A localvore is any individual who prefers to eat healthy, locally grown/produced food.
The following post is just one example of how my wife & I are becoming increasingly focused on eating healthy, organic, fresh, local, in season foods, and how this transformation has benefited both our pocketbook and our health!
Buying fresh, organic food DOES NOT have to equate to spending more money!
While I was laboring away in the air conditioned office today, my wife headed to a local organic farm to pick part of our yearly supply of fresh blueberries! Beginning this year we have committed to purchasing fresh organic foods in bulk (whenever possible) and preserving them for use throughout the year. This is the story of our yearly blueberry trip.
How many frozen organic store bought blueberries does $10 buy?
The following photo shows that $10 (plus tax totalling $10.60) will purchase 3 pounds of frozen wild blueberries.
Okay, looks like a decent deal for 3 pounds of frozen blueberries, but what about fresh picked, organic blueberries…
How many fresh picked organic blueberries does $10 buy?
I’m glad you asked. You may not believe this, but $10 will buy you 10 pounds worth or fresh picked blueberries in Lansing, MI.
As you can see… you can purchase more than 3x as many fresh, local, hand-selected, organic blueberries as you can their frozen, store bought counterpart.
Just one more example to show us that purchasing healthy, nutrient dense, organic foods does not have to be more expensive, as the food marketing giants would initially have us believe. Sure, if you do all your shopping in a health food store, you will pay more. But if you focus on a few key concepts, you can easily start eating much healthier and more local.
Other specific ways to become a localvore…
- get creative & think outside the box
- buying local (shop local farmers markets & develop relationships with local farmers)
- pick your own fruit if possible
- start your own garden
- buy organics in bulk (like these berries, flour to bake your own breads, or tomatoes to can for winter)
- learn how to preserve food (by freezing, canning, etc.)
By following these simple steps… and by developing a “localvore” mentality you actually stand to save quite a bit of money, and increase your health in the process! My wife & I are living proof…
Here are some great websites to help you find the healthy, sustainable, organic farms in your area:
- LocalHarvest.org – real food, real farmers, real community
- EatWild.com – #1 site for grass-fed food & facts
- SustainableTable.org – serving up healthy food choices
Enjoy! And just remember to take things one small step at a time...
DFA is passionately dedicated to helping people break the bondage of debt & work toward financial freedom using biblical principles.