Why Eat Local for Thanksgiving?
Harvest festivals and thanksgiving celebrations have occurred for centuries around the world. Each is imbued with cultural traditions and customs that reflect their place of origin and the bounty of their local agricultural production. As people have migrated, a wonderful mixing of these traditions has occurred to create a rich tapestry of celebrations around the globe.
Today, however, when people gather to celebrate Thanksgiving, many are distantly removed from the food sources and traditions of their parents and grandparents. We've lost the connection these celebrations had to local seasons and foods and, consequently, some of their richness and meaning.
Can we reconnect our Thanksgiving tradition with our local agricultural tradition to create a more meaningful celebration? Should we? The answer to both is yes!
This year, don't let your food travel farther than your guests.
Benefits of Eating Local Foods:
More Delicious Choices
The global economy has changed the way many farmers grow, process, package and transport their products. One consequence of these changes has been a reduction in varieties of plants and animals and in genetic diversity. That is why at many grocery stores you'll only find two types of potatoes — red "new potatoes" and brown Russets. Farmers growing for local markets, on the other hand, tend to grow a greater diversity of plant varieties and animal breeds selected for their regional adaptability and flavor. In King County, farmers grow over 200 varieties of fruits and vegetables - asparagus to zucchini, including over a dozen delicious varieties of potatoes, plus an array of livestock, poultry, cheese and other dairy products, honey, herbs and flowers. Buying locally grown products helps maintain this critical diversity as well as ensuring that the food we serve at our table is fresh and full of flavor.
Better for the Environment
There are tremendous benefits to be gained by eating locally and supporting a local food system. Shortening the food chain — buying food grown closer to home — is one way to help improve the environment. There is increasing attention on how our current system of transporting foods over thousands of miles is detrimental to the environment and may be a significant factor in global warming. University of Washington researchers have shown that a Skagit Valley apple requires about two-thirds less climate-polluting energy to grow and ship to local retailers than an apple from New Zealand. And a recent World Watch Institute study shows that 17 percent of global fossil fuel use goes to fertilizing and transporting food.
Supporting local growers also helps preserve our working agricultural lands and open spaces. Fields, pastures, woodlands and waterways are an important part of our landscape and our quality of life. In King County alone, farmers are stewards to over 40,000 acres of land that supports a diversity of plants and animals. Healthy, vibrant farms, supported by local purchases, help maintain these critical areas and our quality of life.
Better for the Local Economy
Buying locally grown also helps put more dollars in the hands of local farmers and circulating throughout local communities. Research conducted by Sustainable Seattle indicates that locally directed spending contributes as much as two to three times more to community income than spending at non-local businesses. At farmers markets, for example, for every dollar spent, 62 cents is re-spent locally. For every dollar spent at an average grocery store, 25 cents is re-spent locally compared with 52 cents at a locally-based grocery store. The increase is even greater for locally-based restaurants. For every dollar spent at an average restaurant, 31 cents is re-spent locally compared with 79 cents for locally-based restaurants.
Local agriculture is also good for the community by contributing more in taxes than it requires in public services. According to the American Farmland Trust, for every dollar of tax revenues generated by farms, forests and open lands, they only required 51 cents in public services. Residential development, on the other hand, required $1.25 in services for every dollar of revenue generated.
