particular Dickson outlet, at the time of writing, has only been open for less than a week but already the locals have flooded in and discovered the benefits of buying in bulk. The Source isn't the only bulk health food store in Canberra, and it is very similar to Naked Foods in Braddon, however it has a great range of organic snack foods, cooking ingredients, nuts, dried fruit, chocolate, honey, real peanut butter and much more. It also has the added benefit of having plenty of (paid) parking just a short walk from their front door, so you can pop in and out with ease.

If you love the variety of walking around a health food store - and picking as little or as much as you like - then The Source is worth exploring this weekend. Be warned however - once you start, it's hard to stop!

When you enter The Source, the first thing you notice is how airy and light the shop is, making you feel instantly comfortable in the small, wholesome space. The second thing you notice is the friendliness of the staff - as they welcome you in, explain how it works and then make themselves available if you have any further questions. The idea is easy - just browse the tubs and when you find a product you like, grab a paper bag and write down the code on the front and scoop in as much - or as little - as you like. They will then weigh it at the end. This is a particularly good feature if you just want to try a snack food, muesli, granola or cooking ingredient, to see if you like it or if it works in your recipe. If you don't have a recipe, but would like to use some of their ingredients, also check out the recipes on their website for ideas.

Although there are paper bags to use, customers are also encouraged to bring their own bags, containers and bottles to refill to reduce waste. The friendly staff behind the counter will just weigh your container on its own first, then fill away!

When walking around, it is interesting to see products that you may not have seen before at other health stores. Each product has a label with an explanation of what it is for and how you can use it. For example, banana flour is made out of Cavandish bananas and is good for pancakes - now that is worth trying!

Another popular seller and interesting product is the Organic Sprouted Pea Protein, for smoothies and shakes. Instead of using whey protein from cow's milk, they source protein from peas - making it 100% vegan. If you aren't vegan, they also sell Grass Fed Whey Protein, sourced from cows that eat grass instead of grains. If you would like any more information on these products, the staff walking around the store are very friendly and knowledgeable, helping to explain the differences in products. If you would like to learn more about what they sell and keep up with their latest products, recipes and members deals, see their Facebook for more details.

On my visit, I easily spent $20 on snacks (dried fruit, strawberry sticks, date rolls, yoghurt covered apricot muesli bars), chocolate treats for the whole family (dark chocolate covered liquorice, carob coconut rough, organic salted caramel chocolate squares, macadamia caramel fudge) and some paleo breakfast granola, to see if we liked it. Needless to say, we enjoyed everything that I took home and it all disappeared out of the pantry as quickly as it went in.

That's alright - it's just the perfect excuse to go back again...