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For the Naysayers

Posted at 6:03 AM on February 21, 2008 by Donna McClurkan (2 Comments)

Fellow blogger Paulette, in Locavore Nation West, prompts this entry. On February 17 she wrote about the perception of others that locally sourced food costs more, and asks “how have you responded to naysayers without boring them to sleep?”

Here are three ideas:

1. Acknowledge the point. Some foods may cost more, and it is possible we may incur extra costs (fuel, time, etc.) seeking local food. There are challenges associated with eating locally – this project will help identify what they are. By comparing our documented foods costs for 2008 against consumer spending data, we’ll be better able to address this perception.

2. Consider the “hidden costs” of non-local food. The massive beef recall currently underway, or the 2007 recall of E-coli tainted spinach should lead one to think about quality assurance shortcuts, human working conditions, and animal health considerations. Conversely, by eating locally and really knowing where our food comes from, we avoid these “hidden costs.” Bottom line: I don’t have to worry about the safety of locally-sourced food.

3. Think about the economic benefits of eating locally. This really seems to resonate with folks here in economically-depressed Michigan. Many understand that by spending their money locally, they are investing in their community because dollars circulate and multiply in the local economy. For example, the Michigan Department of Agriculture estimates that one dollar spent locally impacts 3 to 7 businesses before that dollar leaves the local economy.

There will always be naysayers, and it’s okay if they don’t all come around to our local eating point of view. But by talking through these ideas, I believe many skeptics will start to view their own food choices in a different light.

Comments (2)

Excellent points well made, Donna. Thanks. People should also note that the $.69 per pound chicken they buy in the grocery store has already cost consumers, as taxpayers, 10 times that price through such things as subsidies paid for outright by government and by insurance companies (when workers become sick from exposure to contaminants). The final costs are always delivered to the consumer, somehow. "Low cost" is an illusion.

Posted by Bruce Schultz | February 22, 2008 11:18 AM

Yes, very good points Donna. As Bruce mentioned, the taxpayer subsidies and tax credits to the huge ag-conglomerates alone create a huge disconnect from what is really the true cost of a chicken or a head of lettuce.

Posted by Scott | February 24, 2008 9:17 PM