Why Local Food in Fayetteville?

I’ve  been getting ready for the Dig In! Filmfest this Saturday. Thought I’d share what I wrote for the program-handout. And if you are in NWA, join us on Saturday! You can find out details at this link. So here goes:

Why Local Food in Fayetteville?

Everyone eats. The goal of this filmfest is to inspire you to choose local and organic foods by showing how much this choice matters and how enjoyable going local can be.

In a nutshell, every dollar we move to local, naturally grown food actively supports:

community connections

local economy and jobs,

cleaner watersheds

protection of birds

bees and wildlife biodiversity

clearer air

food security

food safety

better nutrition and health

better tasting food

time with family and friends

small family farms,

ethically-raised farm animals

living topsoil

sustainability

conservation

fair trade

fair treatment of workers

Shall I go on? Many of these benefits apply to organic food grown non-locally also.

On the other hand, every dollar we spend in the agribusiness/big-box/industrial model actively supports a system responsible for:

1/3 of worldwide manmade carbon emissions

injustice to workers

inhumane treatment of animals

pollution of water, air, soil (and humans) with pesticides, herbicides, fungicides

massive and irresponsible fossil fuel use for transport, fertilizers, and chemicals

widespread deforestation

topsoil erosion

dead zones in oceans

aquifer depletion

enormous monocultures

GMOs

antibiotic resistance

increased obesity, diabetes, heart disease, cancers etc…. Shall I go on?

To say that moving food dollars to local and organic food is win-win, is a giant understatement. Yet many overlook the powerful and political action that buying local can be. Local food is meaningful action towards sustainability and ethics. And it just so happens to enrich communities, human connections, and happens to be tasty and enjoyable.

Buying from locally-owned, independent businesses has an important ‘multiplier’ effect for a community. For example, research shows one hundred dollars spent at a local independent bookstore will create $45 for the local economy. Spend the same hundred at a chain store and only $13 remains in this community.

One study showed that if Seattle area residents put just 20% of their food budgets into local food, it would inject a billion dollars a year into their economy. In NWA, our 20% could make an impact of well over a hundred-million dollars a year to our economy.

You can come at it from the angle of a foodie, a chef, a social-justice advocate, a mayor, nature lover, chaplain, a child nutrition expert, a survivalist, local jobs enthusiast, environmental activist, a health nut, an economist, a poet, a carbon footprint counter, liberal, conservative, or a community builder, etc. and from every angle, going local makes sense.

Yes, prices for local and organic food are often higher than the artificially low prices at big box stores. Those low prices are subsidized by injustice. Start where you can but don’t feel guilty if you go slow. Let what you love lead you.  Focus in on what you can do.

I invite you to see just how many of your food dollars you can move into the local economy.  Could you commit even 10%  or 20% of the money you already spend to local and organic endeavors?  Remember the multiplier effect, every bit matters. You may find it’s so rewarding that you challenge yourself to see just how local you can go. Prepare for enjoyment. I invite you to experience how empowering, enlivening and delicious digging into home can be.   —Leigh Wilkerson

FILMS TODAY:

10 a.m. Homegrown Revolution (short)

In the midst of densely urban downtown Pasadena, radical change is taking root. For over twenty years, one family has been transforming their home into an urban homestead. They harvest three tons of organic food annually from their 1/10 acre garden, while incorporating back-to-basics practices, solar energy and biodiesel.

10:30 a.m. Fresh

FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each has witnessed the rapid transformation of our agriculture into an industrial model, and confronted the consequences: food contamination, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, and morbid obesity. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision for a future of our food and our planet. http://www.freshthemovie.com/

12 noon The Economics of Happiness

The Economics of Happiness offers not only a big-picture analysis of globalization, but a powerful message of hope for the future. The thinkers and activists we interviewed for the film come from every continent…Their message is unambiguous: in order to respect and revitalize diversity, both cultural and biological, we need to localize economic activity. They argue that a systemic shift – away from globalizing economic activity and towards the local — allows us to reduce our ecological footprint while increasing human well-being. When people start connecting the dots between climate change, global economic instability and their own personal suffering – stress, loneliness, depression – there is the potential for a movement that will truly change the world.

http://www.theeconomicsofhappiness.org/

1:00 pm  Brown-bag lunch discussion. Bring your lunch and join in a discussion of the films and how we can help to develop local food systems.

2:00 p.m. Dirt

DIRT! the Movie–narrated by Jaime Lee Curtis–brings to life the environmental, economic, social and political impact that the soil has. It shares the stories of experts from all over the world who study and are able to harness the beauty and power of a respectful and mutually beneficial relationship with soil. http://www.dirtthemovie.org/

4:00 p.m. What’s Organic About Organic?

With charm and humanity… examines how organic farming has evolved from a grassroots movement into a multi-billion dollar international industry. Through the stories of farmers who steward land from Harlem to the foothills of the Rockies, from upstate New York to Florida, the film reveals what’s at stake in creating and maintaining meaningful standards for organic production to protect citizen interests, to heal the environment, and to maintain the livelihoods of family farmers. http://whatsorganicmovie.com/

5:30 p.m. Ingredients

At the focal point of the food  movement, and of this film, are the farmers and chefs who are creating a truly sustainable food system. Their collaborative work has resulted in great tasting food and an explosion of consumer awareness about the benefits of eating local. http://www.ingredientsfilm.com/

7:00 p.m. Homegrown Revolution (repeats)

7:30 p.m. The Economics of Happiness (repeats)

9:00 p.m. What’s Organic About Organic? (repeats)

For location, see www.OzarksAlive.org