Luxuries

As I went shopping at Trader Joe's this week, I had a new awareness of which foods that I buy regularly are NOT from local sources. Although most products don't have an origin label (they give a TJ hub address instead,) many were no-brainers. Some foods that we eat regularly just don't even grow in Oregon, as far as I know: avocados, bananas, coconut, olives, to name just a few. Then there are all of the regular, non-exotic foods that I just don't know the source for: canned tomatoes, meats, cheeses, bread (some I do know are from nearby,) crackers, canned beans, and on and on. I've pretty much always just shopped at TJ's and the local farmer's market, so I am not as aware of other sources for these item that are actually local and affordable. One big plus is that Bob's Red Mill is located very close by, and we can get any dry grains or beans from them(although not all are grown locally, they are processed here, and I'll take it!) As far as weekly shopping goes... I still plan to go to Trader Joes, but will consider the exotic foods luxuries, and look for OR alternatives. I also need to do a bit more legwork on other basics to see what my options are.

Ethics of Eating

I wanted to share with you an inspiring interview on PRI. It is with Barbara Kingsolver, author of a new book: Animal Vegetable, Miracle-- a reflection on the year that her family moved to a farm and grew most of the food they ate. So much of what she said about how we live and eat resonated with me. One comment that I especially appreciated was about how, in our culture, many of us sit down to an incredible meal with the idea that we are doing something "sinful" by indulging in good food that has been wonderfully prepared for our benefit. I love the reverent and grateful attitude she holds toward traditional ways of producing what we eat. I'm about to order the book!

Thanks to H. Shack for the recommendation.

Foraging

Hands down, the best way to get local fresh produce is by finding it in your neighborhhood. Here is a picture of what I came home with after a couple of walks this weekend: pears, apples (braeburn and granny smith) and walnuts. Not pictured are the many, many blackberries I ate along the way, as well as a couple of cherries and a plum. There were more apples and walnuts than I wanted. The funny thing is, I couldn't find apples at the farmer's market this week. By the way, does anyone know about harvesting walnuts? I could bring home a whole bag of the green fruit, if I wanted, but I wasn't sure what would be next. I remember getting the hard shelled nuts out of their black dry skins in our yard growing up-- so do I put these in the sun, or what? I guess could look it up, but I prefer the community- friendly sharing of knowledge!

The Whats and Whys

A couple of months before Jeff and I moved up to Oregon, we sat down and made a "dream life" list-- things that we would like to have in our life, since we are kind of starting anew as we resettle. On the top of the list was being able to live as sustainably as possible, mainly by eating primarily local food. Now that we are here and getting ready to move into our house, I am beginning to think about how to actually make this happen. Portland is a great place to try to do this, since the culture is very supportive of local, organic, self-sustainable businesses and lifestyles that respect the environment. There are farmers markets every day of the week that I can go to. I think that the hardest part about eating locally produced food will be keeping within my $400 per month food budget-- it's already a challenge, since Jeff and I love to eat and drink well, and I love to feed other people, too. That's where the blog comes in, since I think that a lot of people believe it's impossible to be frugal and support these kinds of values. I am hoping that this blog will (a) keep me on track (b) encourage others that it is actually doable (c) generate support and helpful information for others who would like to live with less impact on the environment.

Beyond benefiting the environment there are many great reasons to "eat local". Here are just a few:
Locally produced food is freshest, and therefore tastes better and has more vitamins.
Eating locally also means eating only foods that are in season-- which is not only beneficial for the body, but uses less resources and requires less fertilizers and pesticides, since these plants grow easily in their natural seasons.
By buying from the growers, we develop community relationships, learn more about our food and connect to the food itself.
Food grown on huge factory farms is subsidized by the government and may cost less at the grocery store, but organic produce grown by ethical farmers does not-- it may cost more, but we are supporting these farmers and showing appreciation for choosing to grow quality food for us.

In September (with a fresh budget) I will really begin these efforts, and will let you know how it goes. For the rest of this month, I think I will be doing (and sharing) as much planning and research as I can on how to eat locally, yet inexpensively. I definitely look forward to any insight and or information you readers have to offer!