In this U.S. Army file photo, local vendors sell honey, fruit and vegetables at a farmers market in Germany. Similar farmers markets can be found in Belgium and the Netherlands.
COMMENTARY: Eating local food helps environment, economy, you
CHIÈVRES, Belgium – Since the beginning of the 20th century, our way of purchasing food has remarkably evolved. When my mother tells me that in her youth, bottles of milk were delivered in front of her porch door by the milkman I cannot believe her.
“Didn’t you go to the supermarket to buy milk?”
She responds that there was no supermarket at the time.
My mom is only in her 50s and food consumption has changed so much that I feel like she is from another century.
It’s true that since the 1960s, the evolution of our ways of living and working left less time for household chores and families were looking for a fast and easy way to purchase food. At the same time, large grocery stores, which gather a wide variety of food in one place, have been developing. Consequently, buying food directly from local producers slowly gave way to purchasing food in the supermarkets.
Despite all the ease and advantages that supermarkets offer, a local food movement has been blossoming more recently, with farmer markets and local food shops springing up all over Europe and the United States. Driven by the desire to eat fresh products, more and more families choose to “eat local” because of the many advantages and benefits it offers for the local economies, as well as for human health and the environment.
Economy
The most obvious benefits of eating locally are for the local economy as it directly supports local farmers and other local producers. Purchasing food from farmers’ markets selling local goods helps shorten long price chains, leaving more money for the farmers.
Another economic benefit of buying locally is supporting the local workforce. If you buy your groceries at the local farmers’ market, you’re helping to keep local growers and farmers in their jobs, and you’re also creating an opportunity for other local businesses such as restaurants and cafés around the market.
Health
Food quality is another advantage of eating locally. Indeed, food that is grown and harvested locally is usually given more time to ripen and therefore has a higher nutrient value and better taste. Moreover, when food is bought directly from the producer, a relationship of trust builds up between the customer and the producer, who, in this case, is not hidden behind middlemen. The producer is therefore encouraged to use safe and sustainable agricultural and ecological practices. Indeed, many local producers keep their product organic and free of hormones and pesticides.
With the increasing interest in food transparency and in eating healthily, consumers want to know where and how their food is produced, which is made possible by eating locally.
Environment
One of the most important ways that purchasing food locally helps the environment is by reducing the food miles. Many of the food items you buy in supermarkets travel thousands of miles to reach your plate. Purchasing food locally cuts down on these miles and the related fuel consumption, reducing the environmental impact of your food. Moreover, for food shopped locally, there is less need for shipping facilities, packing facilities, warehouses, and refrigeration.
Buying local also helps to protect local lands and wildlife. The farms and lands are owned and operated by local farmers and producers for which these lands are often their homes that they are willing to protect and preserve. Also, by supporting their work, these lands are not being developed for industrial or commercial use. Additionally, farmland, especially organic, attracts other types of biodiversity and gives animals, insects and birds a place to live and feed on.
Moreover, local businesses are usually accessible by walking or biking. Conversely, larger grocery stores which require more space, are usually outside of town in areas that are best reached by car.
Finally, because the produce is fresh and brought directly from the farm, there is usually less waste. Many large groceries have significant amounts of food waste due to items going bad before they are bought. On a smaller scale with a more direct farm-to-table approach, this food waste generation, as well as packaging waste, is generally reduced.
To sum up, eating locally offers many benefits for health, the economy, and the environment. If you are motivated by the benefits of buying food produced locally, how could you learn about the closest and easiest ways to eat local? Fortunately, there are numerous farmer markets and local shops that have developed in the last years.
In the vicinity of Chièvres and SHAPE, there are a number of farmers’ markets to visit, including one at Rue de Pintamont 28, Ath every fourth Friday of the month; one at Place du Beguinage and Place Nervienne, Mons every Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; one at Croix Place, Mons, every Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.; and one at Rue des droits de l’Homme 2, Mons Mondays and Wednesdays to Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Look for local groceries and farmer markets on the internet. It should not be difficult to find one that is close to your home.
By Juliette Vermeulen, Environmental Division, DPW, USAG Benelux