By Vicki Needham -- Apples for sale at the Falls Church farmers market.
Yes, I’m reading “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” by Michael Pollan (for those of you way ahead of me on that count) a book that explores the who, what, where, when, why and how of our food chain from the industrial complex to the simply complex, where one farmer moves his animals and crops so they work together in agricultural harmony.
This little gem of a phrase “Eat Your View” defines exactly what I’m trying to do — eat as much local, (within a few hundred miles), seasonal food as possible. The concept may sound easy but I’ve found it’s much harder than grabbing your reusable shopping bags and heading to the local grocery store.
As a whole, there’s a lot to consider. I’ve really tried to simplify my food choices over time, sticking mainly to fresh produce and healthy grains while eliminating most of the *bad* foods (in my opinion) — fast food, soda and processed foods loaded with fat and sodium. Nixing the bad stuff wasn’t too hard. It’s what’s left that provides the challenge.
It’s one thing to pick a delicious, vine-ripened tomato in August from my deck garden — I know exactly what effort it has taken to plant it, grow it, pick it and, of course, EAT it. Yum. Same deal if a friend passes on their surplus backyard-garden produce or my grower friends Matt and Mary plant and harvest a tomato, zucchini or eggplant. It’s about 75 miles from their farm to, pretty much, my plate. Easy enough.
