Focusing your diet around locally produced food is desirable for those trying to follow a vegan lifestyle for many reasons. Not only does it reduce your carbon footprint, but you’ll also find more nutrient-dense, fresher, tastier food. Eating locally produced food forces you to eat what’s seasonally available, thus expanding your ecological awareness and field of compassion. Food waste can also be drastically cut down, and local businesses are supported which bolsters the local economy and creates resilience.
In the US, food travels on average 1,500 miles to reach your plate. This figure only includes delivery and not the total land use, which is much larger. If your reason for following a vegan lifestyle is due to environmental or health concerns then you should consider choosing locally produced food wherever possible.
Read on to learn how locally grown food is more compatible with a vegan diet than anything shipped from halfway around the planet.
Key Takeaways
What Does Locally Produced Mean
There’s no exact definition of what locally produced means, as it can mean different things in different situations and locations. For some, it can mean anything produced within a few hundred miles/kilometres from where you are located. For others, it can mean anything grown in the same state or country.
It seems that the most sensible and achievable functional definition would be foods grown as close to your locality as possible. Eating locally produced food means favouring food grown as close to where you eat it as possible, as opposed to food grown and shipped from the other side of the world.
Why Should We Favour Locally Produced Food?
To understand this, we should look at the alternative. Mass-produced food is often shipped large distances for processing. For example, apples grown in the UK are shipped to New Zealand to be waxed, only to be shipped back to the UK, where they are sold the following season.
It doesn’t take much consideration to comprehend how unnecessary this is and to take steps to mitigate the damage caused. Buying from an organic local farmers market can avoid this and many other wasteful practices.
Health Benefits Of Locally Produced Food
Consuming locally grown food can have numerous health benefits. Locally grown food can be picked at its optimal stage of ripeness, ensuring a larger array of vitamins and nutrients in the food. Industrially grown food is often picked before it is fully ripe so it can be shipped without spoiling. Some foods such as bananas amongst others are later chemically ripened. Others are laced with synthetic preservatives that can wreak havoc on your health. Some preservatives also contain animal-derived products (see previous blog) incompatible with vegan principles or respect for all life.
Consuming food that has ripened naturally will have a far superior flavour profile; so foodies can rejoice! It also helps lessen the feeling of guilt knowing that your dinner hasn’t caused so much ecological destruction. Locally grown food will very often have a much higher nutrient density than food grown thousands of miles away, keeping your health on point.
Food begins to lose nutrients as soon as it is harvested, with the highest loss occurring in the first 24 hours. Eating locally produced food makes it more likely the food was harvested recently and will benefit your health.
Seasonal Food
Eating local food ensures your diet is seasonal. Humans are part of nature and our diets (as every other part of our existence) should reflect this. Eating what’s in season allows our bodies to harmonise with our surroundings. For example, oranges ripen in winter and are rich in vitamin C, which helps with immunity and in fighting off disease, just when we need it most.
Summer sees water-rich foods such as melons, cucumbers, and all varieties of fruit to help keep us cool and hydrated. Eating seasonally helps align our beings with seasonal changes, and feel a greater sense of belonging with our surroundings. Food will nourish us best when it is picked ripe and in season, and if we habitually eat like this, we can ensure our health and longevity.
Buying food in season means that particular food is abundant, which means the price will be lower, benefitting your economic health too.
Vegan Diet vs Locally Produced
The majority of harmful greenhouse gases come from the meat and dairy industry. Science Daily reports that meat and dairy account for 75% of EU citizen greenhouse gases, equivalent to 1020kg of C02 per person annually. This figure includes land use and transportation and equates to roughly the same as a 6000km car journey. Following any kind of vegan diet greatly reduces your carbon footprint.
Why not double up and enjoy a locally-produced vegan diet to minimize the harm done by your food choices whilst simultaneously supercharging your health and empowering local businesses?
FINAL THOUGHTS
Whatever your reasons for adopting a vegan lifestyle, feasting on more locally grown food is a vital next step in the evolution towards a more compassionate world. Whether you’re vegan for animal rights, health or environmental concerns, locally grown foods can serve to ameliorate the harm done by destructive food-growing practices, foster greater respect for all sentient beings and supercharge your health.
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