Local Food Dilemna

[Gingerella72]

I love the idea of buying food as locally as possible. It helps the local economy, helps small farmers, and is healthier, IMO.

And for some products, such as raw milk or grass-fed meats, buying locally off the farm is the ONLY way to purchase it. The nearest Whole Foods and Trader Joe's is 150 miles away from me, and my local grocery stores don't carry local products (let alone organic and grass-fed). We only have a farmer's market during the summer months.

My problem is that to buy the products I want, I will have to drive to various farms within a 50-100 mile radius of my town, and pay on a cash basis. While this could be a good thing because it would force me to really, really plan meals so that there is no waste and would make me budget everything down to the smallest cheese slice, it will also be more expensive because the prices are higher than a grocery store plus I'll have to factor in gas prices.

I'm convinced that eating organic, raw, grass-fed foods are the key to optimal health (ymmv) but I'm stuck, because I'm torn between costs, and the extra work involved in eating this way. The thought of creating a plan to make this work and putting it into action is very daunting. I've never been very organized. Plus, our finances right now are so tight, I feel guilty even thinking about trying to make this work.

Does anyone else go to great lengths to buy local in order to be healthier? How do you make it work? I realize it doesn't have to be an all or nothing deal (and that's hard for me to fight because I'm very much a black or white thinker).

I just feel like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place....knowing what I want to do, but feeling unable to do it.

[Miss Cellane]

Maybe it would help to break this down into manageable pieces. Changing everything all at once--where you buy food, the number of places you have to go to buy food, the distance you have to travel to get the food--might be overwhelming.

Could you pick one thing, like dairy or meat, and work on just figuring out the best place to buy it and how to store a decent supply of it? Let's say you try out three organic butcher shops that fit your criteria. The one you like the best is 75 miles away. That's a long trip to get meat. But maybe they can sell you a side of beef at a time--you can pick and choose the cuts of meat that you like. Now, to store it all you might need to get a freezer and that's an expense, so you would have to save up for that. Or maybe you have a neighbor who'd also like to have grass-fed beef and who has a freezer and the two of you can work out a barter arrangement where you pick up the beef and she stores it in her freezer.

But I'm thinking if you tackled one type of food at a time, figuring out the best source of supply, good ways to store it at home and how much you need to buy at a time, it would be less overwhelming than trying to do it all at once.

[pinkytoe]

Could you form a little buying coop with friends and neighbors wherein you take turns procuring larger amounts of food and split cost and travel time? Being able to easily procure good foods is at the top of our list for any relocation plans so I sympathize.

[puglogic]

Do you have a local CSA that has a meat/poultry/dairy share system? I recently found out that the big local one here does, and so I split a share with a neighbor and we take turns going to pick it up. Also, getting a chest freezer and buying grassfed meat (and other things) in bulk has more than made up for the $3-4/month it costs to run the thing -- and that makes one trip out to the sources, not several, which saves a ton of time and gas. In one day I can fill the freezer with chicken, pork, frozen vegetables, and fresh flour, and not have to do it again for quite a while.

A lot of providers will have a dropoff schedule, where they will make stops at various locations once every other week or so. We've taken advantage of that from time to time. I really hope this service takes off, because it could be so promising in terms of finding stuff: http://farmplate.com

On dairy it's not so easy for us. We hunted and hunted around until we found a local source for goat's milk products and eggs, but as for other things like cheeses and cow's milk, for now we simply have to make do with organic and as-close-as-possible until things change. Again, we stock up wherever we can to avoid multiple trips, and when we do have to make trips to get things, we make a day of it, running other errands and always including a little treat in there so it doesn't seem so arduous.

It has forced me to be much more organized than I normally would be, but the effort has been worth it. I second the suggestion that you take this in small bites though. Getting one thing right until it feels second nature, then turning to the next, and the next. I keep a little tiny Moleskine notebook in the kitchen to remind me what comes from where, and when my next trip will likely be.

[Gingerella72]

Thanks for the replies all!

I don't know anyone where I live who is interested in this so this is pretty much a lone venture. My friends and family all think I'm nuts, lol. My state has a food co-op but it's based in Omaha (150 miles away) and the farthest west they deliver is a town 50 miles away, which wouldn't be bad but the sources I've found that are nearer to me would be more doable I think. I know having the freezer space to buy in bulk is the way to go but we can't afford a freezer right now, but it's on my list of things to save up for!

I guess I just needed to vent my frustrations; I'm REALLY fighting my all or nothing mentality and you're right, I do have to do this in small chunks. I get so frustrated because the town I live in (Kearney) is literally in the middle of a "real food" desert! I scour eatwild.com, localharvest.com, realmilk.com, pickyourown.org, etc. and there are virtually no resources less than 50 miles away from me. It's like I'm in this bubble and if I only lived 50 miles either to the east, west, north or south this would all be a non-issue! Gah.

I know this is doable, I just have to approach it a little at a time. Thank goodness my husband is on board with all of it, as long as I don't blow the budget. Where there's a will, there's a way. Thanks for listening!

[Kat]

Just wanted to say I sympathize! We are in the middle of nowhere, too. There is one grocery store here that carries organic food. The selection isn't great and what is there is very expensive. We are in the process of saving up some cash to buy six months to a year's worth of meat from a grass-fed farmer about two hours away. Thankfully, we have an extra freezer, so we can buy a lot and shouldn't have to make the drive too often.

I agree it's a total pain, but I guess it is worth it to me. I have had some--ahem--digestive problems since having my daughter, and the switch to organic food has really helped me a lot. This body has to last me a long time, so it is worth it to spend some time obtaining the best fuel I can for it (this isn't meant to admonish those who don't eat organic--this is just what I find works for me).

I hope in time the types of food you wish to consume are made more readily available to you. Until then...perhaps prioritizing and then going after what is most important first would help you to feel less overwhelmed. Also, don't discount internet sources! Some places will ship organic/grass-fed food right to your door (though I haven't had much luck finding anyplace that ships dairy).

Good luck! :)

[Miss Cellane]

Another thing to try, but this would have to wait until the summer, is to talk to people at the Farmer's Market. In my area, there is a surprising number of people who have small farms, with just a few cows and some chickens. They sell organic, free-range eggs and organic milk, but they aren't big enough to have a store or even a web presence. My sister buys cage-free brown eggs through a co-worker who lives next door to someone who has 10 chickens in her backyard. I suspect the Farmer's Market might be a way of finding such small farmers, who might live closer to you and be more convenient.

[jp1]

I think Miss Cellane's thinking is spot on. In addition to connecting with the farmers there and integrating yourself into that community, the farmers market is probably a good way to meet others near you who are interested in healthy, local food. Perhaps think about ways to connect with other shoppers at the farmers market as well. Surely at least a few of them must come from teh same area of the state that you do and perhaps they'd be interested in developing a little purchasing coop like pinkytoe mentioned. A quick mention to the farmers you regularly buy from that you live in "X" area and are looking to form a food purchasing coop with others from that area might be successful.

[Sad Eyed Lady]

Me too, Gingerella72 - I don't live where buying organic is real convenient or plentiful. In the summer there are farmers markets but that is still in the college town about 25 miles from me. But, one thing you might consider on a small scale is growing some veggies and herbs yourself. Can't get more local than your own backyard! You may even be in an area where you could have a few chickens. That's a start, then stocking up on the other stuff when you do make a "run" would tide you over for awhile. It won't be too long until you can start some plants and/or seeds in the ground! I only live on a small lot in town, but I do grow a few things each summer and even put up some of it.