Is buying local always better? It's complicated
Making the most responsible food choices sometimes isn't as simple as going organic or buying from the farm up the road.
FOOD PYRAMID: Some researchers advise that the best way to lower your food's carbon footprint is to eat low on the food chain, and not necessarily from local sources. (Photo: heathervescent/Flickr) 
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The author of this article failed to really extrapolate on some of the findings cited in this article. In the author's efforts at brevity, she has failed to properly inform the reader. Without background knowledge, one might be more confused by this article's conflicted points. The author cites studies and compares locally grown meat with non-local food which is lower on the food chain. That is not a fair comparision. Why not draw a comparison between local and non-local food products of the.... More
This article ran in greatly shortened form in the Detroit Free Press of September 13.
One wonders if the author has actually read Michael Pollan's book, which highlights farming practices that go back to the normal life of fifty years ago, where nearly every farmer raised both crops and animals. One also wonders if the author has even heard of Pollan's follow-on book, which begins: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
What's to stop anyone here from growing beans, squash, tomatoes, herbs -- on their balconies or windowboxes or, if your jurisdiction allows them-- neighborhood garden plots?? I even grew blueberries and figs on my balcony this year -- now I have squash climbing up the fig tree and valerian growing in clean "TidyCat" buckets (with drainage holes carefully and safely drilled on the bottom of the bucket)
You don;t need much space to grow the BEST Basil on theblock!! The same thing with.... More
Thanks, this was a nice web showing how so many things influence something we all deal with - food. I like how you made it clear that there is no single answer in a person's food choices.
You fail to discern the differing carbon impacts of meat grown on an entirely (or nearly so) grassfed, grazed diet vs a typical feedlot diet of 50% or more grain, which has a vastly greater carbon footprint. Also, locally grown meats often are raised as an integral part of a diversified local farm. So, eat local, eat green. A fully informed article on benefits of grazed ruminants and locally grown meats would be great!
