Terra Madre

Looking for organic products at bulk prices but with the ability to purchase those products in even the smallest amounts in recycled paper bags? This is exactly what terra Madre does best. Their walls covered in dispensers of fill it yourself bulk ingredients or grind it yourself peanut butter is my absolute favourite! They also stock a ton of packaged health products and many of them being locally sourced.
With a recipe in one hand and basket in the other, I can purchase all the ingredients to the recipe to the gram and not have to worry about wastage or having to stock things at home.
The only downside is it can get SUPER popular and packed writhing it’s right hallways but if you can manage to avoid the peak times it is a delight of discovery.
Terra Madre also has a large selection of personal care products, herbal medicines and educated staff meme bets who are available to help you with any needs you have.
It truly is a treat!

I have never seen something like this in Australia. There are so many great overseas cookbooks that call for ingredients that most health food stores don’t have or don’t know about.
The staff are super friendly and look healthy. I liked that they did there own brand of canned beans for only 99 cents! What a bargain. I wish it was a little closer to my house but if I am in the area again I’m definitely stopping in.
I like to experiment with cooking and they had so many grains and spices I had never heard of. What a special unique place, support them.

A health food store that has a massive variety of organic products even fresh fruit and vegetables that are purchased daily! It is a lot more affordable to get organic products here then at a regular super market. Only ever been once but i will return for its many unique products. It seemed very busy and seemed that most people there where regulars whichi is always a good sign.

Step into organic foodie heaven! And be ready to squeeze, duck and side step your way through hundreds of other incredibly cool Melbourne north-​side hipster foodies. This is by far THE BEST organic health food store in Melbourne. How they pack so much into their seemingly tiny store, I’ll never understand. It’s a little overwhelming at first — I instantly felt five years old again — everywhere I looked I thought ‘I want that, I want that’, as my eyes bulged out of my head. After some calming down and adjusting, I found that I could make my way through, slowly, slowly, filling my basket with literally everything I needed! About five minutes in, I’d already acknowledged the fact that I’d be walking out with a much lighter purse, but what I found was gold! Dozens of hand-​made muselis to buy in bulk, decadent vegan coconut ice creams and desserts, organic fruit and veg, more raw chocolate and food bars than I ever knew existed, every kind of cheese that’s ever been made, spices, herbs, vitamins, I could go on. Just go. Take some $$$ with you and go! Every Melbournian needs to experience Terra Madre for themselves!

Whilst Terra Madre excels at providing a store full of excellent products, it also seems to have a penchant for its indirect biased and prejudiced hiring policy of staff. It’s in directly discriminative in that the owner or hiring person deliberately seeks to hire only young attractive females. Not that I have an issue of this per-​se, in facts it’s welcoming but when the choice is made on a hiring policy as opposed to the individual merits of each staffer, it’s not exactly what one may define as liberation, equality or empowerment. I’m happy for the gender imbalance reversal, but not sure on it’s motives.
Now moving on to some reasonable advice; shopping baskets are outside on the street level before you enter the store. If you’re so inclined to find yourself here on a weekend morning, which after some reflection, is an immediate mistake and oversight, you better know what you’re looking for. If not prepare to be swamped, inundated, overwhelmed, frazzled, and confused by the sheer number of customers, slowly pushing the inside of the store to over capacity, and most likely several violations of health and safety.
Shopping here is more like a boxing match; you’re constantly having to duck, weave, dodge and back peddle around the inordinate number of shoppers surrounding you. If you would like to closely inspect any of the shelves to give yourself a faint idea of what to buy, or what they stock be vigilant. You will find yourself competing with crowds of people trying to get past, blocking your way, standing directly beside you, or to the side, and generally grabbing stuff off shelves in arbitrary manner, at eye level.
Walking through the shop provides the same level of dodging people clogging the store.
Overall, Terra madre is an excellent store, with great qaulity produce and a fine selection of groceries. It’s probably best to visit here when it’s a little quieter to full appreciate, the scale of the store, and get a better sense of what it has to offer. Also your shopping will be completed in much less stress environment, allowing you to make selections are fully appreciate the store. It’s a great place, if not a teeny bit too busy on weekends.

It’s always interesting to compare the health of customers shopping at a health food store with those shopping at the chemist. The one’s shopping at Terra Madre all seem to have a healthy glow and vibrant energy that only comes from being naturally healthy. Something those that shop at the chemist and fast food outlets lack.
They have an amazing range of everything healthy and you have to explore every side corridor, nook and cranny to find everything. It’s a bit of a labrynth but take your time exploring and you might be rewarded by chocolate coated almonds or gohi berries mixed in with cocoa nibs.
I have also found the staff knowledgable and friendly and happy to answer questions about your specific dietry requirements. I was chasing unpasteurised goats mils and the staff were happy to explain when they could get if and which brand had it.
So do yourself a favour and grab the 86 tram which stops half a block away and get to Terra Madre to do your weekly shopping and start feeling good again.

Terra Madre formerly known as Fruit Pedders is an amazing whole food store with a cult like following… and i’m drinking the Kool-Aid…or is that Raw and Organic Kombucha? What’s so special about this place? Well the products are so well sourced for one, with the owner building relationships to support small local producers. The staff are qualified Natropaths and friendly folk as well but the clincher is the prices!
I have done some covert comparisons all over town and overall it’s cheaper at Terra Madre. A favourite haloumi of mine was double the price at a popular store only a few suburbs over. I love to buy organic produce and ethically produced meat but the sticker shock can make you mull over the possible nutritional benefits of Spam. When in doubt hit up the bulk room. Less packaging, lest waste = more nuts, grains and raw chocolate for your buck.

Convenient organics and whole foods? Does that even exist? This place has it down to a science.
Living in this area for a while, I remember when this shop was half its current size and was generally filled with fresh produce and a scattering of healthy breads, cheeses, and proteins, along with a small but comprehensive selection of health and beauty products. Its now evolved into a true one stop shop with selection and prices that actually compete with the Australian supermarket duplicity. It’s definitely not the place if you’re after packaged or prepared foods or want to spend the bare minimum on food, but if you want the makings of a tasty and thoughtful meal prepared at home, it’s really hard to beat. Especially due to its convenient location thats pretty easy to get to if you’re a local either on foot, on tram or in a car.
My go to products that I seek out every week:
–fresh baked bread, most of which is made within about 100 km
–seasonal produce including well stocked herbs, sprouts, and greens
–sustainable canned fish and a wide selection of organic beans, sauces, and condiments
–flours of any variety (quinoa, chickpea, coconut, etc.) and bulk grains, nuts, dried fruit, and pulses
–yogurts and cheese, many made within the state
–environmentally and health conscious beauty products
I’m always amazed at the range of products they squeeze into this shop… well I’m amazed until I have to get a game face on to navigate the shop and get to the cashier. It’s very tightly packed and often very busy, so prepare yourself for this and be aware of your fellow shoppers. They could use another expansion to be honest, with the growth they have seen in the last 18 months or so. Even though it’s hard to linger in the shop to really check everything out and at times I feel I have to rush in and out, I can’t see myself going anywhere else to start my weekly shop.

This is the best priced an most comprehensively-​stocked organic shop I have ever been to. They have everything health & environmentally conscious people could possibly want. Highly recommended!

I have such a hard-​on for this little organic health food store I recently discovered upon moving to Melbourne. For all you happy health beans out there that love your nutrient rich meals, snacks, supplements or those plagued by gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance. bla bla bla you know the drill — you may have just found your wet dream coming to life.
Organic fruits and veggies, interesting and yummy health snacks (my new fav discovery — organic corn chips with flax seeds), freshly baked goods, organic/​natural beauty products and perhaps one of the best gluten and yeast free rice breads I’ve ever found — if you served this to me in a café i wouldn’t even be able to tell it was gluten free.
My favourite was the little dispensary area with herbs and tea supplements. Having recently had a few little stomach problems I was helped by the loveliest shop assistant who was in the midst of finishing her degree in some sort of natural therapy and was hence well informed. After a little chat she threw together a little bunch of herbs and made up a little bag of tea for me to take home. Bliss.
Prices as always with organic and health food products are a touch higher than average. However, with that said there were a few things that I actually found cheaper that what I’d pay at Coles including avocados, bok choy, spinach and the odd gourmet organic cracker snack which I’ve seen for at least a $ 1 more at certain delis.
Everything here is done with a little touch of love… wooden baskets at the entry to shop with, no plastic bags (they offer you a cardboard box to take your groceries in if you haven’t brought your own sustainable bag).
Suffice to say, The Fruit Peddaller and I are officially «in a relationship».

Excellent shop, and absolutely packed to the rafters with all kinds of items including fresh fruit (go figure they’re not called the Fruit Peddaller for nothing!!) body care products, homeopathic herbs, veggies, teas, supplements and juices.
I found their resident homepath very helpful. She made some helpful suggestions when I came in with a minor health concern (and didn’t want to go with antibiotics.) After suggesting a few different herbs, she quickly whipped up a mix for tea, and rang me up for all of my items on the spot so I didn’t have to wait in the queue.
Excellent customer service, good hours (helpful they are open later in the evenings on weekends!), good location for driving or public transport.

There is something weird about this place. The vibe seeping out of the Fruit Peddler on High Street is some major weird juju. It puts you on edge as you pass, but your eyes let you know all about the magical wares they have, so you better yourself to have a proper look inside.
The Fruit Pedallers brings you a unique blend of Healing and Organic Whole Foods. As well a fruit — the name states — you’ll find a great selection of bread and naturopathic remedies. Organic fruit & vegetables, groceries, good for your body & baby products, fair trade chocolate & many other surprises…
By now the juju has you feeling even weirder so you collect your things to pay for them.
Then you discover the premium on the products as they scan. But you’ve gone too far now and all you want to do is leave the shop. So you do, premium quality goods under arm and juju chasing you down the street.

This place is busy.
It’s packed full of organic wholefoods and plenty of healthy solutions on how to live your life in a more natural way.
First, let’s focus on the grocery store side of it. They have a solid gluten free section and up the back you can fill your own bags with rice/​museli/​stuff
These guys like healthy bodies and that means surrounding/​inserting healthy things into your body (like eating fruit, you dirty thing).
So they provide daily solutions to help you get yourself back on track or keep yourself on track. They don’t just stock healthy either, they stock healthy bad things, like organic chocolate. So if you’re going eat something bad, make it bad/​healthy/​natural.
Everyone also knows that healthy living means living clean too. So while you’re there you may as well pick up some healthy ways to keep your house clean. There’s plenty up the back, no matter what you’re trying to remove (admittedly I didn’t check if ‘blood stains were there).
I bet you also didn’t think about the glad wrap and al foil you use. You got it, they have the stuff made from recycled plastics and metals. That kind of disposable thing ought to be greener, and they’re on the ball. Perhaps all of this isn’t enough; good thing there’s a clinic offering naturopathy, massage, reflexology, aromatherapy, kinesiology and acupuncture. I haven’t had the chance to check this side of the store out but these guys are already full of goodness and the staff full of ways to get your body bangin so I feel like you would be in good hands here.

I love the Fruit Pedallers. It is a little bit like a little rabbit warren with lots of nooks and crannies to find yummy tidbits of organic produce. It can be hard to find exactly what you need if you are after something specific, as the shop is not laid out in a methodical manner, but for me this makes the shopping experience all the more enjoyable.
Sometimes I think the staff at the Fruit Pedallers must think I’m a little fruity myself, when I spend hours browsing the shop only to come up to the counter with a bottle of milk and a cucumber, for example.
Up until recently their fresh fruit and veg have been very very expensive. But with a recent change to their buying strategy, they have dropped prices significantly. Yay! Now we can all eat more organic food. Who knows I may even come up to the counter with a cucumber and a head of brocolli.
They also have naturopaths on staff — where you can get some free advice (as long as you buy their awful tasting herbal mixtures of course) on your lingering cold etc.

The Fruit Pedallers is a ditty little health food shop on Westgarth’s High Street selling all manner of organic whole foods alongside natural therapies such as naturopathy, homeopathy, massage, reflexology, aromatherapy, kinesiology, art therapy, acupuncture and more besides.
In foodie slash health conscious Melbourne, where organic food stores are ostensibly a dime a dozen, The Fruit Pedallers is notable for its friendliness and excellent range of herbs and vitamins alongside fresh organic fruit and vegetables and a ruddy good selection of organic and fair trade chocolate.
Its staff are helpful and extremely knowledgeable and although The Fruit Pedallers can be a little dearer than its competitors, this little Westgarth health food haunt is a local favourite, and with good reason.
The Fruit Pedallers is a particularly good health food store to visit if you’re in the market for vitamins or supplements and don’t quite know what you’re looking for. Excellent all round.