RVCD Earth Week 2024 – Day 5: Eat Local

April 26, 2024

We’ve made it to the last day of Earth Week – today’s topic is eating locally!

Have you ever tried sourcing some of the food you consume from local producers? The majority of the U.S. has lost the connection between the food they eat and where it came from. They might not second guess what ingredients go into highly processed, mass-produced food. We have been conditioned to grab what’s fastest and most accessible.

By supporting local producers, we slow down and think about what food we’re putting into our bodies. Yes, the prices may be higher than what grocery stores offer, but you get equally high quality.

The locavore movement began sometime in the 1900s, with the goal to decrease food miles, increase shelf life, and improve quality of food. The term locavore is defined as, “a person whose diet consists only or principally of locally grown or produced food” (Oxford Dictionary). The term ‘local’ means something different to each individual person, however.

For some in more remote areas, it could mean 100 miles away. For others in big cities such as Bozeman, Livingston, or Helena, ‘locally grown’ could mean the farm stands down the street.

Food miles impact the longevity of shelf life, meaning a head of lettuce traveling from California will go bad quicker than if it were from your backyard garden. The fewer miles your food travels, the longer it will last.

Choosing to consume locally increases the economic prosperity of an area. Buying from the farmer just outside town puts money directly in their pockets, thus cutting out the ‘middle man’ (grocery stores).

This summer, stop by your local farmers market to support the many small (or big) businesses in your community!

Read more about the Locavore Movement here.

We sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed 2024’s Earth Week series, we’ll be back with more next year!