New Year's resolutions get a bad rap, in my opinion.
People seem to think of them as frivolous, doomed to failure, or both. But it’s never a bad idea to give your life a quick once-over and come up with goals to improve yourself and even the world at large. Our individual changes for the better will ultimately have a significant collective impact.
Personal health goals, including weight loss, stop smoking & regular exercise are always in the top 5 New Year’s resolutions.
These are definitely critical to a healthy lifestyle, but have you though about making this year's resolution to eat local, seasonal foods whenever possible. Good for you, good for local farmers, good for the environment: it seems like a win-win-win situation worth considering.
Eating local supports the local economy, encourages the use of valuable farmland, results in fresher foods that taste better and are healthier for you and the environment. Because local food doesn’t need to be shipped across the world, it doesn’t have to be picked before it is ready. This means that local food is fresher, contains fewer preservatives, tastes better and is better for you.
Local food is often produced on a smaller scale, which means fewer pesticides, and other harmful practices are implemented helping to protect biodiversity and preserve a wider agriculture gene pool. Reduction of pesticide use along with shorter transportation distances results in less impact on the environment. Much of the produce and food products found in local grocery stores are shipped thousands of kilometres around the world. A copious amount of energy is expended and the impacts are not reflected in the final price.
Just like any other resolution, it is important to start small and work your way up. If you expect to eat every meal from a local source or ensure that every ingredient is produced locally, chances are you are going to be discouraged very quickly. Once you get more comfortable and familiar with local products and ingredients you can start trying to ensure that all of the ingredients are from a local source. Visit bcfarmfresh.com for a listing of local farms in your area and choose grocery stores, markets, and restaurants that promote, provide, and prepare local products.
The idea of eating local is not a new innovation. People have been doing it for millennia. It is interesting to think about where your food comes from and it is just recently with globalization that the majority of our food comes from around the world.
Do you know where your food comes from? - Eat Real. Eat Local.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIsEG2SFOvM
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