Farmer’s markets have become popular phenomena.
Buying locally grown produce is a good thing. It supports local farming, particularly small family farms, and it provides a multitude of benefits. It reduces our carbon footprint by keeping the transport and distribution of locally grown products to within a smaller radius, and it speeds to market fresher foods that haven’t been processed hundreds of miles away. For smaller rural communities the benefits of farmers markets keeps jobs locally in the harvesting, processing, and distribution of those food items. But, how often have you gone to a local farmers market, or a local grocery store and found locally raised meat products? (For those vegetarians and vegans I apologize for continuing on this track, but there are still “locavores” out there that should support locally raised meat from small-scale producers.) Finding local meat is not an easy task. There are currently four corporate meat processors in the U.S. that supply 80% of the product. One of the issues for finding locally sourced meat products is that there has been a tremendous reduction in the number of slaughterhouses around the U.S., which worked with local meat producers. The good news is that small farms are beginning to band together to build local slaughterhouses that can keep the meat local. Co-ops have sprung up, and even the Obama administration created a mobile slaughterhouse unit that can be used by small scale processing of animals on farm. Local producers are even using the waste by product of the animals back on the farm as fertilizer. If you’re part of the “locavore” nation you should be supporting locally raised animal products as well, it’s the latest buy local phenomena.
Recent Comments