- Eat Locally! Credit to Source.
Kraft dinner, pizza slices, grilled cheese sandwiches, bowls of cereal, and granola bars are all staple food items in a student’s diet, but rarely do consumers think about how this food is getting on their plates. The product’s manufacturing location, pesticide use, genetic modification, and animal housing conditions are not often considered when buying a sub sandwich or popping a television dinner into the microwave. The founders of the 100-Mile Diet, Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon, strongly believe that these are important questions about our food and it is important to know the answers to them.
Smith and MacKinnon created the concept of the 100-Mile Diet when they pledged to eat locally for one year after scrounging together a meal from resources at the cottage. For them, locally encompassed a 100-Mile radius from their homes and that year became a learning experience for them. They discovered farmer’s markets, seasonal foods, new products and recipes. They learned about the food manufacturing process. The harm that food manufacturing causes to our bodies and the Earth was shocking, considering that so many people shop at supermarkets buying products shipped internationally and filled with ingredients that few literate people could pronounce. Their venture into local eating inspired them to write and publish a book, “The 100-Mile Diet: A Year of Local Eating”. Their experience has begun to inspire people worldwide to consider local eating.
Incredibly, it appears that almost everyone can find at least one reason to eat locally. Food connoisseurs will enjoy the fresh taste of farmer’s market produce rather than the supermarket stock, which is picked significantly more than 24 hours prior to purchase. Extroverts and introverts alike can benefit from the social aspect. Farmer’s markets offer a friendly atmosphere, while cooking dinner with or for friends is more engaging than watching a movie. Health buffs will appreciate knowing if any pesticides are used, promote the lack of genetic modification, and encourage the amount of fruits and vegetables being consumed. Animal rights activists will benefit from knowing about farming conditions.
The Farmer's Market provides fresh produce. Credit to source.
Environmentalists can help the planet by decreasing pollution when decreasing the distance that their food travels. Savvy travelers will realize that eating locally while traveling allows them to have a more authentic experience. No matter who you are, local eating appears to be a great way to keep yourself healthy, help the planet, and educate yourself about food production processes.
Smith and MacKinnon ate locally for an entire year and continue to do so for the most part – some favourites that fall outside of the 100-mile radius have made a reappearance in their diets. However, they are not asking everyone to commit to a lifetime of local eating. Their message is simple: attempt local eating and educate yourself about what is on your plate. A stop at their website allows visitors to map out their 100-mile radius, pledge to eat locally for as little as a single meal to as much as an indefinite amount of time, find local resources, and read more information on local eating.
Consider their message and opt to trade in a boxed meal of Kraft Dinner for a homemade recipe from fresh, local ingredients. Begin to think about the food on your plate: what is its effect on the environment, your body, and the world? As you find answers to these questions, evaluate how large of a commitment you want to make to local eating and take the pledge online.
