Eating Local Resources

Making a decision to buy and eat locally grown foods has many effects on the individual, the environment, and the economy. Eating locally means eating seasonally; this equates to the most intense and natural flavors of foods! It also leads to a real appreciation for the source of your food. Foods are not trucked in from distant places, an environmental plus. And eating locally lends direct financial support to community farms and ranches.

But how does one get started eating locally?
Here are some websites for locating your nearest options:

http://www.localharvest.org/ The site allows users access to all things local, from farmer’s markets to restaurants and grocery stores. It also provides informational resources on local family farms.

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/ams.fetchTemplateData.do?template=TemplateC&navID=FarmersMarkets&rightNav1=FarmersMarkets&topNav=&leftNav=WholesaleandFarmersMarkets&page=WFMFarmersMarketsHome&description=Farmers%20Markets&acct=frmrdirmkt Okay, this is quite the link, but one worth looking at! This website, from the USDA, provides general information and history about farmer’s markets. The site also has a fairly comprehensively list of farmer’s markets. You should definitely check it out!

http://www.biodynamics.com/csa.html So, what are CSA’s? CSA’s aka Community Supported Agriculture consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes the community's farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production. Typically, members or "share-holders" of the farm or garden pledge in advance to cover the anticipated costs of the farm operation and farmer's salary. In return, they receive shares in the farm's bounty throughout the growing season, as well as satisfaction gained from reconnecting to the land and participating directly in food production. This may be a great idea for someone that wants to eat locally, but doesn’t want to do the dirty work, so to speak!