Greatgrandmother.org's 5 Easy Steps to Taking Back Your Table
Want to eat sustainably? Here are five starting steps from the editors at greatgrandmother.org
Become aware of your personal preferences. Why is the act of eating sustainably important to you? What areas of concern are you passionate about? Organically raised hogs? Not having synthetic chemical pesticide residues on your apples and strawberries? Helping to rehabilitate mother Earth? Supporting local growers and animal farmers? Better nutrition? Not pulling the genetic trigger by introducing more toxins into your children’s bodies? Begin at square one by making your own informed decision that fits within your means and beliefs. Food is very personal. The choices are yours to make.
Learn how to source sustainable products. After you have defined your own boundaries, limitations, and passions, you might want to begin shaping your own consumer approach. Do you wish to trade or barter for local products, like maple syrup or honey? Do you know what’s available locally in terms of farmers’ markets, country farm stands, co-op markets, or the organic section of your local grocery store? Is it feasible to join in with neighbors and friends to co-purchase a side of locally-raised beef? Taking back your own table means learning how to source, where to source, and what sources to trust.
Begin to grow or make some of your own foods. You can start small if this is new to you, or re-discover the home garden that your great grandmother had when you were a child. If you start with potted herbs, go with your favorites. As an example, you can plant thyme, bring fresh bunches of it to your friends when they host summer bar-b-ques, make herbal vinegar with it in the fall, and dry it for winter gifts. Soon, you may find yourself bypassing our nation’s factory food systems…small steps at a thyme.
Change your dietary habits a little bit at a time. You might want to cut back on buying industrial chicken eggs in favor of purchasing half dozen locally raised eggs from the farmer who lives in the next town over. Or, start by reducing your animal protein consumption, such as beef from industrial feedlots, pork from factory farms, or Atlantic salmon raised in cramped sea cages. You might surprise yourself that you don’t miss having a big serving of animal protein every day on your plate! You might save some money. And chances are you will be healthier in the long run. To be sure, beef, pork, lamb, fish, and chicken have a place in healthy diets, but the type of animals we eat [based on how and where they are raised] makes a big difference.
Cook with the seasons! When you plan your meals around what is naturally available during your local season, you’ll most certainly find fruits, vegetables, and even fish that are generally more available and thus less expensive. Most likely, these seasonal foods will be tastier, fresher, and from local or regional sources. This all equals a more sustainable community and ultimately benefits our local purveyors, growers, and farmers. You can always invite your boyfriend, children, or neighbors to the kitchen with the challenge to prepare something gourmet out of the local bounty!
At a time like this, I like to quote Wendell Berry: “Eating is ultimately an agricultural act.”