Any locavores, or aspiring ones?

**zazenist** · 02-17-2008, 01:01 PM

I have to say that at this point I'm more aspiring, trying to move towards eating foods sourced locally as often as possible. http://www.locavores.com defines this as eating food sourced within 100 miles of your location. I think it's a great idea and obviously good for the environment, but it's tough - especially in the wintertime here in KY when there really isn't much locally grown produce available. But I'm going to try. Anyone else doing this? Do you have any tips?

**perSue** · 02-17-2008, 02:48 PM

i try to do this as much as possible - but it seems to only happen during spring through fall. winter is kinda out up here, since most produce is imported from the south.
however, for the most part, there are green houses around that local grocers buy from (and the GH's only sell to grocer's

), so it's at least a little better.

i also think most people do this w/out knowing or thinking about it.
most grocer's DO support local farmers and growers, therefore end up buying locally.

and within our community we all grow different foods. i live in a condo community and many of us have our little gardens and are fave or specialty veggies/fruits we grow - so we exchange them.

**contessa20** · 02-18-2008, 08:23 AM

Here's a great website for looking up organic manufacturers within 100 miles of your zip. I discovered that a lot more things than I thought were made within 100 miles of my home.

http://www.theorganicpages.com/topo/zipsearch.html

**zazenist** · 02-18-2008, 11:14 AM

Contessa! Thanks for the link - that's a great one and very helpful. I think the biggest thing is that so many of the (especially) fruits I like aren't grown locally. Bananas, pineapple, a lot of the more exotic ingredients we get for making Asian dishes... Our local co-op has a great selection of locally grown produce, with decent veggies even in the winter. Going 100% would definitely be a bit of a sacrifice if you're a global eater (like me), who does a lot of shopping in the international import grocery stores. So right now, I'm thinking anything that I can give up that's not locally sourced is progress!

**StaceyS** · 02-18-2008, 11:50 AM

I'm definately an aspiring one! I love to grow my own food, but don't have much space. I'm also trying to figure out substitutes for things like flour. I can buy local masa, so I'm learning to make corn tortilla and chips instead of bread and crackers. It's difficult. One great note - My favorite beer is brewed with in the 100 mile limit!

**contessa20** · 02-18-2008, 12:21 PM

Originally Posted by StaceyS

One great note - My favorite beer is brewed with in the 100 mile limit!

That's awesome!
We've discovered that there is an organic cocoa processing plant less than 1/2 mile from our house, Herr's potato chip factory within 20 miles and the Hershey's chocolate factory within about 35 miles. We're definitely covered in the junk food department

but man, if I could find a place to get local dry beans, wheat berries and corn I'd be in heaven!

**imforpeace** · 02-18-2008, 04:18 PM

Originally Posted by contessa20

Here's a great website for looking up organic manufacturers within 100 miles of your zip. I discovered that a lot more things than I thought were made within 100 miles of my home.

http://www.theorganicpages.com/topo/zipsearch.html

Thanks for the link. I can't wait for the farmer's markets every year just so I can shop locally!

**nesta67** · 02-21-2008, 09:00 PM

I am definitely aspiring to this. It is a lot harder than it seems! One thing I love is that at our local food co-op they put stickers on the shelves letting you know which items are local. I'm going to be increasing the size of my garden this year and buying a lot more from the farmers market. One that really urged me to commit to this more was reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan. It really makes you stop and think about everything you eat. More info about/from this book is here: http://tinyurl.com/2at5b2 I highly recommend it!

**FrugalWitch** · 02-22-2008, 02:14 PM

We try to be as much as possible. Another book I would recommend is "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" One tip is to can or freeze your local produce while it is in season. That will take you through the winter months much easier.

**StaceyS** · 02-22-2008, 03:10 PM

I canned a lot of local produce last year. It's GREAT to open a jar of tomatoes! They smell so much better than the tin cans from the store!

**fizzie** · 02-22-2008, 10:52 PM

I love that FVers are doing this! I am too. We live in one of the best places for localvoring--Northern California. We get our beef, pork, chicken, fish, dairy, and of course our veggies locally. It's easy to eat in a 10 mile radius let alone 100 miles. The only problem is the cost! Some say that we are paying our health costs up front by eating healthier but it hurts the pocketbook. The one saving grace (besides the do-goodery of it) is the way, way better taste of our food!

**julieb** · 02-23-2008, 06:10 PM

I had posted this elsewhere but maybe it should have been here instead!

www.localharvest.com

I went to this website and found a farm close to me that delivers a box of produce to my town weekly or biweekly. I also noticed some farms have a worker program that will pay part of or all of the cost of your produce. I thought this might be nice to reduce the cost of organic produce and give me some exercise too!!

**zazenist** · 03-07-2008, 11:14 AM

Originally Posted by julieb

www.localharvest.com

Thanks so much for this, julieb! I searched for my area and found several sources I didn't know about!

Glad to see that there are several people giving this a shot... Good luck to everybody - keep on trying. Anything you can get locally, even if only one or two items, is great. No effort is worthless, no matter how small.

**ravenmaniac** · 03-07-2008, 05:14 PM

Thanks for the info.

**joyofsix** · 03-07-2008, 06:26 PM

I try to be an realized recently that though it didn't have a name, this is how I was brought up. Garden produce and meat from my uncle's farm. I grow veggies, do the farmer's market, preserve all I can and buy as much local meat as possible BUT I have a hard time giving up tropical fruits and imported cheese. And Indiana wine is just, well, OK. So I make an effort but am not, nor likely to be 100% local. Unless prices keep going up, LOL