Monday, August 24, 2009

Local Food Articles


I've across a few articles on local food recently that are a cut above the fray. They touch on issues of climate change and vegetarianism, and reference studies conducted on the impact of our food choices.

From World Watch magazine, "Is Local Food Better?" is a well researched article that explores the meaning of local food, tradeoffs involved with that choice, and the notion that what you eat matters as much as where it comes from (dairy and meat have a larger impact environmentally than veggies).

The ecological harm of raising and consuming meat is given front and center attention in a Washington Post article, "The Meat Of The Problem." It cites hard-hitting reports that are difficult to refute, such as a United Nation's report that attributes 18% of worldwide greenhouse gases (CO2 equivalent) to livestock. But it also has a personal angle, talking about sacrifices that we can all make as part of taking global warming seriously.

Although there are a dozen more articles, the last one for right now is a short and sweet success story. "Produce Truck Encourages Healthy Eating In Detroit," Associated Press, tells of how the Peaches and Greens truck travels the streets of Detroit, selling produce like ice cream. Says author David Runk, "The truck set up like a small market brings affordable produce to families on public assistance, homebound seniors and others who can't reach the well-stocked grocery chains in the suburbs."


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