Buying/Eating Local

[Shane]

Does anyone else here do that? Any farmer's market goers? I love it, it's my bread and butter. Out here in Virginia, you can find pretty much whatever you need if you look hard enough. I get the bulk of my fruit and vegetables from farmer's markets and I'm totally hooked on farm fresh eggs. Soon enough I'm going to look at other ways I can incorporate local agriculture into my own kitchen, as well as doing some gardening of my own.

Meat is another issue entirely. There are farms that will sell you meat in droves, 1/4, 1/2, and full cows, 1/2 and full pigs, etc. I've also found a place that produces their own flours for baking on the mill they have on their farm. I'll be looking into that soon.

So...is anyone else trying to keep things local?

 

[rm71]

Yes. I don't buy fruit and veg from supermarkets. Most of is sourced interstate. I go the farmer's markets as well. Much cheaper and fresher.

 

[Stubblefield]

I do the Farmer's market for most of my beef and produce. At some point this year I'll be buying a quarter from a local rancher.

 

[Luc]

I'm very pro-local stuff or at least, made in the same country I'm in.

I will often use the smaller shops where service is much better. You end-up with a bill a bit higher but I'm happier that way.

The fruits/veggies and meat direct from the farm are a lot better!

 

[Golden Ears]

My wife and I try to do that as much as possible, we have a farmers market starting up soon! We were going to buy into CSA (Community-supported agriculture) farm this year, but couldn't make a firm commitment in the end, maybe ext year.

 

[ibrewbeer]

Farmer's Market at least once a week for all veggies and meat, fruit comes from Sam's Club (we eat it in bulk!)

 

[xtalicious]

Definitely. There's a weekly farmer's market a two-minute walk from my door. I'm there most weekends, and definitely come back with great produce.

I don't cook a great deal of meat, but I am looking into local-ish options on that front.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Absolutely. I love farmer's markets and buy as much as possible from them. There isn't much independent meat around here, but I eat vegetarian five days a week for health reasons (no moral opposition).

I also make a point of not eating at chains when I eat out. I know some independent restaurants use industrial suppliers, but I avoid that when possible. I believe strongly in supporting local businesses.

If time ever frees up, I really want to try my hand at a Victory Garden. I think I could supply a fair bit of what I eat. I'd also like to get a few hens for their eggs.

 

[renoles]

Try to. There are plenty of Farmers markets going on here and several of the grocery stores stock local produce regularly. Need to be a bit more aggressive on this as there are some really great local producers of meat, veg, and seafood here.

 

[Shane]

Thread bump and a couple of links to spread the good word:

www.eatwild.com

www.pickyourown.org

www.localharvest.org