The twin global crises – fuel and food. Its evident that the closer to home we ‘harvest,’ the less fuel is needed to feed us. Side effects of local consumption include feeling better about eating fresh food and contributing to a local economy.
Local is the new black. So, for your educational pleasure, here’s a roundup of local food resources on the Web (and off), from one student to many:
Online – get first hand accounts, and a lot of tips
- Blogs of note – all make the case for sustainable, local consumption, and offer tips for urban and rural dwellers: Eat Local Challenge blog, Local Food Blog, Slow Food USA Blog, Eat.Drink.Better.
- Sustainable Table offers an impressive Eat Well Guide. Enter your zipcode and find local farmers markets (there are 60 within 20 miles of D.C.), co-ops, restaurants, CSAs, a seasonal food guide and more.
- Local community sites and recipes: A quick search will connect you with resources designated for your geographic area. No one-size-fits all formula for local eating, of course. (Still, it would be nice if Whole Foods partnered with Sustainable Table or Slow Food to created ‘the USA Guide for seasonal foods and recipes by region.’ This doesn’t cut it.)
Offline – get out your glasses
- Recommended Reading: Animal Vegetable Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. Consider the loss of food culture in America. We can get anything we want, any time from any where. This book helps restores our roots. Kingsolver’s website features stories of people trying to “do it locally,” and resources for the average eater. (Image credit: animalvegetablemiracle.com)
- Next on my personal list: The Omnivore’s Dilemma (already on the nightstand) and Everything I Want To Do Is Illegal: War Stories From the Local Food Front.
- Go see Wall-E. Pixar’s new kiddie call to arms (“save earth” meets “fat is bad”) practically guarantees that kids are now going to pester their parents about the quantity and types of food being consumed at the table (or on the sofa).
In person – get out your cane
Local Farmers Markets – my Sunday mornings this Spring and Summer have been given over to the local market in Dupont Circle. Freshness abounds. I stick to produce (and the Maryland crab cakes), but pastries, dairy and meat products are all available. And everything is so pretty. Find your market. (Image credit: melissamccart.)- Restaurants: Check out that Eat Well Guide listed above to discover eateries-near-you that serve local products.
Don’t Forget to Give it Away: We can do our part by changing personal habits and looking out for our neighbors.
- Locally: America’s Second Harvest can help you find your local food bank. Slow Food is rallying donations to Midwest farmers who lost their livelihood to the floods.
- Globally: Foot riots are battering disparate nations across Africa and Southeast Asia, and the price of rice has skyrocketed globally. A mother in Haiti has to pay $1.35 for a can of rice (up from 40 cents), when her family only makes $2/day. GlobalGiving can take your dollars to Haiti.
Do you pay more to eat locally? Maybe up front, on a monetary basis. But the long run, you’re getting – and giving – exactly what you pay for.
Great post. I’d also recommend Eastern Market for DC-area folks and, in Alexandria, there’s a farmer’s market on King St just outside the Town Hall.
As with most of the farmers markets, you have to get there pretty early to get the good stuff.
Thanks Irfan.
I haven’t seen much by way of social media-driven communities of people who are exploring this area. There seems to be a big opportunity here. Think of the vast numbers of foodie bloggers and communities out there. What if it was created by a bigger brand, like Whole Foods, per my earlier remark? It takes CSR to a whole new level.