Of course, it is always preferable to buy locally grown, organic produce—the best of both worlds. But, many of us have been faced with the dilemma of choosing between the conventionally grown apple from the next town and the organically grown apple from the next continent. While organically grown foods are free of the usual pesticides and other residues found on conventionally grown produce, local fruits and vegetables retain more of their nutritional value on their shorter voyage to your dinner table and this short commute is better for the environment. And, with all of the current political positioning as to what can and what cannot be labeled “certified organic,” local foods are a known quantity and growing in popularity. In fact, the joy of shopping at a local food cooperative or farmers’ market is that the farmer is usually accessible for questions about his/her specific agricultural practices and to meet & greet the customers which means a more personal experience for the consumer. At Bambú Clinic, the docs do support the local food movement, even over the organic food movement.
The reasons for this preference are varied and include ideas related to sustainability, nutrition, taste, and economical rationale. In other words, by eating local foods you will be taking care of the environment and the economy and your foods will taste better and nourish you more completely. Jennifer Maiser has written a terrific article entitled “10 Reasons to Eat Local Food” which more specifically lists the benefits of this choice.
To learn more about the local food movement, read on…
Coming Home to Eat by Gary Paul Nabhan
One Phoenix man commits to limiting his diet to only those things which can be produced within a 250 mile radius of his home. This book documents his experience.
This Organic Life by Joan Dye Gussow
A lovingly written look at the current food marketplace and the inherent irony in a food production system that makes it more affordable for Northeasterners to buy food shipped in from California than to buy food from their own home states.