Did you know?: The average
meal travels 1,500 miles from the industrial farm your dinner table.
It's estimated foods imported from industrial farms produce 650 times more C02 than local foods, due to the amount of
energy used to farm, process, package, and distribute it. Eating
local foods can make you healthier, dramatically reduce your impact on
the environment, create a thriving community, and save you money, too.
Your impact: Eating local foods will not only cut back on the amount of C02 emissions, packaging, and energy used to produce your meal, it will benefit the entire community. In the mid-1980s, as industrial farms grew and high yields and excessive use of pesticides became the norm, more than 250,000 farms failed nationwide, and another 60,000 rural businesses went under. Now, local and organic farms are on the rise again as concerns about the environment and health increase. Eating foods from these farms benefits you and your health, and it supports local businesses, your neighbors, and the entire community.
How to: Most grocery stores are carrying local produce, meats, dairy goods, and more. Make sure to look at the labels, or seek out the sign for local foods. If your store doesn't carrying enough, ask that they do. Stores answer to demand.
You can also shop at your
local co-op, which carries all organic foods, much of it local. Another way to ensure that you and your family are eating local is to join a Community Supported Agriculture farm (CSA) this spring. They offer pick-up or delivery of organic food directly from local farms. You can check out these
handy tips on finding a CSA.
And finally, when eating out, be sure to ask the server what meals include locally produced foods. Stay away from chain restaurants--their food comes from all over, and the money you spend there often goes out of state. Check out places like the
Birchwood Cafe,
Common Roots,
Corner Table, May Day Cafe,
the Strip Club, and
the Craftsman, which are all great Twin Cities restaurants dedicated to serving local foods and ensuring the health of the community at large.