This method of food consumption aims to reduce emissions by reducing the amount of fuel needed to transport food cross country or the fossil fuels used to grow food in artificial light and temperature-controlled greenhouses. Food grown out of season in industrial greenhouses require more water and large amounts of chemical fertilizers to grow to maturity. Food that has been shipped from far away is often more processed, even if it doesn’t appear to be. Many kinds of produce are picked while still green to survive transport and forced to ripen with gas after arriving at stores. This process is part of why a farmers market or home-grown tomatoes taste so much better than a store bought tomato. It is estimated that we currently put almost 10 kcal of fossil fuel energy into our food system for every 1 kcal of energy we get as food. These processes must stop if we are going to get a handle on climate change before the ocean consumes us all Local and seasonal eating is often tied to supporting small business and small farms. Buying from local market stands, self-pick fields and CSA boxes, which is a box of seasonal produce from the farm you signed up with, support local businesses along with local food. Both CSA boxes and farmers markets directly empower small farmers by allowing them to charge store prices and not have a middleman. These alternative methods of shopping are often much easier than finding local and seasonal food in large stores. If you live in Louisville for example, you have access to upwards of eight farmers markets. If living through Louisville’s slate gray winters has you bulking at the lack of produce, try Garden Girl Foods in Louisville which sells natural canned goods and helps to teach kids cooking and gardening skills. Local and seasonal eating requires the most work on the part of the consumer out of all the rules of eating I have talked about. To eat locally and seasonally you must research good places to buy food, recipes for what produce is available at different times, and it is useful to do some basic food preserving for when your favorite vegetable is out of season.
Finding good produce in winter can be extremely challenging for people who live in remote areas or in areas where it is hard to access fresh food to begin with. However, there are online resources that can help people wanting to eat more seasonally, such as seasonalfoodguide.org and many other websites for different regions; search your area with a seasonality guide to begin your journey. I have listed sources for simple recipes using seasonal vegetables https://blog.seasonalroots.com/winter-recipes https://www.healthyseasonalrecipes.com/recipes/occasion-and-season/winter/ https://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/slideshow/spring-recipes If you want help preserving your favorite vegetable https://marysnest.com/ Sources https://cuesa.org/learn/how-far-does-your-food-travel-get-your-plate https://www.slowfood.com/about-us/ https://www.seasonalfoodguide.org/about
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AuthorI am a high school student who is creating her own blog for the first time for school about our food system and environmental issues Archives
May 2022
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