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Finding Local Food in Your Community

Last week I talked about my decision not to have a garden this
year.  Well, it wasn’t exactly a decision
that I wanted to make, it was more or less made for me when I had a stupid
muscle spasm.  I realized that a lot of
people are unable to have a garden for one reason or another, and so I decided
that this year, in keeping with my theme of getting back to basics I
would search out the wonderful local offerings that are provided in my area.
When I started my local food journey eight years ago, I had
no idea where to begin.  How do you find
food grown where you live?  Can’t I just
go to the grocery store and call it good? 
Well, yes and no.

We are lucky that the grocery store local to us offers a lot
of products that are sourced in Maine.  I
wanted to go deeper though.  I wanted to
know who my farmers were.  I wanted to
see their farms; I wanted to be able to ask them questions.
The first place that I turned to was Local Harvest.
This website has so much wonderful information.  You can find farms, farmers’ markets, co-ops,
CSA’s (community supported agriculture), and everything in between.
I absolutely love Farmers’ Markets.  They are a wonderful place to build
relationships with your community, as well as with the farmers that provide the
food.  It doesn’t hurt that it is a
positive economic experience for your community.
Keeping those dollars in your community is so important, especially
with the nature of the economy today. 
For every dollar that you spend at a local business (farmer or otherwise),
68% stays in the community, whereas at a non-local store only 43% stays in the
community.
Why so much emphasis
on local?  What about organic?
I’m glad you asked! 
The thing about organic is, it is still a large scale operation and
certified by the USDA.  Do I think
organic is wrong?  Absolutely not!  But, I do think that most people don’t really
understand all the information that comes attached to that “certified organic”
label.
The top of my list is that it is very difficult and
incredibly expensive for a small farm to get an organic certification.  The red tape that is involved is lengthy, and
it is usually cost prohibitive for small farms to even bother trying.  I know that a lot of the farms that we buy
from are not certified organic, but they use methods that are organic.  They rotate where they plant different
vegetables, they use compost from their own farm to add nutrients back into the
ground, they don’t spray pesticides, but they are still not “certified
organic.”
I always choose local first, because then I can talk to the
farmer, find out if what their farm is doing matches up with my concerns, and I
am even able to visit the farm if I want.
Now, I do still buy organic. 
I’m not saying to not buy organic, but you need to know what you are
buying.  A lot of people associate
organic with no chemicals, but that isn’t the case, there is an approved list
of chemicals that organic farmers can use on their plants.  Also, there is an entire list of non-organic
substances that can be included in the organic label.  It is all about educating yourself!
Now that I have gone on an entire tangent about organic
food, let us get back to local!
If you don’t have any local farmers’ markets or CSA’s
available in your area, the next best thing to do would be to try and start
some sort of bulk buying club with some other families or people in your
area.  You can often find great options
for local food, but maybe there isn’t a way to get the local food to the
people.  Of course, this takes a lot of
leg work, and can be incredibly time consuming, but if you are passionate about
local food, and are unable to start with your own back yard, a bulk buying club
is a great idea.
Local food has come a long way in the last five years.  New farmers’ markets are springing up every
year, and I think it is wonderful for the communities that are lucky enough to
have one.  I believe that good food helps
to build a community, and it can be the backbone of yours as well. 

Do you support local
farms?  Are you a member of a CSA or do
you attend a farmers’ market regularly?  

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5 Comments

  1. I like to go to the farmer's market, too, not as much as I would like but we're trying to shop there more. Luckily, my city is opening more so now we're having more access to them. I like how you explained the difference with what organic really means, I think many people do have a misunderstanding of what it is. Great post!

  2. There are many apple and peach farms near me, and it is always puzzling to go to the grocery store and see peaches and apples from thousands of miles away and none local. I like to shop the produce stand first. I just don't understand the mentality of the big stores.

  3. I really enjoyed reading your blog today and I agree … I love buying local and we go to a local farm stand all summer long and also go to our local farmer's market here in Waterville every Thursday when they come to town. There is such a wonderful feeling when you know that all of what you are purchasing was grown right here in Maine and locally so you can visit the farms too. It's great to help build our small communities and especially to buy fresh to help our local farmers who work so hard. I gave up on gardening a couple of years ago also … just couldn't keep up with the critters … they liked our flowers and veggies so much that they usually got to them first before we did. It became futile just planting a garden with all the hard work just so the deer could have a salad bar. Thank you for your great post. I am of the same mind on buying local.

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