Organic vs Local

Wow! All this talk about going local is great! The one problem posed for those of us living in small states like Connecticut is access to it (one of the motivations behind the state-wide delivery service we are launching!) And buying local ORGANIC can be even more challenging.

Which is better? local products drenched in chemical fertilizers or organic products shipped 3000 miles? Hmmm... In our family we choose organic over local but actively seek out as much local organic stuff we can get our hands on. More challenging in New England is seasonal availability as well...hard for those of us eating mostly raw food to live without avocados, oranges, nuts and seeds that aren't grown here.

The craze for LOCAL is going to push prices sky high in states where there is more demand than is able to be produced. We loose more farmland to development every day, yet more people are seeking out local growers. We need to begin to understand the relationship between us and the land. We need the land to grow the food and the land needs to be chemical free!
What seems outrageous to me is non-organic locally grown products that cost more than organically grown non-local products! That's just not right! The whole point of local is to make more sense. It's about access and growing the local economy. Yet, here in Connecticut the only ones that can afford the local organics are the country clubs and high end spas (unless of course we grow our own! - watch out Codex Alimentarius!) Kinda crazy living in a state where we have the poorest and the richest cities in the nation in such a small little area.

The bottom line is we should have access to BOTH! Be a WISE consumer - whatever you are buying! Always ASK QUESTIONS!Inquire about your farmers about their growing practices. Make sure to show your support for farmers in your communities committing to growing organically (even if they are not certified). Grow your own garden, join a community garden, start a seed swap or support a local CSA this season! Let's take the hand back into our hands! and let's support Michelle Obama as she does the same! Read on:

The Mid America CropLife Association (MACA) has a bone to pick with Michelle Obama. MACA represents chemical companies that produce pesticides, and they are angry that Michelle Obama isn't using chemicals in her organic garden at the White House.

In an email they forwarded to their supporters, a MACA spokesman wrote http://www.lavidalocavore.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=1309 , "While a garden is a great idea, the thought of it being organic made [us] shudder." MACA went on to publish a letter it had sent to the First Lady asking her to consider using chemicals -- or what they call "crop protection products" -- in her garden.

This is CRAZY! Sign the petition telling MACA's board members to stop using Michelle Obama's garden to spread propaganda about produce needing to be sprayed with chemical fertilizers at the link attached. Go Michelle!