You may have heard people talking about eating locally, lessening your carbon footprint and maybe even the term localvore. Many of the grocery stores now even post the place of origin of many fruits and vegetables. Next time you are in the market, stop and read the signs and see where your apples, avocados, string beans and other items have come from. Is it California? Chile? Mexico? Upstate NY? New Jersey? The further away your produce comes from, the bigger the carbon footprint that is left. It takes so much energy to get from a place like Mexico to somewhere like NY. Think about the fuel that is used to transport all those fruits and veggies to someplace 5000 miles away? It is bad for the Earth and the environment. But what other benefits does eating locally serve? For one, you are eating things that are in season. That’s better for your body. Although I love strawberries, it makes more sense for me to eat them in June and July than in January. They definitely don’t taste as good in the winter months, they are not as sweet. Have you ever bitten into a local strawberry in June? Yum! They are red, sweet and juicy unlike the hard ones you buy from California during the colder months. Plus they are fresher! It can take as long as 2 weeks from picking to get to  your kitchen table, handled by many people over a long period of time and many miles. With local farms it will be as little as a day or maybe just a few. The produce will then last longer. No more strawberries that get moldy just a day or two after you bought them! Fresher means more enzymes for your body to utilize and less potential for contamination. No more additives like wax on the outside of once delicious apples to make them stay fresher during transportation. People are so used to seeing waxed apples that when you buy ones that aren’t they look dull by comparison but they aren’t, they don’t have that coating on them. How good can that be for our bodies? The term localvore means eating produce that is locally grown. This means fresher, more natural and less energy and oil consumption to get here but what else? Supporting your local community. Your local farmers need support and they are your neighbors, your friends, your friend’s friends and people that are trying to maintain a lifestyle and profession that is a dying one because of big business. The term factory farming applies to fruits and vegetables but even worse is animals. Factory farming does not have our best interest in mind. They are all about the money and the product is often lesser quality and we pay the price for it. So now that you know some more information, what can you do about it? You can do many things. First you can start supporting local farming. Check out the websites that list farmers markets in your area. When you shop at the grocery store, buy the local produce and ask the manager to stock more of it. The stickers will say where the produce is from if there is no sign provided by the store. Write your local legislation and ask for better guidelines for factory farming so the produce/meat is safer to eat and in the case of animals treated in a humane way. Tell them to say no to GMO! GMO is genetically modified organisms. Big business is altering the seed’s DNA thru genetic engineering to make super foods that ultimately make the grower more money. Unfortunately, these foods (soy, corn, canola and may more) have not been tested for long periods of time and have been showing up in the food supply in the last 8-10 years more and more. Consumers are not given the choice to have them or not because they are not listed as genetically modified corn on the label. It’s just listed as corn. I want the choice to make myself as to whether or not I want to eat GMO foods. I don’t! Lastly, you can grow your own produce. There are numerous benefits to gardening. Gardening is very therapeutic; it is relaxing to be in nature. You can make it an organic garden and enjoy the benefits of no pesticides. You can grow things that do not require a lot of skill and time so it is more of a hobby than a chore. Teaching your kids to garden can be a family activity to enjoy together. Whatever your personal solution is, there should be one. Don’t trust that big business and the government has your health and best interest in mind. Take it upon yourself to be in control of your health, the health of your family and your future. Eating right will enable you and your loved ones to lead happy and healthy lives now and in later years. As Ghandi said “be the change you want to see in the world”.