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FAQ: How do you define "local?"

Posted at 7:41 PM on January 30, 2008 by Donna McClurkan (5 Comments)

January 1 marked the start of our goal to obtain 80% of our food locally. Early on, we leaned toward a regional approach using a 5 state area of Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin. However, two factors led us to decide on a more narrow definition of “local.”

The first factor, and a logical starting point for anyone thinking about eating locally, is an assessment of one’s own backyard: what is grown, raised and produced within a given distance from home. Locating flour and grains, meat, eggs, milk, winter vegetables, apples, and so on turned out to be fairly easy, thanks to a lot of help from the People’s Food Co-op and referrals from new friends. And because we live adjacent to the orchards and farms along the coast of Lake Michigan - The Fruit Belt - we will have access to a wide range of fruits and berries to put up in the summer and fall months. We learned there is abundance and variety in our own backyard: almost everything we choose to eat is in Michigan, within 100 miles of Kalamazoo.

Secondly, one needn’t look far to find bleak news about the economy, especially in Michigan. Internet research indicates we can make a difference by spending our food dollars in Michigan, in part because those dollars can circulate and multiply in the local economy. This is how our family will “vote with every meal and every purchase” (first post, January 11).

Local can be defined in many different ways. Bottom line? Any meal sourced a little closer to home is a step in the right direction. Proximity matters.

Comments (5)

Having just moved back into the area this January I am having a hard time locating local products. I live in South Haven, in the fruit belt, and having no food stores of my own, am afraid what will happen during a large snow storm. I have a little daughter who recently had cardiac surgery so finding healthy, local products for me (I am nursing her) and her when she can have foods is vital. I can not depend on the box stores to provide for us, nor do I want to. Can you point me to some links that can help us survive winter and start out new in spring? Thanks for your blog.

Posted by Jenene | February 6, 2008 11:16 AM

Hi Jenene. Thanks for your comment and welcome back to SW Michigan! South Haven is 11 miles from two organic CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture)in Bangor that offer excellent produce in their winter shares: Blue Dog Greens and Eater's Guild. Another suggestion is to join EatLocalSWMich (Yahoo Group), where you'll find many opportunities to connect with others who can help you find local food. Hope this works for you and your family.

Posted by Donna McClurkan | February 6, 2008 11:43 AM

Donna, thanks for spelling out so clearly the very important benefits of eating locally. Also looking forward to the time when a database of all our Southwest Michigan growers and their products will be shared with the general public. Keep posting your blogs, sharing your food journey with us.

Posted by Brusselsprouts | February 6, 2008 5:15 PM

Hi, Donna! I'm now living in Ann Arbor, but spent almost 10 years in Kalamazoo and still have some ties to the area.

You might find some of the pages on this local food wiki useful - there are many sources there for foods made in or near southern Michigan. Aunt Millie's bread, Ope's veggie burgers, Eden Organics beans and tomatoes, and Thumb Oilseed non-GMO soybean oil are a few highlights.

I also post new local foods from time to time on my blog, as well as gardening and food preserving pointers.

Posted by Emily | February 7, 2008 9:40 AM

Hi Emily - thanks for the wiki link (great idea) and suggestions for local food. I hadn't heard about the non-GMO soybean oil and will check it out. A fellow locavore is helping me track the origins of other products you mention to ensure they are all grown here (not just processed). As you probably know, that part of learning where our food comes from is really time consuming!

Posted by Donna McClurkan | February 7, 2008 3:07 PM