channeling my inner hippie...

one thing that has come out of this weight loss journey is the realization, denial, anger and acceptance that i am food obsessed.    some of you are reading this and thinking "what's wrong with being food obsessed? lol"  and to you -- i say: NOTHING!   nothing -- if you channel it correctly and do not go to extremes.  

my newest food obsession is Local Food.   i have been slowly reading about it online and have begun to think of ways to incorporate local food into my daily life.   of course, being the obsessive perfectionist i am -- i will study this until i master it.    i hope to share this education and journey here on my blog.

there are many different ways to define Local Food.   i am using the loose definition of DGD (day-goods-distance) which uses 400 miles as a distance -- which is one day's travel.  i plan to hone in on opportunities where it is less than a day's travel and maybe try to limit it to my immediate geographic area or 100 miles since much of our suburban area here was farms and there are some still left.  in fact, a local farm operates a seasonal store right outside my development and i have frequented it for years.   

i understand this is a huge commitment.  but i believe it in.   i have always been a Whole Foods Market type girl -- both for the quality of foods, my own gluten intolerance issues and the concept.   i also understand that local food is somewhat trendy right now.   but what better to be trendy about than fostering the local economy, supporting energy efficient consumerism and being healthy?

my first steps are to commit to no longer buying produce or eggs (when possible) in any grocery store.   i will only buy from local farms and markets.  i am also going to investigate joining a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).   this simple system operates like a co-op.   you buy in a share and every week for the season you pick up a box of fresh produce.  

unlike when i lived in atlanta, i am unaware of any co-op natural food stores here in south florida.  but if i do find one, i will consider shopping there.   in the meantime, for my cheeses and other produced foods i will continue to frequent Whole Foods and other organic store and purchase from their "Local Food" case -- except for that damn English sharp cheddar cheese Whole Foods has me AND the princess addicted to.  yeah, my 5 year old now requests imported english cheese.  lol.

i am interested in hearing other ways you all incorporate this local food movement into your life.   i am not really a good gardener so i do not see myself growing my own tomatoes yet....