Local Farmers

One tenet that Slow Food Orlando prides itself on is our support of our local farmers and artisans…

Why is this so important?
This commitment extends far beyond just the ‘feel good’ aspect of knowing about your food sources. The option of buying your food locally benefits both your personal health as well as the health of the environment. Lets start with your personal health which includes eating foods that are picked fresh, that are not only delicious, but also contain the highest amount of nutrients. Don’t forget that plants were once living organisms, and once they are picked, they literally begin to die while losing their nutrient value within the first day after harvest. In terms of the health of the environment, you now lower your carbon footprint because less fossil-fuels are used in order to transport your food.

What about the economic benefits of buying your food locally?
According to BALLE (Business Alliance for Local Living Economies), roughly $0.45 out of every dollar stays in your local community. The ongoing support of local farmers creates demand for more food, allowing the farmers to keep their land and stay in business. Without the support for farmers, they go out of business, and that once arable land now becomes a new subdivision or business development.

How do you find local food?
Harmoni Market is a great advocate for buying locally sourced foods. Check out their new Local and Slow section within their market. When making a visit to your area farmer’s markets, be sure to ask the vendors if they are, in fact, farmers and what methods they use to grow their food. There are many distributors at our area markets who are buying product shipped from all over the place. Defining ‘local’ is very much a challenge because of the types of growing seasons and the varying climates throughout Florida. Slow Food Orlando has defined ‘local’ as the entire state, but we have a preference of purchasing food at a distance of roughly 50 miles from home.

We hope you will take the time to connect with your local farmers and artisans, and enjoy your bounty around the table with family and friends.

This entry was posted on Monday, October 27th, 2008 at 12:21 pm and is filed under "Slow Down Orlando!" Blog. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.