Living in Ottawa, how can I get a hold of some powdered vegetables?

October 9, 2007 8:18 PM

Living in Ottawa, how can I get a hold of some powdered vegetables?

How can an individual living in Ottawa (Ontario), get ahold of some powdered vegetables? I'm thinking in the kilogram(s) range. It can be ordered from the internet if the price is right - no more than $14 a kilo or so for carrots, say. I'm looking for broccoli, carrot, spinach, kale, sweet peppers, lima beans, tomatoes, green beans, celery, asparagus, and maybe squash, yam, collard greens, mustard greens.

You can see on alibaba.com they are certainly traded on an industrial scale regularly, but I've looked all around and called all around to herb and spice, bulk barn... almost nothing. Bonus points for powdered fruit too, citrus, mango, peach, papaya....

posted by Nish ton to food & drink (5 comments total)

Forgive me for interrupting, but for what in the world would you need powdered vegetables?

I didn't even know such a thing existed!
posted by TheNewWazoo at 5:26 AM on October 10, 2007

I have no idea where you might get them, but it's possible that Rainbow Foods might be a more likely source than either H&S or Bulk Barn. If you haven't already tried them, it might be worth a phone call.
posted by valleys at 5:41 AM on October 10, 2007

Freeze-dried foods are commonly sold at camping supplies stores. Try any of the stores listed here. (Wazoo: anything to lighten the backpack.)
posted by beagle at 5:42 AM on October 10, 2007

Buy a dehydrator at Crappy Tire or Evilmart. Make your own dried vegetables. Throw them into a food processor until they're powdered. Much less expensive to make than anything you could buy, and you'll know what's in it.

On re-reading, it won't churn out the volume you need without a lot of work and time, but it would be effective for pretty much anyone else. Sorry, I don't have any other suggestions for your particular case.
posted by Chuckles McLaughy du Haha, the depressed clown at 6:25 AM on October 10, 2007

Beagle, I've looked into freeze dried stuff, but it is always very expensive. Freeze drying takes a long time too, so it isn't just markup.

Chuckles, maybe I should have mentioned this, I'm seeing on indiamart.com and alibaba that "spray dried" vegetables are actually a lot cheaper than fresh.... it's just a matter of finding a retailer that doesn't require me to buy it by the ton. Like dried milk powder and concentrated orange juice, the transportation and handling costs are much lower. In fact, it's the same method used to dry milk.
posted by Nish ton at 12:03 PM on October 10, 2007