Act Locally ... Eat Locally!

My daughter Annie is having strawberries with her lunch again today. So am I. In fact, it seems like we've been eating strawberries at every meal -- delicious, beautiful, fresh, organic, local strawberries. That's because it's June in the Hudson Valley, and the growing season is in high gear. Strawberries are now widely available at farmers' markets and pick-your-own farms throughout Dutchess County. But the season is short; for the rest of the year, the only strawberries will be in the supermarket, having been shipped hundreds, or even thousands, of miles in trucks or planes.

Like many people, my family is trying to be more aware of the "food miles" contained in everything we eat. How far did something travel before it came to our table? How much fuel was used to ship it? How much carbon gets emitted just so we can have asparagus in August or apples in April? It's almost impossible to calculate. The British supermarket chain Tesco is developing a program to label products with information about their environmental impact -- including data about how far the food traveled. A recent article in The Independent explores the issue. Let's hope that North American supermarkets develop similar programs to make it easier for all of us to make environmentally responsible food choices.

But here's the good news: during the growing season in your neck of the woods, there are three easy ways to make dramatic reductions in the carbon footprint of your meals.

1. Join a CSA. Each summer, we purchase a "farm share" from the Hearty Roots Community Farm in Tivoli, New York. Our membership fee supports the farm's activities, and we get a weekly bounty of fresh, seasonal produce all grown right here in our neighborhood. Small farms across the U.S. are using this "community supported agriculture" -- or CSA -- model to keep working agricultural land in production and to meet the increasing demand for tasty, healthy, locally grown food.
2. Visit farmers' markets and farm stands. All summer long we get our fruit from the Montgomery Place Orchards farm stand in Annandale-on-Hudson. And on Friday afternoons, I can purchase food from local growers at a small farmers' market right next to Scenic Hudson's offices in downtown Poughkeepsie.
3. Get to know your local farmers. With a little networking, you can find sources for eggs, meats, cheeses, bread, flowers and honey that have been raised locally. Start asking around -- if there's something you don't see at your market, ask the growers who are there if they know someone. Chances are, they will.

To get started, visit www.localharvest.org, where you'll find a directory of farmers' markets, family farms and other sources of sustainably grown food in your area. And finally, don't forget the side benefit of eating local food -- it's delicious! (The sugar snap peas are especially good this year.)

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Ned Sullivan is president of Scenic Hudson.

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