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Buying Local: Options from The Heartland
Post Entry #10 | 7-23-09
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Wherever your opinions, beliefs, and daily actions lie in connection with green and environmental concerns, in food production there is much talk and buzz
about "buying local" and it's issues. Everyone's jumping into the game as consumers expect the best quality with the least damage to the environment.
In trying to achieve a healthier you and planet it can be a daunting challenge for those who really
do want to get the whole picture.
OK, so you want to keep it local, you've looked at some of the factors to consider when weighing options.
The good news is that there are new ways being developed for consumers to find "local" and for farmers to market and distribute.
We'll also look into that here.
Before we examine these new ways of discovering local options let's look at WHAT you can be getting in everyday situations. Where has your food been, how fresh is it, has it retained it's nutrients, what has it gone through on it's way to market, has it been altered genetically? Then there are the things affecting the environment in this chain which science is revealing.
Going local answers a few of these immediately. For starters some nutrients may be diminished during shipping, locally farmed foods will probably retain more of their nutritive quality by the time they land in your shopping cart. Second, local farmers can select for flavor rather than choosing varieties that are hardy enough to survive long-distance shipping. Next comes a big point, locally grown food avoids the environmental impact of trans-continental shipping. And finally buying locally is good for your local economy.
What this leaves is price point and taste, along with the environmental concerns, and here is where organic vs non- organic production methods come into play. The organic issues are everything, a huge area. We don't have time to get into all the issues here in this piece(organic food grown elsewhere over local non-organic choices), but remember this; do your research, be informed, and remember that every purchase is a vote and will have an outcome down the line. We each have an impact here, daily. Wiser choices are getting easier to make every day.
Going Local
In produce the three options are usually this: local organic, local, and organic food grown elsewhere. First off, making "local" an option has everything to do with where you live and the produce locally available at that time. It helps to have some flexibility then into your plan for when local isn't always available. An ideal for many would be of course in-season, locally grown, organic, fairtrade food. Taking a wider view then, as far as choice, it's often the rule of local organic first, local second, non-local organic third.
So let's examine local options, besides whatever can be found, if lucky, at your supermarket, a local and in-season diet can be achieved through farmer's markets, CSA (community supported agriculture), and a personal or family garden.
Farmers Markets
You see more of them all over now, farmers markets are a very popular destination for those looking into what may be the best, most direct local options. And they are getting easier to find online as well with all the information you would ever hope to need to discover. Check out the link below. Some markets are carefully managed, with strict rules for pricing, quality and vendor selection. Others are much more relaxed in their vendor criteria. While the usual emphasis is on locally-grown/produced food and crafts, some farmers' markets allow co-ops and purveyors, or allow farmers to purchase some products to resell.
But here too it helps to do your homework to know what you are really getting. Some claim to be organic and some not. For instance, how do you know what is grown organically and what is not? Find out which ones have organic produce. And if organic is important to you remember that while there are local growers around the country who say they are "organic" growers, without sufficient paperwork support, this is not convincing. Advice: Do your homework and get to know your farmer. Talk to them at the markets, maybe take some time and visit the farms if possible to learn about their practices first hand. In addition just get into some of the wonderful information in this area now on the web (web links follow). next >
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