Like many people, I’ve become more conscious lately of the fact that the choices we make as consumers have an impact on the environment. That’s why I look forward to summer in Maine for the chance to buy fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables.

There’s really nothing quite like the taste of a ripe, local tomato, nothing as sweet as a strawberry picked by hand from one of the farms around southern Maine. Not only do these local treats seem more succulent, but also buying local produce is good for the souls of those of us who are conscious of the need to reduce our carbon footprints and to stop taking so much from the environment. That’s because buying local doesn’t just help the local economy, it also reduces the need to ship food thousands of mile from California in gas-guzzling refrigerator trucks or airplanes.

“The food you eat travels an average of 1,500 miles to get to you,” says Kristy MacKinnon, who works for Rippling Waters Organic Farm in Standish. “The cost of food is directly related to the cost of oil.”

It turns out that reducing the carbon footprint of the food you eat is a fast-growing trend. For example, many college food services and local restaurants are committing to buying local produce and locally caught seafood in season, selling Poland Spring instead of imported bottled water, and taking such imported fare as tropical fruits off their menus entirely. Bowdoin College now buys 20 percent of its food from local vendors, such as Wolfe Neck Farm in Brunswick and Maxwell’s Farm in Cape Elizabeth.

But buying local shouldn’t be confused with buying organic. Take those local strawberries and tomatoes, for instance. Many of the pick-your-own strawberries available in southern Maine come June will be ripening on land not farmed according to the strict tenets of the Maine Organic Farmers and Growers’ Association. And some of the biggest, juiciest tomatoes on display at the local farmers markets may come from farms whose fields are not certified organic.

What’s the big deal? Well, those who have made the commitment to organic farming, such as the folks at Rippling Waters, say it’s an important distinction. As McKinnon explains, organic farming forbids using the potentially harmful pesticides and herbicides that many conventional farmers use. While no definitive studies have linked an increased risk of cancer to fruits and vegetables grown with pesticides, there’s no disputing that these substances linger on the produce even after washing. Who wants to feed their kids chemicals if they can help it?

Organic farming is also better for the soil and the environment, McKinnon says. Those pest-killing chemicals tend to leech out of the soil and into groundwater. The chemicals also mask the loss of nutrients, and over time erode the growing ability of the soil.

So, as spring gives way to summer, the question becomes: What’s more important? Reducing your food’s carbon footprint by buying locally produced food, whether it’s organic or not? Or buying potentially healthier organic food - even if it’s shipped into the grocery store from California or South America?

If local farmers markets are any indication, many consumers make the choice to buy locally grown food, even if it’s not organic. There are more choices - and it is usually less expensive. Right now, anyway, Bowdoin College is also siding with the local grower over the out-of-state organic one, according to Mary Kennedy, the director of food services at Bowdoin.

Bowdoin is part of the Farm Fresh Connections program, which coordinates sales of food from local farms to institutions in southern and central Maine. Through meetings with local farmers in the Fresh Food Connections program, Bowdoin food purchasers have learned about growing methods and crop availability, which helps the college make food-purchasing choices. While some farmers' produce doesn’t meet the strict standards necessary to be called organic, (either because they can’t afford to or haven’t been in business long enough), many are committed to so-called sustainable practices and minimal pesticide use. Buying locally, Kennedy explains, allows the college to have those conversations with growers about how the food was grown.

“Seasonality is a prominent driver of menu choices,’ says Kennedy, adding that. ”we gravitate toward producers using sustainable practices.”

Of course, the best choice, carbon footprint-wise, is to plant your own garden. Bowdoin has two organic gardens of its own, which last year produced $20,000 of herbs and vegetables for its kitchens and a local farmers market.

Rippling Waters Organic Farms in Standish has nine community garden beds at Steep Falls Elementary School in Standish and four beds at Stonecrest Nursing Home in Standish. Rippling Waters also just received a grant that will fund the Saco Valley Food Connection program. Twelve high school students will be paid to work the fields and learn sustainable, organic practices.

“The number of people who know how to grow food is declining,” says McKinnon, of Rippling Waters. “The goal is to create a new culture in the community of valuing how to grow your food and to eat fresh, locally grown foods.”

If gas prices go higher and food prices continue to rise, “growing your own” may turn out to be the best food choice of all.

Source: Keep Me Current - USA