Why You Should Buy Local Food

A few months ago I shared how I'm acutely aware of just how far our food travels to get to our dinner plate. It's this knowledge that has pushed me to start producing much of the food my family consumes.

Here's why I think everyone should buy local food:

Shopping local supports your local economy.

Supporting local food producers keeps money and jobs in your community. Over 90% of Canadian farms are family owned and operated, let's support those families in our area, after all they're helping us too.

Local food is fresh!

Fresh food is healthier food. Nutrients are lost as food ages so by shopping local you're providing more nutrient rich food to your family. After all, food is the best medicine.

It puts you in control of the food you consume

Shopping locally empowers consumers to take a more active role in their own personal food system. By becoming engaged you're more likely to have a better knowledge of what's in your food and how it was raised. As you seek out local providers you'll start to learn what's important to you when it comes to food choices -- Non-GMO, organic, ethically raised, sustainable?

Seasonal and local food tastes better.

Buying locally produced and seasonal food just tastes better. You know that strawberry in the dead of winter? Does it taste like a strawberry? If your answer is yes then you don't know what a strawberry tastes like. By buying in season you'll be eating food at it's most flavorful... and that just tastes good!

It helps you avoid the 'green washing' hype

Have you ever questioned if the claims a company makes about ethically raising their animals is true? How do you really know if their values align with yours? When you shop local you are far more likely to actually meet the people who produce your food and even possibly visit their farm.

It's better for the environment

I think we can all agree that trucking that load of poultry half way across the country isn't exactly lessening our carbon footprint.

This isn't a movement that will happen over night and I'm the first to admit that not everything I buy is local but if we all work to be conscious of where our food comes from and try to make more local choices the impact for ourselves and our community will be widespread.

Kendall ~ The chick behind Central Park Farms