It's That Time Again!

Baseball, flowers poking up through the ground, green leaves showing themselves--all sure signs of spring.  But one of the best signs that we're into that time of year is the opening of our many local farmers' markets.

Cows of Tussock Sedge Farm in Blooming Glen.
(photo courtesy of Lynne Goldman)

Slowly but surely, the farmers' markets in our area are starting up, giving us the opportunity to buy great local foods (and other products).  It's a great time of year.

A number of studies show that supermarket produce travels an average of about 1500 miles from the field to your plate.  That's a long way.  During the food's not-so-excellent adventure, both nutrition and taste are depleted.  That gives us some pretty tepid and bland veggies sitting in the grocery store.  Add in the fuel, refrigeration and packaging used to ship these products so far, you've got a pretty major carbon footprint.

That's why eating locally produced and grown foods makes so much sense.  No long-distance shipping.  Foods that retain their natural nutritional value.  And food that simply tastes so much better than things shipped from across the country. 

There are places in this country that eating local isn't very easy.  But we are so blessed with an amazing array of locally raised foods to choose from here in Bucks County and surrounding areas.  Why would we eat anything else?  Buying from local farmers lets you actually talk to the people who work so hard to give you these great items.  You can ask questions and really know where your food came from.

A Blooming Glen Farm farmers' market display.

Whether it's produce or meats, eating local also gives a much-needed boost to the local economy.  The neat thing is that many of our communities were founded on economies based on farming.  So the local food movement, while forward-thinking, also hearkens back to the past--and brings things full circle.

So go check out a farmers' market this weekend.  Join a CSA (we finally joined Blooming Glen Farm and are very excited about it!).  Stop by a local meat or poultry market.  The farmers, your family, your body and your taste buds will thank you for it!