Alison Gentry, a mother of four who works at the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, loves local food for the following reasons:
"For more than 20 years, I’ve been trying to stay away from chemicals, sprays and irradiation. While raising a family, I became keenly aware of how important it is for people to have another source of food besides the giant agri-businesses.
"Now, my youngest is 14. My oldest is 23. I had one with asthma, and one with behavioral problems, which made me more conscientious of what I was feeding them. I raised my kids primarily on a vegetarian diet, and my children's health improved as their diet improved. At physical time, the doctor would give me a funny look when she realized that she hadn't seen any of my children for any illnesses during the year.
"I believe we should try to have our own gardens -- I had my own garden for a while -- and should support local, small family farms. This year, I joined a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, because I was looking for a way to find more local and organic stuff -- and more variety too. Many fruits and vegetables now are just very bland. I noticed if I bought organic, they just tasted better. The closer it was grown, the better quality it was."
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