Buy Locally Grown Food
This fall, go eco crazy-learn the lingo, shop local, eat in season and dine in your garden with these great tips!
Going green isn’t just good for the environment; it’s good for your body. Natural, free range, organic -these are all terms you need to understand if you are to feed your body the nutrients it needs to look and feel its best. By supporting local producers of fruits, vegetables and meats, you support your local economy and provide your family with the freshest choices. The more you know about what’s real and what’s not, the more you’ll come over to the green side.
Buy Locally Grown Food
A great and inexpensive day trip with the kids or friends is to head out to an organic farm. See how the fruits and veggies grown there can benefit our environment. The added bonus – fresh and local tastes better!
Why Buying Local is Important
Did you know the average distance that food travels from pasture to plate ranges from 1,200 to 2,500 miles? Furthermore, that may only be within our borders! Extra energy is used to freeze and refrigerate that food, and energy is used to transport it all those miles. If you really want to take a bite out of the energy expended between you and your food, eat locally. Locally grown means that your food was grown no more than 250 miles away.
Not only does the food taste better, but there’s the added bonus of higher nutrition value-fresh fruits and vegetables have more vitamin content than older produce. Consider how much time is needed to drive 2000 miles and know that vitamins are depleted with each day that passes from the time the fruit and vegetables have been picked. Keep in mind that weaker environmental and control standards may exist in some foreign countries.
Look For Organic
Even local farms may use synthetic fertilizers (petroleum-based), sewage waste (including human feces) and chemical pesticides. Smaller family-run farms tend to be more environmentally conscious than factory farms when it comes to dousing their land with chemicals. Look for the organic certification label, unless you know the farm and feel confident that they are farming the old fashioned way.
In summary Shop for locally grown food-it supports our farmers, reduces energy and you get fresher, more flavorful and more nutritious produce, meats and dairy products.
