Local Foods

A good article in the Washington Post recently discussed the growth of locally grown foods. I fully agree with the article's assertion that the use of local produce by restaurants and consumers is a trend that benefits the environment, small businesses, and society as a whole. I believe this is a trend that should continue to be pursued in many other sectors of the economy, which might bring us back to a more local economy based on regional trade.

While free trade has unarguably brought a great deal of benefits, it is also a harbinger of doom for the planet. Recently another article was published stating humans may no longer have fish stocks for consumption by the year 2048. If we were to really start eating locally, people living inland from the coasts would have to consume only freshwater fish as well as other local sources of protein. Of course, this would mean-heaven forbid!-regional cuisine would again become stronger. There would be a drop off in the continuing trend toward standardization of everything across the country and across the planet.

However, as others in the blogosphere have pointed out, what do you eat in the winter if you live in Ohio, or Maine? If we were to carry this to an extreme, some of the only available foods in these areas might be potatoes and other storable root crops, some of the long-lasting varieties of apple, dried fish and meats, and canned goods made from local produce. Who has time to do all this, or can food if you live in a one bedroom or studio apartment? Given our current economic and social paradigm, the only practical solution is to buy what you can that is grown and produced locally, supplementing it with proteins and other sources from your regular grocery store.

Drawing this idea out a bit more, a return to regional economies would demand a move away from the increasingly urbanized world we live in. Instead of people continuing to produce less and less of their own food and rely more and more on multinational corporations and large food producers, society as a whole would have to move toward small-scale agricultural production on an individual or family level. Small plots of land would be required, perhaps backyard plots like those often seen throughout Europe, or communtiy gardens. Such a trend would be encouraging to see, but is still just a small blip on the horizon, which could easily be snuffed out by current forces.