Becoming a Locavore Detective

Recently, I bought some bacon prominently labeled "Made in Vermont." But after I got it home and read the label more carefully, I saw the small print: "Made using pork from the U.S.A. and Canada." Which means that while it's possible the pork was raised in New England or nearby Quebec, it could just as easily have come from Florida, California, Vancouver, or Hawaii. And while I like supporting a local Vermont business, that food's just not local enough for me.

Why do I care? Well, there are lots of good reasons to eat local foods. You can read about a locavore diet more thoroughly in books like Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle or Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food and draw your own conclusions. You can also read the reasoning of other Boston-area locavores at BostonLocalvores.org. Here are a few of my personal reasons:

1. Nutrition - Locally-produced food is more nutritious. This is particularly true of fruits and vegetables because they do not need to be picked well before they ripen in order to be shipped halfway around the world. Local foods can be picked when ripe and full of vital nutrients.
2. Environment - Food that does not have to be shipped far consumes less fossil fuel en route to my mouth. And local foods tend to be grown sustainably and even organically, which reduces chemical pollutants in our water and soil and, coincidentally, also makes the food more nutritious.
3. Economy - Buying locally keeps money within the local community and supports small farmers.
4. Biodiversity - Small farmers tend to grow diverse crops and unusual varieties of livestock. This promotes biodiversity and offers greater variety in my diet.
5. Taste - Quite simply, locally-produced food tastes much, much better. Last night, I had the most tender, delicious roasted chicken in my life, and it came from Chestnut Farm in Raynham, MA.
6. Ideology - I don't believe that I can take my food at face value any more. There is nothing more intimately tied to my health and well being. Food becomes me. The food I feed my daughters becomes them. We are literally what we eat. How food is grown affects what we drink. How food is transported affects how we breathe. To be a responsible consumer, to take real control of my health and my life, as well as the health and lives of my family, I want to know my food: where it comes from, how it is produced, and how it arrives on my plate.
   

But how can I tell if my food is truly local? And even if it is local, how can I tell if it's sustainably farmed? If it's a food product like bread or jam or bacon, how do I know its ingredients are local? If I eat at a restaurant that claims to use local ingredients, how many of those ingredients are local? And are they sustainable/organic/humane?

The simple answer: ask.

I intend to spend a little time every week getting to know my food. And as I investigate the origins of my meals, I'm going to report my findings here. Like a locavore detective, I intend to ask questions and visit the places where my food is produced to verify the answers. Here are some of the things I want to investigate:

1. Local farms - About once a month, perhaps more in the summer, I want to visit a local farm. Initially, these will probably be the farms where I have CSA shares (Brookfield Farm, Chestnut Farm), but I'll also visit farms that are easy to reach from Boston and farms that sell food at Boston-area farmers' markets. I was raised on a farm in New Mexico, so I actually know a fair amount about vegetable farming and raising cattle and goats. I will report back on the conditions I find.
2. Restaurants serving food made with local ingredients - More of these are springing up all around the Boston area. I'll visit restaurants like Henrietta's Table, Stone Hearth Pizza, and many others. Suggestions for restaurants to visit are welcome. I'll also call the owners and ask them exactly what was in the dishes I ordered and where they get their ingredients. That may lead me to more local farms.
3. Locally-produced foods - Like the "Vermont Bacon," I want to check out locally produced foods, like Taza Chocolate, Maria and Ricardo's Tortillas, and Littleton Grist Mill's flours and mixes.
4. Local organizations that support local foods - Boston Organics recently began offering a Dogma Box of all local produce. How local is it really? And how about the local offerings in area grocery stores like Whole Foods and specialty shops like the Dairy Bar?
5. Where to find odd local foods - It seems to me that, being right next to the ocean, it ought to be possible to find locally-produced sea salt, but dang if I can find it. How about local vinegar? Local kosher foods?
6. Producing your own local foods - I'm an avid gardener, and I act as the coordinator for a community garden. Inevitably, my gardening habit will leak into this blog, but I'm also hoping to investigate things like how to make my own cheese, can my own vegetables, make my own maple syrup, heck, even my own sea salt.
   

It's my intention to make this blog useful to folks in the Metro Boston area who are also struggling to attain a local, sustainable lifestyle. I hope that you'll contribute your findings, ideas, and requests for information. I'll do my best to answer all our questions.

Happy reading, happy eating!
Jenise Aminoff