"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world."*

Our Food, Our Environment, Our Community

The following was presented by the Food & Gardening Interest Group at the June 24, 2007, Green Gatherings meeting in Brookfield.

Since 1961, the tonnage of food shipped between nations has grown by 400%. In the United States, food typically travels 1,500-2,500 miles before it arrives at someone’s table. This is 25% farther than the same food would have traveled in 1980.

This international movement of food is changing social, environmental, cultural, and economic conditions around the globe. It has a direct effect on the freshness, quality, and variety of the food we eat. It is also having an impact on global climate.

Is buying local all that counts? Most organizations support buying foods that are not just local but also produced by small farms in a sustainable way.

What is local? Some people say that a good definition of “local” is anything grown within 50 miles, others say 100 miles. Another definition is "within a day's leisurely drive of our homes.”

Why buy locally grown, sustainably grown foods from small farms?

Improve the quality and variety of the food you eat
  • Fresh fruits and vegetables from local farms taste good, are nutritious, and keep well.
  • When foods go directly from farm to table, they are less likely to be treated with products to keep them looking fresh and prevent spoiling.
  • Eating simple, unprocessed foods, especially fruits and vegetables, is healthier.
  • Eating local foods in season encourages us to vary our diet from season to season, helps us to appreciate foods when they become available, reminds us of our connection to nature.
  • Varieties of fruits and vegetables that can be grown by small farmers may taste better than the varieties that can be shipped long distances to supermarkets. Farmers who grow unusual varieties of foods are helping to protect the genetic diversity of our food supply.
  • Small farmers generally eat the foods they grow and give them to their families, so they have a personal reason to be concerned about the healthfulness of the food they produce.

Help the environment and protect workers

  • Small farmers typically try to be good stewards of their land.
  • Foods grown in North America are produced according to North American health and safety standards, with protections for workers that may not exist in other countries.
  • When farmers sell direct to the public, they generally use minimal packaging.
  • Small meat producers often pasture or “free range” their animals and allow them to eat a more natural diet. This is good for the animals and for the environment.

Help prevent global climate change

  • A study in Iowa found that increasing local foods consumed by just 10% could save hundreds of thousands of gallons of fuel per year and reduce and carbon emissions by millions of pounds.
  • A British study found that farms avoiding both chemical pesticides and artificial fertilizers use 50% less energy than non-organic farms to produce the same amount of food.
  • When farmers invest in improved soil, they help to prevent climate change because rich, organic soils store more carbon than depleted soils do.

Build community

  • Get to know local farmers, local landscapes, local land-use issues.
  • Get to know neighbors at farmers’ market and through community-shared agriculture.
  • By eating local foods in season, create and preserve unique local traditions.

Support rural economies

  • The number of small Canadian farms declined more than 10% in 5 years from 2001-2006.
  • Farmers who sell through conventional means get an estimated 4-18 cents out of every dollar. When farmers sell direct , they keep an estimated 80-90 cents out of every dollar spent.
  • A British study found that money spent at a local food business was worth almost twice as much to the local community as the same money spent at a supermarket chain.

What can consumers do?
In February 2007, the Women’s Institutes of Nova Scotia issued a report on the importance of consuming local foods. The WI Buy Local Challenge asked participants to do the following:

  • Eat at least two meals per week that use mainly local ingredients.
  • Learn to enjoy at least one local ingredient that you’ve never tried before.
  • Talk to at least one food retailer and one food producer about local food choices.
  • Choose local food products whenever possible.

Some additional suggestions:

  • Consider joining a Community Shared Agriculture program.
  • Visit local farms and buy directly from them.
  • Visit farmers’ markets and buy from local farmers. Locally, we have farmers markets on Saturday mornings in Truro and Upper Stewiacke.
  • Consider growing your own fruits and vegetables, using sustainable methods.
  • Practice cooking and eating seasonal recipes.
  • If you don’t want to “eat local” in the winter, try to do so during the growing season.
  • Learn about issues in food production and ask questions about how your food is being produced.
  • Encourage restaurant owners to buy local foods.
  • Visit SeaChoice to learn how to choose sustainable seafood.

Resources

More organizations worth knowing about

Sources:

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