Local Living, Local Choices: Local Food

I think everyone would agree that times are tough all over. I think part of the solution is learning to live not just within our means, but within our communities and cultures.

I'm not talking about insularism, and hiding from the world or retreating from it.

Nor am I suggesting we become nationalistic flag-toting idiots, convinced that our culture and way of being is supreme over others, hating or despising everything and everyone who is not from our own country.

What I am suggesting is that, by buying local and valuing local, we can:

• save money by reducing transport and trade costs of products,
  
• reduce taxes by reducing the number of unemployed and increasing the percentage of employed people in our communities,
  
• reduce depression by creating fulfilling career and employment opportunities and reliable, long-term positions,
  
• enrich ourselves and our communities,
  
• reduce the amount of dollars going offshore,
  
• rebuild a sense of community and sense of place,
  
• reduce pollution caused by high levels of unnecessary trade and transport,
  
• create and maintain skilled jobs for our neighbours and ourselves, and
• strengthen the roots we have in our homes and towns and cities.
  

Sounds like a good deal to me!


Local food

Local food is really the base of the Local Living pyramid.

You might have noticed that more and more imported foods are creeping into your supermarket lately.

For example, in our local supermarket, almost all of the orange juice and tinned fruit is listed as "From local and imported ingredients". Only one jam maker uses 100% New Zealand strawberries in their jam, and more and more of the fresh fruit is imported.

Packaged food is the same. Often the food ingredients in a packet come from so many countries that you couldn't even tell where it is from!

A frozen stir fry might have meat from New Zealand, vegetables from Thailand and China, a sauce base from Korea and packaging from India. The company that owns the whole Frankenstein mess? Australian.

No wonder more and more products just list their ingredients as "imported".

The result of this are several. Tastelessness is obvious. People have forgotten what real food tastes like.

They've forgotten that real eggs from chickens have bright golden yolks and that real lemon sauce when you make Chinese lemon chicken should be so sharp it makes your teeth ache. And they've forgotten that a meal needs at least 3/4 veggies or salad to be balanced.

Then there's the health issue. Packaged foods are often loaded with sugar, salt and fat. If it says "fat-free", check the sugar content: it's probably loaded.

If the label says "sugar free" check out the fat instead: there's probably enough lard content to sink a killer whale.

And just about every packaged food has enough salt to turn your arteries to rock. (Yes, I'm exaggerating, but you get the point).

Cost is another issue still. Every time we buy packaged food, we're paying for processing, packaging, labelling, transport (from several countries?), advertising campaigns ("Do you feel like chicken tonight?" "Ah, McCain, you've done it again!"), storage etc.

Finally, there's all that rubbish we throw away when the packet is done with. I mean, how many of those packets are re-usable? I've never seen one!

None of this is good for us or the planet. It is wasteful, expensive, unhealthy and polluting.

Better, smarter choices

So here's my suggestions for avoiding the nasties, and eating better, cheaper, healthier and more locally.

• Learn to cook. From scratch. Yes, really! You'll eat better, at a much lower cost. When I learned to cook, I was surprised how fast it was, how easy it was to whip up something tasty, and how much better we felt eating real, healthy food.
  
  Packaged food usually sucks. Have you ever had a packaged pizza that was as good as a home-made pizza? Or even a pre-made pizza base that wasn't rock-hard (they're like cardboard! what ON EARTH do they do to those things?) Or a packet pasta that didn't make you gag and resemble dog vomit?
  
  As for those tinned meat products, I have no idea what they put in to them, and I really don't want to know. Suffice to say my cat wouldn't touch them (she wouldn't eat Big Mac meat either, interestingly, and this is a feline who would eat spiders).
  
  So grab a few cookbooks at the local seconhand store and get cracking. I can strongly recommend any of the "Australian Womens' Weekly" cookbooks, plus any cookbooks that specialise in affordable food local to your area.
  
  
• Value your local cuisine. If you're from New Zealand, learn about traditional foods and how they are prepared and eaten, then start cooking with them. If you're from Australia, do likewise.
  
  Many ex-"colonies" (like Australia, Canada and New Zealand) still don't have a strong sense of their own food and cuisine, yet the more we value our own foods, the more we'll support our communities and their wellbeing, and keep dollars in our community.
  
  If you're not very familiar with local foods, search for a local cuisine course or series of DVDs that you can do / watch to help you learn, or ask a friend who is knowledgeable.
  
  If neither is available, ask at a restaurant that specialises in local cuisine how you can learn to cook in a local style using local foods.
  
  
• Buy local fresh food. If you can't grow your own (which is ideal), choose fresh produce that is as locally produced as possible.
  
  
• Buy local packaged food. Check the labels. Choose food that is from locally owned companies and that is produced in your town or country. If your supermarket does not stock local options that you know of, ask staff to stock them prominently. Vote with your dollars.
  
  
• Share food. Share home grown produce and tips on how to grow food with friends and neighbours. This helps with family budgets and reduces debt cycles.
  
  
• Share recipes. Share recipes that use local produce in traditional, healthy ways. Share family recipes that have been passed down, and customs and traditional knowledge.
  

Great food rarely comes out of a packet. It usually has real flavour, and it always has fresh ingredients. The best way to find fresh ingredients is to buy local.

I know that at the end of a long day the last thing a lot of us feel like doing is cooking. Trust me - I know! - I have two young kids and they tire me out.

So chop the veggies in a food processor and store them in the fridge in bulk. Buy your meat ready-chopped at the butcher. Make up bulk lots of sauces and freeze them (freeze the veggie and meat portions too). Take shortcuts, but not with your health or wallet.

I hope these ideas have been useful. If you have extra tips or ideas you'd like to add, please comment at the bottom in the "comments" section. I'd love to hear what you have to say!


Have a lovely day!