I want to eat local, and from an article that I read recently, that means within 300 miles of where I live AND within the same state.So, we tootled up to Paonia last weekend (about 159 miles away) and did the local thing I used to do every summer: picked cherries and ate more of them than my digestive system liked.
While we were in Paonia, we also stocked up on local meat from Homestead Market, a coop that sells locally produced meat from around the North Fork Valley.
We've also been patronizing the Durango Farmer's Market buying steak and eggs.
So, here is the dilemma: It is expensive to eat local.Though my garden is supplementing much of the vegetables we eat, our portion of cherries cost $26 (thoughtfully paid for by Scott's parents), the dehydrator cost $75 (I opted for the less expensive model- they can be up to $175), the pectin, canning jars, lids, and hot water tongs can add up to over $40, and the electricity it takes to dehydrate a several batches of cherries for 14 hours at a time isn't nominal.
I know that if we break these costs down, it will be much less than compared with buying cherries at the store ($6 for a bag of dehydrated cherries!), but what about the meat from the farmer's market?
Farmers Markets have become so popular for tourists and the social elite that prices have gone up. I am not complaining (too loudly) because I know the amazing amount of work and care that goes into raising food, and it SHOULD be expensive to compensate these people for this nobel contribution to society. I know the difference between meat bought at Walmart and the Farmer's Market, but how can people afford it, especially during these rough economic times?
Luckily, I'm not the only one going back to the land to supplement my food supply. The revival of "victory gardens" and raising food at home is on the rise. 10% of Americans are returning to the land, saving money, and working together as families and neighbors to bring food to the table.
Why did it take an economic downturn for us to realize, gardening makes good scents/cents/sense?
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Just a thought about meat - if you're buying beef and pork, what about sharing an animal with someone else, either raised by the sharees or bought and have butchered together? Of course there's the cost of freezing it....or making sausage. And there's other ways to get your meat protein - fishing, for instance. And of course eating more beans and cheese. With Karrie making all this cheese, I've thought that when I come across milk that's going out of date and marked down, I can make my own simple cheeses and yogurt. Perhaps these ways are cheaper?
ReplyDeleteAs long as it is local milk! And I guess we need a bigger freezer if we share an animal, but we've thought of that- good call!
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