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| <back | home It’s Got to be Local to be Sustainable! by Anne McMahon and MaryAnn Vasconcellos “Sustainability is a systemic concept, relating to the continuity of economic, social, and environmental aspects of human society. It is intended to be a means of configuring civilization and human activity so that society, its members and its economies are able to meet their needs and express their greatest potential in the present, while preserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems, and planning and acting for the ability to maintain these ideals indefinitely. Sustainability affects every level of organization, from the local neighborhood to the entire planet. It is an evolving topic that can help us shape our future.” (From Wikepedia, www.wikipedia.org) When shopping for food, many consumers conscientiously seek out organic products at grocery stores and farmers’ markets, driven by their concern for their health and the environment. They believe they are making healthy choices. But are those choices sustainable? And are they really healthier for the environment? If “sustainability” is also a high priority in your food-buying decisions, then buying locally-grown products may just be as – or even more – important than buying organic. The “organic” label at one time was associated with local, small farms. In recent years, the organics trend has created a consumer demand that did not go unnoticed by corporations which now are responding with increasing supplies of organically-grown products. No one would argue that this is not a good thing. As corporate agriculture gets on the organic bandwagon, clearly there can be many environmental benefits, especially to the areas where traditional farming operations are converted to organic ones. This trend also clearly illustrates that consumer demand can influence the quality of a product and the way it is grown or produced. But as corporations have caught onto the organics trend, they may be meeting the demand by delivering products grown inexpensively on farms as far away as Mexico, Chile or Argentina. Centralized supermarket chains working with those large one-source suppliers may negotiate prices that undercut what any small local farmer or rancher may charge. Consumers may find the relatively inexpensive costs of the third world organically-grown products appealing. However, organic doesn’t only mean fewer chemicals. Habitats, including forests, that are converted in other countries to organic row crops can never be reclaimed. And there is a burden on the planet when food is consumed far from the source: large quantities of fossil fuel are also consumed. It is estimated that in the U.S., our food travels an average of 1,500 miles from the source of production to the point of purchase. So among the unintended consequences and environmental costs of long-distance and global food trading are the increased carbon emissions that compromise health and contribute to global warming. Additionally, as global corporations enter the organic market, there has also been increasing pressure on the USDA to relax standards for “organic” to allow for increased efficiency and profits. After all, that is the bottom line for corporations – even the ones growing organic foods. The standards for what can be labeled “organic” have been evolving to the extent that some growers now believe the word “organic” no longer is the stamp of quality it once was. While the standards for “organic” can be subject to the interpretation or whim of government agencies, the standard for “local” is much harder to co-opt. Choosing who grows your food with the same level of care and consideration you use when you choose your doctor or dentist might, in the end, be the only sure way to ensure the integrity of the food you eat. It can also be one of the most important things you can do to protect the local environment and your own quality of life! In spring, 2005, FoodFirst reported on an Iowa study that found that purchasing just 10% more food from within that state eliminated about 7.9 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions each year. Food Policy, a reputable English journal, reported on the environmental benefits of buying food grown even closer to home in a study which found that if consumers bought food grown within a 12-mile radius, they could substantially influence the environmental price tag – from $2.3 billion per year in degradation and clean up costs to under $230 million. Admittedly, in the 21st century there may be few places left in industrial countries on the planet where it is possible to grow enough local food to support local communities. We are fortunate enough to live on the central coast, which is one of those places where the weather, soil and remaining land, historically used to grow food and raise livestock, might actually be able to provide much of the food we consume! What makes that seemingly unlikely scenario all the more exciting is that there is a growing number of farmers and ranchers here who are interested in providing high-quality, locally-grown produce and meat products to local consumers at the same time that local consumers are beginning to appreciate the many benefits of purchasing locally-grown products. Might we really be approaching a “tipping point” where a critical mass of local consumers who realize that buying local is an investment in their own quality of life creates sufficient demand to support a critical mass of local farmers and ranchers who want to stay in farming and ranching? Sustaining the quality of life here on the central coast cannot be separated from saving our local agricultural lands, which are often viewed more as the public’s “open space” than as private property. Saving our agricultural lands will only happen if we support the people who own them. Buying locally-grown food is one sure way to sustain our local agriculture-based economy and the privately-owned farms and ranches that can provide seasonal selections of small-scale agriculture. Many of the central coast’s small-scale farms can’t compete in the global market with large corporations, and they don’t often qualify for government subsidies that enable large farms to grow cheaper products. Most of our small-scale farms and ranches don’t have contracts with supermarket chains and can survive only if local consumers who appreciate the freshness, nutritional value and taste of local products create a demand for them. Even though you might pay more to a local farmer, that dollar stays here and helps to sustain our local agricultural heritage (and “open space”!) while at the same time providing the food security that only a local food system can provide. Luckily, organics is a fast growing segment of the local agricultural economy, so anyone can buy organic while still buying local. So, the next time you are at the Farmers’ Market or in the produce section of the supermarket, why not ask, “Where was this grown?” at the same time as you ask, “Is this organic?” There are some encouraging signs that the supply and the demand for locally-grown food may be coalescing as a result of several local independent, yet related, groups and efforts, including the Central Coast AgTourism Council, Central Coast Home-Grown Meat Alliance, the SLO Slow Food Convivium (which would like to do away with the word “consumer” and substitute “co-producer” in its place as a way to raise awareness about the connection between people who grow the food with people who buy and eat it). And organic foods and hormone-free meats have earned prime and growing space in many mid-size and large supermarkets’ produce sections and meat counters. But there is still a long way to go before we see a sustainable and enduring relationship between local growers and local consumers. In an effort to educate and help connect central coast consumers who want to purchase locally-grown food with the growers wanting to sell their products locally, a coalition of farmers, food enthusiasts, and agencies has formed the Central Coast Ag Network (CCAN). Among CCAN’s goals is the creation of the Central Coast Grown brand, which will be used to help consumers identify what is “local.” Initially CCAN will be focusing its efforts within San Luis Obispo County. In order to use the Central Coast Grown brand, products must be grown or raised in, or within 30 miles of, San Luis Obispo County. CCAN will formally launch the brand next year, but vegetable, flower and meat producers who have already joined the effort can be contacted through the website, www.centralcoastgrown.org The choice between the benefits of local versus organic may be confusing, and in a perfect world, there would be so many locally-grown organic products that you wouldn’t have to make that choice. But in the meantime, if you are truly interested in protecting the local environment and creating a sustainable local economy that protects our quality of life, what better way to do it than by choosing to eat within your foodshed. By seeking out and purchasing locally-gown food, you might just be making be the strongest political statement you can make about the kind of community you want to live in while at the same time reinvigorating the health of the planet. And what’s not to like about the freshness, nutrition and taste you get when you buy local? What better way to think globally while acting locally! <back | top^ |