If you’re like me, you can head to the store and expect to see every type of fruit imaginable any time of the year. Of course, the cost can vary greatly…but it is there.
I’ve found on more than one occasion that I’ve brought home a box of blueberries or strawberries only to find that they’ve molded within a day. A day! At that price! Are they KIDDING me?
Turns out, that fruit obviously wasn’t very fresh. In fact, the average piece of food travels about 1,500 miles from start to your plate. No wonder those berries were rotten– they were picked quite a while ago.
There’s a lot of people out there who are doing what they can to eat local. In fact, you can check out the 100 Mile Diet or the eat local challenge to learn all about finding only local food to eat. While I’m not saying that you should stop buying those apples at the store if you really want, it can’t hurt to educate yourself.
When you shop locally, you’re helping out your local farmers. You’re keeping money in your neighborhood, instead of having it shipped out to who knows where. You’re cutting back on transporting the food, which is good for the environment. Your food is fresher and you’re getting more of a variety. Sure, you can’t get those strawberries in November, but perhaps you’ll learn to enjoy a variety of other foods.
Of course, shopping local seems like an okay idea…but where do you go? In my town, the closest we have to a farm is the broccoli section at the grocery store. But, have no fear. You can search for Community Supported Agriculture at Local Harvest. CSAs are where you pay a certain fee and you have a variety of produce given to you every week (or so). You’re not going to get the same thing in December as you will in May, which is good for variety. And, of course, there’s that whole helping out the neighbor thing.
Not in the mood to hit the farm? Next time you dine out, see if you can find a restaurant that uses local ingredients.
