Eating Local - May's Sustainable Living Tip

Eating locally-grown food is a delicious way to help save the planet.

More to know about Eating Local

1. The average Maine meal travels 1,800 miles from farm to table, according to Russell Libby, executive director of MOFGA.
2. 80% of the food calories consumed in Maine are produced out of state.
3. Ten calories of fossil fuel energy is consumed for every one calorie of "conventional" food eaten, due to processing, packaging and transportation.
4. If every Mainer spent just $10 per week on locally-grown food for six months, $100 million would circulate in Maine's economy.
   
5. One acre of a small organic farm in Maine can support 40 people, according to Eliot Coleman, author of Four Season Harvest.
6. During World War II, home "Victory Gardens" provided 40% of the vegetables eaten by the general public.
7. Raised beds and "lasagna" gardening allow home gardeners to grow more produce with less work than conventional tilled bed methods.
8. Home composting of kitchen scraps can help maintain soil fertility without synthetic chemical fertilizers.
9. Organic herbs can be grown indoors year round on a kitchen window sill.
10. Community supported agriculture (CSA) is a way to support your local farmer. By buying a share at the beginning of the season, you provide the farmer with the money needed to buy seeds and operate the farm. In return, you reap the rewards of fresh, local and healthy food direct from the farm.
11. Planting heirloom organic seeds, rather than hybrid seeds, allows you to share and save seeds from year to year.
12. For maximum environmental benefit, eat in season. It takes a lot less energy to grow tomatoes in Maine in the summer than the winter!