Eating local is an admirable goal. It supports local farmers, redirects money away from the destructive industrial food system, and provides healthier, fresher food for your family. For all these reasons and more, it is worth the effort to seek out local and sustainable food sources.
However, it can sometimes seem like more work than we're willing to put in - after all, we humans are lazy creatures by nature! Shopping at your local supermarket is so simple and convenient... And you can always find the same foods there year-round, whereas in many areas, it can be difficult to find locally grown produce in the winter months. The tradeoff is that you give up any and all control over the source of your food supply.
However, the good news is that you don't have to trade health and sustainability for convenience - these days it is easier and easier to find local sources of food - especially if you live in a large metropolitan area. Farmers markets and community supported agriculture (CSA) programs can be found even in small towns today, and the internet makes it easier than ever to find and connect with local farmers year-round.
Even here in Ohio, we have been able to find sources of locally grown produce in the winter, and we buy the majority of our meat directly from local farms, which not only are able to offer a much higher quality product at a more affordable price, but also offer us the comfort of knowing how our food is grown and raised.
If you want to find a way to eat more locally-produced food, support your community farmers and producers, and have more control over your food supply, below are 3 tips for eating local year-round - even if you don't live in California!
However, it can sometimes seem like more work than we're willing to put in - after all, we humans are lazy creatures by nature! Shopping at your local supermarket is so simple and convenient... And you can always find the same foods there year-round, whereas in many areas, it can be difficult to find locally grown produce in the winter months. The tradeoff is that you give up any and all control over the source of your food supply.
However, the good news is that you don't have to trade health and sustainability for convenience - these days it is easier and easier to find local sources of food - especially if you live in a large metropolitan area. Farmers markets and community supported agriculture (CSA) programs can be found even in small towns today, and the internet makes it easier than ever to find and connect with local farmers year-round.
Even here in Ohio, we have been able to find sources of locally grown produce in the winter, and we buy the majority of our meat directly from local farms, which not only are able to offer a much higher quality product at a more affordable price, but also offer us the comfort of knowing how our food is grown and raised.
If you want to find a way to eat more locally-produced food, support your community farmers and producers, and have more control over your food supply, below are 3 tips for eating local year-round - even if you don't live in California!
1. Befriend Your Local Farmers
As I alluded to above, one of the best ways to obtain fresh, locally-grown food is to connect with your local farming community. In days past, this could be a difficult task indeed, and often one had to rely on word-of-mouth, unless you had access to a local farmer's market. However, in today's high-tech world, many small family farms are just a few clicks away!
While it's true that not all farms have websites, and the farmer's market is still a great way to find local growers, the internet is a treasure trove of resources that can be very helpful. There are numerous farmer's market, farm, and CSA directories online (LocalHarvest.org is one of the most well-known, but certainly not the only one), and these can be helpful for finding those smaller farms and growers that don't yet have much of a web presence. Community forums are also a great way to find recommended farms and CSA programs via word-of-mouth in your area.
Once you've found a few farms that provide what you are looking for - whether it's meat, eggs, a herd share, a CSA, pick-your-own produce, or something else - reach out to the farmer to learn more about their operation and the methods they use. Ask questions about those values that are important to you - whether that's organic growing methods, regenerative grazing practices, non-GMO feed, or simply humane animal husbandry practices that reduce over-crowding and offer access to pasture.
As you vet your farmers, you'll also want to think about how they communicate with their customers. Do they provide regular farm updates via an email newsletter or social media presence?
I believe our food supply was always meant to be relationship-based rather than transactional. Getting to know your farmer not only provides transparency and food security, but also offers you some intangible benefits like becoming more closely connected and engaged with your community. Embrace these benefits and you'll find fulfillment on a whole other level besides just the physical!
2. Join a CSA/Food Share Program
Finding local farmers that you know and trust to provide a quality product is the first step, but we also need to look at the convenience factor. If you have to drive several hours to pick up food, you'll want to at least make sure you are able to bring home a substantial amount that will last a while. Otherwise, you'll just end up resorting to the supermarket again most of the time. This means that if you are buying local produce, you'll most likely want to find a regular pickup or delivery that's convenient for you. (On the other hand, driving a fair distance to pick up a large batch of sustainably raised meat just a couple of times per year makes sense if you have a large freezer for storage.)
Farmer's markets are awesome, and I encourage you to frequent them if they are available in your area. However, there's really nothing more convenient than a CSA program when it comes to eating local. Most CSA's provide either a centrally located pickup location (or several), or direct delivery to your door. Either way, you'll get a box (or bag) of food that usually provides enough variety to eliminate most (or all) of the need to shop for produce for that week.
If you live in an area with cold winters, it may be more difficult to find a CSA that operates year-round. However, it is possible, and even here in Central Ohio, I am aware of at least 3 programs that do provide a winter produce CSA share. The one we are currently trying out is not a traditional small farm CSA, but rather a food box program that offers several local pickup spots during the week, and supplies food sourced from a number of Ohio farms year-round. (You can check them out at YellowBirdFS.com.) So far we are very happy with them, and also appreciate the ability to add additional options to our box, such as locally produced cheeses, meats, dairy products, and more!
If you've resigned yourself to supermarket veggies all winter long, it may be worth it to do some searching on the web (try checking farm directories and community forums as well) and see if you can find a year-round or winter/fall CSA program in your area. And if you don't find anything, don't give up hope! Keep checking every year or so, as these programs are becoming more and more common throughout the U.S., so you never know when one may pop up in your community.
3. Grow Your Own Food
Last but not least, the absolute BEST way to enjoy lots of fresh, locally grown food is to grow it yourself! Of course, depending on where you live, you may not be able to grow a lot of produce during the winter months. However, you may be surprised to learn how much you actually can grow with a very small amount of work. (Check our Sustainable Gardening blog for lots of helpful info and tips on winter gardening.)
Here in Central Ohio, we frequently supply most or all of our own fresh greens throughout most of the winter months, including kale, collard greens, and cabbage. We enjoy our own home-grown carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, potatoes and beets throughout the winter after the fall harvest, and also preserve many summer crops for winter eating.
Preserving your own food is a whole separate topic (you can find more on that here and here), but there are many simple methods of food preservation that will allow you to enjoy your summer garden harvest year-round. We can tomatoes, pickles, salsa, and relish almost every summer, and freeze loads of green beans, okra, peppers, tomatoes, celery, and corn whenever the harvest is bountiful. We also use a simple and cheap dehydrator to dry tomatoes, hot peppers, ground cherries, herbs, and more, and can or freeze big batches of our own raspberry, strawberry, and ground cherry jam during harvest season.
Most food preservation techniques are surprisingly easy, and it's totally worth learning a few - even if you don't have a large garden. (I recommend The Beginner's Guide to Preserving, by Delilah Snell, and the classic Putting Food By, by Ruth Hertzberg, et al.)
You can always stock up on local produce at the farmer's market when it's in season, and preserve the bounty for the winter months. Not only will this save you many trips to the grocery store later, but you'll have the comfort of having a larder full of local food on hand year-round, and there's nothing like the feeling of food security in these uncertain times!
(Case in point: As I type this, a big pot of vegetable stock is simmering on the stove - containing parsley, celery leaves, onion tops, mushroom stems, and pea pods - all of which I pulled out of the freezer and dumped in a pot this morning - easy peasy, and all homegrown except the mushroom stems! This will be divided up and stored in containers in the freezer for future use in soups and stews. We haven't needed to buy broth or stock from the store in many years!)
I realize that eating 100% local year-round is a tall order, but in many cases, you may be able to supply a large percentage of your diet through local sources - even during the winter. Remember, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Even if you are only able to get 20% of your food locally, this can still make a huge difference to your local economy, the environment, and your own health!
By getting to know your local farmers, participating in a CSA or food share program, frequenting farmer's markets, or growing some of your own food (or even better - a combination of all of the above), you'll be surprised at how easy it is to eat local year-round!
Rose.
As I alluded to above, one of the best ways to obtain fresh, locally-grown food is to connect with your local farming community. In days past, this could be a difficult task indeed, and often one had to rely on word-of-mouth, unless you had access to a local farmer's market. However, in today's high-tech world, many small family farms are just a few clicks away!
While it's true that not all farms have websites, and the farmer's market is still a great way to find local growers, the internet is a treasure trove of resources that can be very helpful. There are numerous farmer's market, farm, and CSA directories online (LocalHarvest.org is one of the most well-known, but certainly not the only one), and these can be helpful for finding those smaller farms and growers that don't yet have much of a web presence. Community forums are also a great way to find recommended farms and CSA programs via word-of-mouth in your area.
Once you've found a few farms that provide what you are looking for - whether it's meat, eggs, a herd share, a CSA, pick-your-own produce, or something else - reach out to the farmer to learn more about their operation and the methods they use. Ask questions about those values that are important to you - whether that's organic growing methods, regenerative grazing practices, non-GMO feed, or simply humane animal husbandry practices that reduce over-crowding and offer access to pasture.
As you vet your farmers, you'll also want to think about how they communicate with their customers. Do they provide regular farm updates via an email newsletter or social media presence?
I believe our food supply was always meant to be relationship-based rather than transactional. Getting to know your farmer not only provides transparency and food security, but also offers you some intangible benefits like becoming more closely connected and engaged with your community. Embrace these benefits and you'll find fulfillment on a whole other level besides just the physical!
2. Join a CSA/Food Share Program
Finding local farmers that you know and trust to provide a quality product is the first step, but we also need to look at the convenience factor. If you have to drive several hours to pick up food, you'll want to at least make sure you are able to bring home a substantial amount that will last a while. Otherwise, you'll just end up resorting to the supermarket again most of the time. This means that if you are buying local produce, you'll most likely want to find a regular pickup or delivery that's convenient for you. (On the other hand, driving a fair distance to pick up a large batch of sustainably raised meat just a couple of times per year makes sense if you have a large freezer for storage.)
Farmer's markets are awesome, and I encourage you to frequent them if they are available in your area. However, there's really nothing more convenient than a CSA program when it comes to eating local. Most CSA's provide either a centrally located pickup location (or several), or direct delivery to your door. Either way, you'll get a box (or bag) of food that usually provides enough variety to eliminate most (or all) of the need to shop for produce for that week.
If you live in an area with cold winters, it may be more difficult to find a CSA that operates year-round. However, it is possible, and even here in Central Ohio, I am aware of at least 3 programs that do provide a winter produce CSA share. The one we are currently trying out is not a traditional small farm CSA, but rather a food box program that offers several local pickup spots during the week, and supplies food sourced from a number of Ohio farms year-round. (You can check them out at YellowBirdFS.com.) So far we are very happy with them, and also appreciate the ability to add additional options to our box, such as locally produced cheeses, meats, dairy products, and more!
If you've resigned yourself to supermarket veggies all winter long, it may be worth it to do some searching on the web (try checking farm directories and community forums as well) and see if you can find a year-round or winter/fall CSA program in your area. And if you don't find anything, don't give up hope! Keep checking every year or so, as these programs are becoming more and more common throughout the U.S., so you never know when one may pop up in your community.
3. Grow Your Own Food
Last but not least, the absolute BEST way to enjoy lots of fresh, locally grown food is to grow it yourself! Of course, depending on where you live, you may not be able to grow a lot of produce during the winter months. However, you may be surprised to learn how much you actually can grow with a very small amount of work. (Check our Sustainable Gardening blog for lots of helpful info and tips on winter gardening.)
Here in Central Ohio, we frequently supply most or all of our own fresh greens throughout most of the winter months, including kale, collard greens, and cabbage. We enjoy our own home-grown carrots, parsnips, turnips, radishes, potatoes and beets throughout the winter after the fall harvest, and also preserve many summer crops for winter eating.
Preserving your own food is a whole separate topic (you can find more on that here and here), but there are many simple methods of food preservation that will allow you to enjoy your summer garden harvest year-round. We can tomatoes, pickles, salsa, and relish almost every summer, and freeze loads of green beans, okra, peppers, tomatoes, celery, and corn whenever the harvest is bountiful. We also use a simple and cheap dehydrator to dry tomatoes, hot peppers, ground cherries, herbs, and more, and can or freeze big batches of our own raspberry, strawberry, and ground cherry jam during harvest season.
Most food preservation techniques are surprisingly easy, and it's totally worth learning a few - even if you don't have a large garden. (I recommend The Beginner's Guide to Preserving, by Delilah Snell, and the classic Putting Food By, by Ruth Hertzberg, et al.)
You can always stock up on local produce at the farmer's market when it's in season, and preserve the bounty for the winter months. Not only will this save you many trips to the grocery store later, but you'll have the comfort of having a larder full of local food on hand year-round, and there's nothing like the feeling of food security in these uncertain times!
(Case in point: As I type this, a big pot of vegetable stock is simmering on the stove - containing parsley, celery leaves, onion tops, mushroom stems, and pea pods - all of which I pulled out of the freezer and dumped in a pot this morning - easy peasy, and all homegrown except the mushroom stems! This will be divided up and stored in containers in the freezer for future use in soups and stews. We haven't needed to buy broth or stock from the store in many years!)
I realize that eating 100% local year-round is a tall order, but in many cases, you may be able to supply a large percentage of your diet through local sources - even during the winter. Remember, it doesn't have to be all or nothing. Even if you are only able to get 20% of your food locally, this can still make a huge difference to your local economy, the environment, and your own health!
By getting to know your local farmers, participating in a CSA or food share program, frequenting farmer's markets, or growing some of your own food (or even better - a combination of all of the above), you'll be surprised at how easy it is to eat local year-round!
Rose.
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