Hello, I have found myself increasingly interested by how our food is produced since 2005. Annette, my wife, and I
retuned to Ohio from NY and bought a farm in Ashland County. It did not take long to notice the backwards attitudes of most
of today's farmers, urban planners, educators and politicians. During the Nixon administration, Earl Butz, Ray Crock and others
had a seemingly harmless, goal in mind, produce and distribute the most amount of food for the least amount of money.
It
has taken us a complete generation to figure out that this model just does not work, for so many reasons. The broken farming
system effects everyone in profound ways, all connected. From healthcare to the economy, the way we produce and distribute
food must change, and change dramaticly, NOW. Small scale farmers and farmers markets are the tip of the melting iceburg that
will save the planet!
From Wikipedia...
The locavore movement is a movement in
the United States and elsewhere that spawned as interest in sustainability and eco-consciousness become more prevalent.[1] Those who are interested in eating food that is locally produced, not moved long distances to market, are called "locavores."
The word "locavore" was the word of the year for 2007 in the Oxford American Dictionary.[2] This word was the creation of Jessica Prentice of the San Francisco Bay Area at the time of World Environment Day, 2005.[3] It is rendered "localvore" by some, depending on regional differences, usually.[4][5] The food may be grown in home gardens or grown by local commercial groups interested in keeping the environment as clean as possible and selling food close to
where it is grown. Some people consider food grown within a 100-mile radius of their location local, while others have other
definitions. In general the local food is thought by those in the movement to taste better than food that is shipped long
distances.[1]
Farmers' markets play a role in efforts to eat what is local.[6] Preserving food for those seasons when it is not available fresh from a local source is one approach some locavores
include in their strategies. Living in a mild climate can make eating locally grown products very different from living where
the winter is severe or where no rain falls during certain parts of the year.[7] Those in the movement generally seek to keep use of fossil fuels to a minimum, thereby releasing less carbon dioxide into the air and preventing greater global warming. Keeping energy use down and using food grown in heated greenhouses locally would be in conflict with each other, so there
are decisions to be made by those seeking to follow this lifestyle. Many approaches can be developed, and they vary by locale.[8] Such foods as spices, chocolate, or coffee pose a challenge for some, so there are a variety of ways of adhering to
the locavore ethic.[9]
Join me in promoting this just cause, starting right here
in Northeast Ohio!, where we have already been recognized internationally for our efforts! Click here for Sustain Lane ranking
