Local food?

You’ve likely heard the term “local food” a lot recently. It’s one of those food ideas, like “organic” or “all natural” or “healthy," that comes popping up every few years. Like those other terms, “local food” is open for interpretation. I’ve seen Giant Eagle tout their bakery as “local” because it’s made in the store and I’ve seen Starbucks say that they're your “local” coffee shop because there’s one on every corner. Since these guys have the money to blanket the city with advertising and outlets, trying to figure out what “local food” means can be pretty confusing.

As a trustee on the board of the Coit Road Farmers Market, I’ve had the opportunity to learn a lot about what has become known as the “local food movement.” In recent years there’s been a rise in the demand for locally produced foods, and for good reason. With all of the e-coli outbreaks and other food-borne disease scares, it makes sense to want to know where your food is coming from. And it’s obviously a good idea to give your dollar to the guy down the street for something to eat rather than seeing that dollar go out of state, or even out of the country.

Something I’ve also learned is that the reason for “local food” goes beyond those general concerns. It has to do with quality and lifestyle. For our farmers, selling their produce is more than just putting out product on the stand. Anybody can go down to the food terminal on East 40th Street and buy wholesale food in bulk that’s been shipped in from around the country and around the world, and put it out to sell. For our farmers, the food on their stands represents hours, even years, of labor and care. They know this stuff inside and out. It’s more than a livelihood, it’s their lives.

This is reflected in the quality of their product. When I think of quality I like to call this “the egg test”. Go to the Market and buy a dozen large, local eggs. They usually go for around $2.50. Now that’s a bit more than you’re going to pay at the supermarket where a dozen large eggs can go for as low as $1.50, even less depending on sales. Buy a dozen of those and at home, try them side by side. Crack open a local egg in a frying pan next to a supermarket egg. The difference is eye popping. The local egg’s yolk is bright orange, the white is creamy and rich. The supermarket egg’s yolk is a pale yellow and the white is clear and runny. The flavor difference between the two is also obvious. A local egg makes a more a satisfying breakfast than the supermarket variety.  

The reason for this is that the local egg was laid by a chicken that the local farmer has raised from a chick, literally by hand! That farmer has had to care for that chicken, worry about it getting the right feed, the right amount of yard to run around in, the right place to sleep at night. I don’t even want to tell you where the chicken that laid the supermarket egg lives out its life. The conditions can be described as being anywhere from startling to appalling. And I can assure you the people who raise those chickens don’t care for them beyond that they’re fed and housed well enough to produce as many eggs as possible and so that they don’t die on the production line with too much frequency.

When you shop at a farmers market, quality and lifestyle are part of your life too. Yes, you’re often going to pay a little more than you would at the supermarket, or at places like Wal-mart. But the prices are not as much as you think and it’s often cheaper than you would imagine. Like the eggs, what you get in return is definitely worth it. Superior quality food, the chance to talk with the farmer who actually produced it, the chance for you to slow down for once in our crazy world and take the time to relax and enjoy the scene at the market. Just doing this shows that you care; you care where your food is coming from, you care where your dollar is being spent, you care about your community and most of all, you’re caring for yourself. 

So, if you haven’t had the chance recently, do yourself good and go to the Coit Road Farmers Market and check out this different perspective on “local food.” You may be surprised at what you find and I’m sure you’ll be pleased with it too.