President Bush Suggests Buying Local Food
to Help with Food Scarcity
From Today's Rose Garden Speech.President
Bush Said.
"We are deeply concerned about food prices here at home"
"Creative policy is to Buy food from local farmers"
New York City-April 29, 2008-Sustainable
Table fully supports the creative solution
suggested today by President Bush to buy food from local farmers
as a means for communities to be more self sustaining. The
nonprofit program adds that purchasing sustainably-raised local
food is the best option for all Americans.
"Sustainable Table agrees with President Bush's statement
made today that large subsidies to multimillionaire farmers
should be cut," said Diane Hatz, Founder/Director of Sustainable
Table. "We also think people should buy locally grown,
sustainably produced food from small family farmers because
it can save people money since it does not have to be shipped
long distances, and saves consumers the added costs of transportation,
which has helped make the price of food skyrocket because of
the rising costs of oil and energy."
Hatz also offered other benefits to eating locally:
>Better tasting food -There's less time from the field to
your dinner plate, meaning the food is fresher and is picked
when ripe.
>Supports
local communities - Money spent on local food is put back into
the community. For example, the farmer you buy your tomatoes
from will then go to the local diner, barber, hardware store,
and put that money back into the local community, thus helping
to strengthen the local economy
>Helps
save family farms - According to Farm Aid, every week 330 farmers
leave their land. By purchasing local food, you'll be
supporting local farmers, thus helping them stay in business.
Today's industrial form of agriculture is funded by tax payer
subsidies which can push small, family farmers out of business
and pollute the environment. That's why it is better for
people to purchase foods grown locally, on sustainable family
farms or at farmers markets.
Spring is here, and more and more farmers markets are sprouting
up in communities across America. One way to support local
farmers and save money is to go to farmers markets to purchase
as much locally grown, sustainably produced food as possible.
The
Eat Well Guide, a project of Sustainable Table, can
help direct you to farmers markets in your area, as well as
farms, stores, restaurants, and other outlets where you can
purchase locally grown foods.
If you'd like to know what foods are in season in your area,
visit Sustainable Table's Eat
Seasonal page.
And look to Sustainable
Kitchen to find recipes that you can pair with food
you might find at your neighborhood farmers markets.
Sustainable Table is a New York based non-profit group that
celebrates the sustainable food movement, educates consumers
on food related issues, and works to build community through
food.
www.SustainableTable.org