Local is the new organic. Meaning that buying tasty little organic kiwis from New Zealand is nice and all, but you’ve just helped destroy the ozone with god knows how much jet and diesel fuel getting it here. You cad, you.
During the last weeks of April, locavores “activists who try to eat only foods grown within 150 miles “are trying something different. Called the Pennywise Eat Local Challenge, they’ll not only try to eat seasonal foods that are grown within the local foodshed, but also debunk the idea that you can’t eat locally on a budget. As in a little under $70 per person, per week.
Yeah, it’s pretty extreme, and frankly, probably hard for most of us to actually accomplish. What about coffee? (Sorry, no coffee plantations around here, although Ft. Bragg’s Thanksgiving Coffee or Sebastopol’s Taylor Maid are organic, sustainable compromises.) What about salt? Or locally milled flours?
When you get right down to it, even here in Sonoma County, where you can hardly sneeze without hitting a sustainable farm, eating locally isn’t as easy as it sounds. But are you willing to make the effort?
Here are a few places to start:
Pinnacle Market: A small market in downtown Graton that sticks to locally-grown, seasonal products. Produce, fish, eggs, bread, meat and cheese. “We’re the local version of Whole Foods,” says owner Janna Anderson. Open Tuesday through Sunday from 11am to 7pm, 9056 Graton Road, Graton.
Greenstring Farm: Beyond organic, locally grown and foraged produce. Incredible eggs. Greenstring Farm, 3571 Old Adobe Road, Petaluma, 707.249.0144
Food Routes: Where does your food come from? Check out this national efffort at Foodroutes.org
Local Harvest: Another national effort to bring together farmers and eaters