In case you hadn’t heard, today was the first ever National Food Day!  This was organized by the Center for Science in the Public Interest which “encourages Americans to eat healthy, delicious food grown in a sustainable and humane way and to advocate for smarter food policies.”

75 years ago, people knew where there food came from. Primarily, it came from their backyard or at the least – from the Moore farm a few roads over. Sadly,today, most of our food is transported at least a thousand miles before it hits our grocery stores. It has often been so processed, that the corn kernel you started out with, now resembles a Doritos chip or the oil in a granola bar. The orange in your Doritos is not natural and cheddar cheese is not suppose to be orange. You see…

Large corporations have taken over and created industrial farming. These companies do not care about the quality you get on your plate. They care about the quantity of dollar signs. Take Monsanto for example. They make Round-Up. They also make Genetically Modified Corn (and a whole bunch of other Genetically Modified Organisms) that are resistant to Round-Up. Imagine that. You eat a plant that has been sprayed with the strongest of weed killers and yet, it survives. Hmmm…imagine this….do you think some of that weed killer may still be lingering on the veggies you had for dinner?

And what we miss out on, is much more than the higher amount of nutrients in freshly picked produce – it’s the dirt between your toes, talking with the farmer who raised the cow you are about to indulge in, taking your kids to a U-Pick farm to pick fresh summer berries, or opening up a can of vegetables that you preserved.

So I want to encourage you to try one new thing this week when it comes to your food. Buy local meat, plant cilantro or lettuce (they like cooler weather), research CSA’s in your area for next spring. There are lots of ways that you can become more knowledgeable about the food you digest and its done with small steps. Do one new thing this week to eat smarter and more locally. Next week (or month) you can try one more thing.

And for the record, I know first hand how addictive those Doritos can be! I love Doritos and am currently trying to give them up…a challenge to say the least.

In the spirit of encouragement, here are some things we do at my house to eat locally…

Cilantro growing in October

Fresh cilantro in the garden

Happy Cow Creamery milk and eggs can be purchased from Our Local Foods

Butter from a local dairy

Strawberries and blueberries were picked this spring/early summer at Ambrose Farms and Maple Ridge Farms. The kids & I spent 2 hours on 2 separate days and we made a lot of fun memories!  After taking the tops off and coring (strawberries) we freeze in gallon sized plastic bags. The strawberries ran out a few months ago but we still have lots of blueberries frozen. And I know what you’re thinking….frozen fruit is so squishy after being defrosted. But if you teach your kids to eat defrosted blueberries with a fork, they adjust! And that frozen fruit is great in yogurt, oatmeal, smoothies, fruit crisps, etc.

Fresh strawberries picked from the farm

Blueberry muffins made from local blueberries

So try something local this week….and let me know how it goes!