Locavore

I just got done reading the book "Animal Vegetable Miracle" by Barbara Kingslover.
The book is a memoir of an entire year of her family eating locally. I won't go into too much detail. I would just say if you are interested then I would highly recommend reading the book.
When I started reading this book back in February I wasn't sure where I would be living now. At some point I realized that they were living right down the road from me. I was pretty jazzed at the thought that I would be living in an area that was full of fresh, organic, local food. I continued to read the books in hopes that I would get inspired and obtain ideas of how it was possible to eat locally all year.
She grew a lot of her own fruits and vegetables. She also had laying hens, chickens, and turkeys. They were able to find cattle ranchers to get grass fed beef. Non-CAFO beef... don't get me started on that. She canned all through the growing season and bought tubers in bulk. They frequented the local farmers. She also learned how to make her own cheese. Yum.
So I had to sit and ponder what could I do to make my diet more local.
First off I decided to grow some veggies and herbs in a container garden.
I am watching all the produce I buy at the grocery to find a vendor called "Appalachian Harvest" (a local distributor of organic produce). I found the local farmer's market, which we already visited once. Stocking up on farm fresh eggs, peanut butter, local wine, pickled dill beans, and homemade English muffins. Further into the summer we will be able to get vegetables too.
Meal planning will reduce my wasteful eating. The more you plan the better you eat. That is a fact that has to be proven by some study somewhere. If I know what I'm eating every night and have all the ingredients then I am less likely to pick up a box of mac and cheese.
I'm still looking for more ideas of ways to eat local and improve my nutrition.


Why is eating local so important?

Well there are many reasons but here are a few I can think of off the top of my head.

Number one think of yourself. Eating local is healthier. You are more likely to know where the food comes from. Trust factor. Quality control is better if the farmer is your neighbor. May be more likely to be organic, especially in my area. The fresher the fruits or vegetables the more nutrients exist in them. Same reason that its better to let the foods ripen in the sun.

Next is better for the environment. Yeah I'm not trying to be some Al Gore person or anything. But anytime you can help reduce the amount of fuel used to transport your foods the better it is for mother Earth. I used to think it was cool to get ramen noodles straight from Japan. Now the thoughts of how ridiculously long those salty noodles had to travel makes me gag.

Also it's better for the economy. Especially the local economy. Buying local supports the farmers directly. I'm all for helping the people actually producing the food that I'm eating.

I suppose I am done with my rant/lecture for now. Enjoy the night all.