A challenge has been put to Collingwood and Creemore residents to eat one locally-sourced meal a day for a week. Challenge accepted.
The 100-mile store in Creemore started the challenge two years ago to encourage people to think about what they are eating and where it comes from. The store’s owner, Jackie Durnford, said they didn’t make the challenge too strict, because they didn’t want to discourage anyone.
I am already fairly mindful of where my food comes from, so I am going to step the challenge up a bit and try and eat and drink only local food at every meal for two weeks.
I’m not trying to be a show-off. But, I do think it will give me a better understanding of what is available in the area, and, since my diet is more onerous, I think it will probably take more than a week for me get the hang of it.
Vegetables are easy. Two words: farmers’ market. Five more words … scavenging in my neighbour’s garden. (I’m not sure if I’m kidding about the last one yet.)
I actually do have a garden of my own, but it’s in my mother’s backyard in Mississauga, which does fall within the 160-kilometre radius I’m aiming for.
Finding local meat also should also be pretty easy in this area. But it’s something I don’t often buy locally, although I probably should.
A 160-kilometre radius is larger than I originally thought. I am, however, going to try to keep is as close to home as possible.
The difficulty will be with things I don’t usually think about finding locally, like bread, booze, eggs, spices, cooking oils, and dairy products. Coffee and chocolate are completely out, unless I bend the rules to include things produced, but not grown locally. I may have to in the case of coffee since I must continue to be a functioning member of society.
My vow: not to step foot in a grocery store for two weeks.
Being new to town, I haven’t completely gotten my bearings and figured out where I should be turning to source my meals – so any suggestions are very welcome.
Why eat locally? There are a number of reasons.
It supports local economy and farmers.
It reduces transportation emissions. A recent article in the Globe about Local Food Plus indicates that if 10,000 Toronto families shifted $10 of their weekly grocery spending to local food for a year, it would be the equivalent of taking 908 cars off the road for one year.
Food grown locally is also more nutritious (because it hasn’t been off the plant as long) and it tastes better. I swear it’s not psychosomatic, it actually does taste better.
My experiences living and working on organic vegetable farms can be credited with why I developed an interest in supporting a more local food system.
I began volunteering (completely on a whim) two seasons ago and met amazing inspiring young people (and not so young) who were determined to make a difference.
Spending long days planting, weeding, and harvesting food made me appreciate it more. While I was weeding, I didn’t zone out, or resent having to do it – I was simply making room for the food to grow.
I recently read somewhere that local is the new organic, but I am definitely going try to ensure my diet is both local and pesticide-free.
I don’t want to go the rest of my life without eating a mango – they’re my favourite – but I will make a concerted effort to support my area’s farmers, producers, and local business owners.
The challenge starts this Saturday at the Creemore and Collingwood farmers’ markets, so this week I will be busy getting ready and eating up any non-local food in my fridge.
100 miles from the E-B 