Eating Local Benefits Mind, Body, & Spirit
Looking after your health has so many facets. You exercise, you try to reach your daily steps, you do yoga to keep the blood pumping. You’re mindful of your meals, keeping them healthy to support your dietary needs, perhaps avoiding the junk food aisle of the supermarket. But have you ever thought of switching from your retail supermarket to doing your grocery shopping at the local farmers’ market?
Being able to do your grocery shopping at the local farmers’ market opens up an exciting world of flavors and experiences. Not only do you get to discover what’s in season, but oftentimes, you also get to meet the very people who grow the food. Purchasing and consuming locally grown produce presents many positive effects not only for yourself but for your community as well.
Why You Should Eat Local
You get the freshest produce
When purchasing from the local market, you have the freshest pick of the produce. Crops sold and distributed to retail markets are often harvested early and ripen over time as they travel whereas crops sold in local markets are picked at the peak of their ripeness, usually within 24 hours of their purchase, according to Michigan State University. Being at their peak ripeness, the produce is not only the freshest, but also full of flavor which may not always be the case for produce that had to ripen after it was picked.
You’re eating what’s in season
Your options of produce from the local market are in sync with the seasons. Being able to eat food according to when they are available, therefore when they are the freshest and most nutritious. You also become more in tune with nature’s order. Stephanie Kay of Kay Nutrition says eating seasonally is the most natural way to eat, making it one of the most beneficial ways to nourish our bodies.
You get to try new food
The local markets are the best places to go for variety. While the retail grocery stores may supply three or four varieties of fresh tomatoes, local farmers can keep up to 300 varieties depending on the time of year. You are spoiled for options in the local market as you discover new varieties of vegetables and fruits.
As the food availability changes as the seasons do, you are also challenged to get more creative in the kitchen. You’re forced to not rely on your “year-long staples” and work with what’s accessible. You then get to try new ways of preparing food, from cooking new dishes to trying methods like pickling and canning.
Local food is often more nutritious
When vegetables and fruits are picked in the peak of their ripeness, not only is that when they are their most flavorful but that is also when they are the most nutritious. When purchased from the local market, produce has a shorter time traveling from the farm to your table, which cuts down on the degradation of their nutritional value as well.
It is also useful to keep in mind that the food available to us during the seasons is in sync with what our bodies need and is also how our ancestors used to eat. For example, during the summer, that’s when fruits, berries, and vegetables are most abundant because it’s cooling and when the temperatures start to drop, root vegetables, and more hearty produce help us weather the cold.
Buying local helps you buy and eat more mindfully
When shopping for food in the local market, you are more aware of where it came from and who produced it. You get to know more about the food you’re buying and oftentimes, you also get great tips on how to prepare the food you’ve bought.
That connection you have with your food makes you more mindful. With that mindfulness, you become more deliberate about the food you purchase to nourish your body. You also develop a deeper understanding of the arduous labor of love many farmers go through to provide you with the food you’re buying. Where you once had a disconnect with the food you bought off the shelves, you now have a more profound connection with the food you bring home.
It’s more beneficial to the environment
When buying locally, there is often less waste because the fruits and vegetables aren’t wrapped in unnecessary packaging unlike those found in retail grocery stores. The distribution chain is much shorter as well,cutting the travel time from farm to home. Overall, local purchases have a lesser carbon footprint than that of their retail counterparts.
You also support sustainable agriculture that promotes crop variety which is beneficial to soil health and creates a healthy farming cycle. This then helps cut down on relying on chemical fertilizers and solutions which are often used when practicing monoculture farming which can be detrimental to the local ecology.
It supports the local economy
By purchasing local, you are able to channel your support back to your community. When buying from your local farmers and markets, you support their businesses and in turn help them support their families. And if going to the local market isn’t accessible to you for one reason or another, you can get locally-sourced ingredients through a grocery delivery app. This continuous support becomes a healthy cycle that keeps farmers producing local food for everyone to enjoy.
The Benefits of Eating Local
Eating locally isn’t just a beneficial choice that affects you as an individual. Your choice has a ripple effect that has an exponential reach to everyone in your community. This helps foster a healthier community, stronger local economy, and healthier agricultural practices as well, all incredibly positive changes that start with your choice to purchase produce locally.