Turtle Box Blog

Why locally grown?

You hear the buzz words all the time - "local", "organic", "grassfed", "pasture raised", "free-range", "artisan", "humane", etc., but what do they really mean? Is it really that important? After all, a tomato is just a tomato, right?   

Eating locally grown food not only supports the small farmers who make a living growing food but it conserves energy and makes for better tasting produce. In today's world, many of us have become disconnected from our food sources, often forgetting that the food in the grocery store had to be grown somewhere, by someone.  

1. You know how it was grown.

When you choose to buy from a farmer that you know, you will find that you get more information about how their produce is grown or what their philosophy is with keeping their animals. You can ask them if they are using organic or conventional methods, if they spray and what kind of sprays they use, and sometimes you can even go visit their farms!

2. Eating locally conserves energy.

According to The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture the average fresh food item in the grocery store travels 1,500 miles to get there. Supporting local farmers decreases the need for food to travel so far. 

3. Support the local economy.

While farmers who supply to grocery stores on average receive approximately 20 cents of each food dollar spent (source), farmers who sell their food locally retain more of the dollars spent on food. Simply put, the money spent of food stays in the community and region, supporting the infrastructure 

4. It's fresher.

Food grown locally is harvested and purchased by the consumer in less time than it would take for the produce to make the trip from California.