As I walk into my local Stop & Shop or Market Basket I am overwhelmed by my choices. I look at some of the products and sometimes I find pictures of small farms with wide green pastures. That is how the industrial food system wants us to interpret it, although I know this is far from reality. Most of these industrial farms do not even have animals, and the ones that do are simply awful. In the essay “The Future of Food Production, the author, Sam Forman mentions that as soon as food production became industrialized, the concern for the environment and the livestock diminished. I agree with Forman whole-heartedly. Also in the essay “On Buying Local” by Katherine Spriggs, she mentions that benefits on buying local foods. I believe that more Americans
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Most people though, cannot due to the price or wonder why it is so expensive in the first place. What you are mostly paying for when buying local is labor, they hire local workers and have to pay them an honest amount. Local food is not always more expensive though. Industrial farms have to deliver their produce from across the country, so sometimes the shipping cost can be high. Spriggs says that in NYC, apples that were grown in the state are cheaper than the apples that were grown and trucked over from Washington or other states. While working at Whole Foods Market I have seen local or organic products be far cheaper than the conventional products. Also, natural food stores such as Whole Foods or Trader Joes often have huge sales on grass fed beef and free-range chicken. It is wise to look for these deals and take advantage of them. I have seen products at Whole Foods that are cheaper than some at Stop & Shop. Although it is unreasonable for some people to buy all local, it is wise to invest a little more money and help save the environment, yourself, and these local farmers. Always remember that you get what you pay
Most people though, cannot due to the price or wonder why it is so expensive in the first place. What you are mostly paying for when buying local is labor, they hire local workers and have to pay them an honest amount. Local food is not always more expensive though. Industrial farms have to deliver their produce from across the country, so sometimes the shipping cost can be high. Spriggs says that in NYC, apples that were grown in the state are cheaper than the apples that were grown and trucked over from Washington or other states. While working at Whole Foods Market I have seen local or organic products be far cheaper than the conventional products. Also, natural food stores such as Whole Foods or Trader Joes often have huge sales on grass fed beef and free-range chicken. It is wise to look for these deals and take advantage of them. I have seen products at Whole Foods that are cheaper than some at Stop & Shop. Although it is unreasonable for some people to buy all local, it is wise to invest a little more money and help save the environment, yourself, and these local farmers. Always remember that you get what you pay