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As more and more Kenyans begin to adopt the organic eating trend, so are organic stores cropping up around the city. This shop in Sarit Centre solely dedicated to organic foods is all the buzz among health-savvy city dwellers.

Catherine Njiru @njiru_catherine

So, you’ve jumped into this keto or smoothie diet thing and you’re wondering where to start with this hard-to find ingredients, with preparations that need a PhD in chemistry to grasp? Well, you’re definitely not alone. This was me a few weeks ago. 

I took up this three-day detox diet I picked up from a certain social media page that had like 20 items in the ingedients list, and the items are not those everyday grains, fruits and vegetables you would easily find at your local market.

And when you do, the damage equals a whole month’s budget (exaggeration alert!), but you know what I mean.

Don’t forget the struggle of getting an actual smoothie and not some lumpy porridge that you’ll have to chew. Beats logic, because the detox diet calls for no solid food! 

After three attempts at making, especially the lunch time smoothie, which required almond milk, celery stalks, kale, apples, lime, coconut oil and pineapples, and three broke blenders later, I gave up.

A friend recommended this organic store at Sarit Centre. She told be the store had the ingredients you would need, and a juice bar! That meant I didn’t have to struggle to make smoothies anymore. 

I decide to give it a try. Saturday morning finds me in Sarit. Destination, Fresh 2 Go.  It’s a farm in the city, this one.

From the classic (carts) holding fresh farm produce to the staff spotting overalls, the store brings— you wouldn’t really call this one a farm, could we kindly, politely call a city hacienda?

Deal. In this city hacienda, customers slowly push earthy, dark-green shopping carts between aisles.

“We’re using only organic fruits and vegetables in the juices and smoothies that we make, we make fresh juice everyday and keep glass jars of it in a refrigerated case for shoppers to take on the go,” a shopping attendant gladly tells me.

Blend for free 

I’m here for some of the keto-friendly organic MCT oil (a supplement made from a type of fat called medium-chain triglycerides).

I’m here for coconut flour. I’m here for rice flour. I’m here for my smooth smoothie.

They have stocked everything one can think of from organically grown vegetables to exotic fruits, such as dragon fruit, all types of berries— goose berries and many more.

They have whole grain organic pasta. They have organic coconut crisps. Maize and rice lasagna.

Everything available here is natural. All those strange ingredients Martha Stewart uses, they have.

No matter what you’re searching for, you’re sure to find it here. I’m super impressed. From fruits, to vegetables to oils, to cereals, they have them all.

I thought an avocado would be worth a gem here, I was wrong, a kilo is even cheaper than my local market. 

I got a kilo of the green gold at Sh259. And here I was thinking organic is for; you know people who’ve omokad (had to throw in that word somewhere, ‘cause hey, FOMO in life.

The apples did look small in size, but there’s a whole lot of fresh you get from just a bite.

I don’t know how to explain this, but it’s freshness I rarely taste in the usual apples I buy.

And what’s more, the juice bar blends your smoothies for free! Of course, if you’re buying ingredients from there.