Sustainable, Seasonal, Local
When it comes to sustainability, eating seasonally and locally are central priorities.
If you’re eating what is grown locally, you can ensure that is has a smaller footprint for the planet because of decreased travel distances and emissions.
If you’re eating what is in season you’ll also be consuming produce and goods that took less resources to travel from the opposite hemisphere, or from a greenhouse where huge amounts of energy are used to create a fake climate. In fact, depending on the age of the greenhouse technology, a tomato from a local greenhouse in the dead of winter has a much bigger footprint than one shipped all the way from Chile!
If you chose to eat locally and in season, there will be some limitations. If you live in Minnesota, there are never going to be local oranges, ever. Our current food system has undermined our perceptions of what we consider everyday foods and made us greedy consumers of products from an ecologically devastating global market. Rather than citrus fruits being a treat in Northern markets, we now consider these products an everyday occurrence and demand their presence year-round—in perfect, unbruised orbs as well! Eating seasonally, instead can be a personal choice to match our eating with natural seasons of plenty. Eating sustainably is deeply rooted in understanding more about your food and where it comes from.
There are numerous benefits to eating seasonally and locally beyond the environmental impact:
Usually, produce is fresher and more flavorful. While many produce varieties that we find in the grocery store were bred for their ability to withstand long transport rides, local produce is instead likely to be varieties bred for flavor and quality.
When you buy local, you know that your money is supporting your local economy and farming community, rather than large corporate interests. This is important for value added products like pasta, breads, sauces and other products found in local markets.
Lastly, while some farmers’ market prices can be higher than the grocery store, usually you can find ways to save money by eating in season. Farmers at markets seek to have comparable prices, and often you can find SNAP-match or other programs to help low-income individuals, depending on your market. Also, usually you can save money by buying in season in a grocery store because those are the products they are currently receiving in abundance so they will price them lower—especially towards the end of the season.
There are ways to get around the limitations of seasonality and locality throughout the year by drying and freezing produce. Say you’re someone who loves berries in your oatmeal, you can buy more than you need when they’re in season, and freeze for the rest of the year. This could save you some money over the course of the year, save emissions from transporting berries to your plate from around the world, and increase the flavor of those berries that you can savor year-round.
A great way to figure out what is in season is to go to your local farmers’ market. Even if you aren’t able to buy all of your groceries from a farmers’ market, seeing what is there is a great first step for understanding what is being grown around you.
If you live in a rural area with limited food options, consider learning to grow some of your own food, bringing together farmers to make a market, or working with farms to directly source goods from them.
It’s also great to look at different maps and tables of what is in season in your area. Often, you can find a calendar like this one that shows when produce is in season in Virginia. Try Googling “in season chart for [your area here].”
What about things like grains, spices, tea and coffee? These are things we love, they may be harder to give up and only grow in select regions of the world. These are another way to put our money where our mouth is when it comes to values in the food system. This is when reading labels and understanding how to gauge a product for greenwashing and other marketing tricks is essential. Some basics:
USDA Organic standards and labeling is complicated, but here’s some basic facts on this site. Buy organic when you’re able, but keep in mind that mega-organic production companies can still grow massive monocultures that destroy ecosystems around the globe. Opt for small when possible!
Fair Trade certification is an indicator that a larger percent of your money is being given to producers of goods, and that money is being invested in communities around the world. Buy whenever possible!
Anyone can put the words “natural” on their packaging, or simply make the packaging green to make it seem more environmentally friendly, be a suspicious consumer of these items—especially if they’re coming from large corporations.
Most importantly, it is essential to consider the privilege we all carry to take the time to think about our food choices, how much we benefit from large scale agricultural production that has stripped native peoples of their rights, and how much trust we are able to put into the safety of our food. Consider ways that you can use your time, energy and resources to lift those up around you, break down barriers to equitable access and use your choices to reflect the world you wish to see.
