Buy Local

We Americans comprise about 5% of the world's population: 300 million out of 6 billion. Yet we consume about 25% of the worlds goods and services. Think about this: China and India, EACH with about 20% of the world's population aspire to our lifestyle, and their economies are poised to enter First-world status (almost 1 in 5 people are Chinese, 1 in 5 are Indian - the other 3 are the rest of the countries!). Now, if that doesn't scare you, I don't know what will - Alien invasion???

Because so much of the products purchased in this country are shipped around from long distances, it takes quite a bit of fossil fuels to bring these in. We are talking about California producing 99% of the country's Almonds, most of the country's produce, oh and what about Washington and Florida? If we but make a simple effort A) to find local sources for food and goods, and B) tell others about it, this will open up a HUGE amount of benefits! Think about this:

1. Reduction in fossil fuel use because they don't have to truck the goods around.
2. Strengthen local economies (one farmer we know said that if you spend $1 on food at the supermarket, about 19 cents goes back to the farmer; but if you spend $1 on food at a Farmer's Market, farm stand, Co-op, or other way of buying locally, $1 goes to the farmer - and that $1 shows up about 5 or 6 times in the local economy). That's right - in stead of fattening the wallet of some Wall Street banker or executive in some other state (or even another country), we could keep our money in the local economy.
3. Increase food nutrition - numerous studies show that the nutritional value of food is directly related to, among other factors, the amount of time it spends growing before being harvested, and the amount of time between harvest and consumption. Fresh-picked, local foods are fresher and have better nutritional value.
4. Reduce the threat and impact of foodborne illnesses. According to the US Government Center for Disease Control's own statistics, the vast majority of foodborne illnesses (E. Coli, Salmonella, etc.) occur in the larger farming operations (a.k.a. Factory Farms). The largest number of people are affected because these large operations have large customer bases. Small operations are less likely to have an outbreak, have fewer customers, and thus are likely to infect a small number of people. Don't irradiate or Pasteurize, for God's sake! That ruins the nutritional value of food. Just get it from a source you trust!
5. Many products purchased in third-world countries support non-desirable practices. These range from money going into the hands of criminals or criminal governments, to unfair trade and labor practices, to drug cartels or political extremists (a.k.a. terrorists). Again, purchasing from a small, local operation reduces this risk.

So, next time you dig into that banana from South America, the Mango, the Australian pear, or whatever food - did you think first about buying a local version, or if not, then just doing without? Am I saying to completely cut out coconuts, bananas, mangoes - items that can't be produced locally or even domestically? No. But they don't have to be a staple, consumed every day. Buy American second - but before that, buy Local first.