Local versus Organic

There are many factors to consider when you have the choice between buying locally- or foreign- grown fruits and vegetables, dairy products and meats. Often enough, the choice is between a conventionally or "naturally" grown local product and organic imported from New Zealand, Africa, Thailand, or even California. I would say that buying from California is better than another country. The health benefits to life in general of buying organic greatly outweighs those of eating conventionally grown foods. But what happens when those organic foods are shipped between 2,000 and 4,000 miles just to get to your home? How many hands did that box pass through? And is the fruit's nutritional value as good as picking a conventionally grown fruit fresh off the vine?

You must also question what kinds of seeds are being used. Genetically modified seeds have unknown long-term effects, just like DDT when it first came out on the market. Although big corporations claimed it was perfectly safe then and showed videos of families being sprayed while having a picnic outdoors, the stuff has been BANNED from U.S. because of its high toxicity. What will we find about these "superfoods"? They are already invading genes of heirloom seeds and Jane Goodall's example in her book, Harvest for Hope, of pesticides being placed within every cell of a seed and then contaminating the food supply is absolutely harrowing. Despite what the five main companies who own most of the world's seeds through patents tell us, GM seeds have been proven, in standardized research (on animals-ugh!) to create lasting and biologically threatening damage. (Check out research by Dr. Arpad Pusztai.)

Then, we return to the question of local. What are the implications of giving our money to a corporate middle man who gets our food from a foreign place and then puts it in our grocery stores? First, the middle man and the grocery stores get most of the money; leaving the farmer with pennies per pound. Whether or not it is organic, buying locally ensures that your money stays local. Buying from a farmer within an hour radius allows you to connect on a personal level with the food you eat. By giving your money to a local farmer, you aid that farmer in achieving more sustainable farming practices because she or he is not trying to cut corners to make ends meet. Talk to farmers, give your opinions; but also listen. Help pull weeds. Pick some peas. You think you don't have time; but you do.