the benefits of buying local

we all like the idea of buying local - and what’s not to like? by doing so, you’re reducing the much talked about carbon footprint, and supporting local business.

and of course you can’t deny the fresher taste of food that has been picked just yesterday, but you can also count on fresh local food retaining more nutritional value.

in fact, as soon as fruit or produce items are picked, they immediately begin to lose moisture, quality and nutrition degradation, according to dr. diane barrette, a fruit and vegetable products specialist.

the journey of out-of-towner fruit and veg

the fruit and veg we see at the supermarket doesn’t come with a detailed travel itinerary for us to see, but we can guess that their voyage can range quite a bit. for example, transportation time for fruit and veg grown in the southern hemisphere for winter and spring consumption can span from either a few days if sent via air freight or several weeks if sent by refrigerated ship.

then the fruit or veg can spend a few days at a distribution centre, before spending 1 to 3 days in a retail store display.

once a consumer buys the fruit and veg, there could be up to 7 days before consumption.

these are rough estimates of course, and the food miles vary from product to product, but it does make you realize that there is more than meets the eye when it comes to your out-of-town fruit and veg.

the price of buying local

if you know where to shop, such as directly from the farmer or at some farmers markets, you can find great deals on local produce. however, you may also find that often local produce can be more expensive than food grown farther afield.

there could be several reasons for this, local crops tend to be smaller, so the farmer must cover their costs. if it is an organic farm, then the special practices will definitely push up the price.

also, food grown in the US tends to be subsidized by the US government, fertilizers are cheaper, and labour costs are lower as well.

read this article to learn more about a point of view that outlines when buying local isn’t the best solution.

next steps to eating locally

we would like to point out some great links:

www.localeating.ca

find out what’s in season in british columbia at any given month

explore bc’s farmers markets

spend an afternoon at a u-pick farm near vancouver

are we missing any great links? feel free to post them below