EcoAction Partners: The Lowdown on Local Food

22 Aug EcoAction Partners: The Lowdown on Local Food

From June 7 – October 11, Oak Street in downtown Telluride is festooned with the tents of local food purveyors, full of fresh, colorful offerings. We’re fortunate to have access to this feast of regional and sustainable food during summer and fall.

Occasionally, we might not find everything we are looking for at the Farmers’ Market and some say prices are higher than big-box grocery stores. Perhaps, but supporting our region’s agriculture is tremendously worthwhile, benefitting both consumer and producer. In fact, buying local food is good for you and your family, the environment, and our local economy.

Let’s explore the many benefits of this important community fixture!

Why buy local?

Sustainable, local food is better for the environment

• Cuts down on transportation and fossil fuel use for distributors and consumers: no need to drive to Montrose to purchase produce flown in from as far away as New Zealand

• Sustainable local agriculture improves bioregional biodiversity and improves soil quality

• Food you find at the Telluride Farmers’ Market is either certified organic, certified naturally grown, or grown to organic or better standards. This means no non-organic pesticides or fertilizers.

• Even the prepared food is at least 75% organic or better.

• Local meat and poultry is typically raised in an environmentally responsible manner without the environmental damage caused by feedlots and large-scale operations

It’s also healthier for you and your family, and tastes better!

• Produce is picked at the peak of ripeness and brought to the consumer quicker, lending fruits and veggies better flavor.

• Varieties grown for local sale are usually chosen for their nutritional value and fantastic flavors rather than the ability to withstand days in the back of a truck or cargo plane

Buying locally-grown food supports the economy and builds community

• The Telluride Farmers’ Market contributes to our vibrant summer tourism and is a family-friendly activity

• The market bolsters main street businesses by increasing foot traffic, and provides a venue for local musicians

• TFM supports local farmers, links our rural and urban communities in San Miguel County and beyond, and creates jobs in the fields and at the booths. Farmers are people too and need to make more than subsistence wages.

Want to be a bigger part of our local food system? Contact kris@ecoactionpartners.org to find out more about the local food systems Task Force. 

And find out more information about sustainable, local agriculture at the following links:

EcoAction Partners Food Programs – http://www.ecoactionpartners.org/local-food/

Telluride Farmers’ Market – www.thetelluridefarmersmarket.com

Colorado Department of Agriculture – http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251789574958&ssbinary=true

CO Dept. of Ag. “Colorado Proud” Program www.coloradoproud.org

Sustainable Table – Local and Regional Food Systems, http://www.sustainabletable.org/254/local-regional-food-systems