Elizabeth Arnold, an advisory attorney at
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and a single mom of a
nine-year-old boy, tells why she buys local food:
“My foray began for health reasons. I
was just realizing how much processed food I ate, including fast food.
I wanted to increase the quality and nutritional value of our food. The
easiest thing to do to change that was join a CSA! The food was there,
so I had to eat it!
“I also wanted to reduce my carbon
footprint by buying local. I’ve read that one of the most significant
steps you can take to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases that you
contribute to the atmosphere is to eat locally.
“But, then, something happened I didn’t
expect: I was exposed to all kinds of food I hadn't eaten or cooked. I
was really fascinated with all the information about the vegetables,
the organic farming, even the economics and the transportation of it. I
was impressed by the fact that the farmer loves what he produces so
much and by his commitment to his way of life.
“Now, I can’t eat red delicious apples at all anymore. I’m less willing to eat cardboard, I guess.”
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