Why Buy Local?

There Are Many Good Reasons To Buy Locally Grown Food

You'll get exceptional taste and freshness.
The average supermarket food item travels 1500-2500 miles before it reaches your table. Local food is thousands of miles fresher and tastes better than food shipped from distant states or countries. Local farmers can offer produce varieties bred for taste and freshness rather than for shipping and long shelf life.

You'll strengthen your local economy.
Buying local food keeps your dollars circulating in your community. Getting to know the farmers who grow your food builds relationships based on understanding and trust, the foundation of strong communities.

You'll support endangered family farms.
There's never been a more critical time to support your farming neighbors. With each local food purchase, you ensure that more of your money spent on food goes to the farmer.

You'll safeguard your family's health.
Knowing where your food comes from and how it is grown or raised enables you to choose safe food from farmers who avoid or reduce their use of chemicals, pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or genetically modified seed in their operations. Buy food from local farmers you trust.

You'll protect the environment.
Local food doesn't have to travel far. This reduces carbon dioxide emissions and packing materials. Buying local food also helps to make farming more profitable and selling farmland for development less attractive.

When you buy local food, you vote with your food dollar. This ensures that family farms in your community will continue to thrive and that healthy, flavorful, plentiful food will be available for future generations.

Buying local is this easy:

• Click here to find a farmer, farmers' market, farm stand, or local food outlet near you.
• Shop at your local farmers' market or farm stand for the freshest, best tasting food available. It's easy to find local food. There are over 3,100 farmers' markets in the U.S. Click here to find one near you!
• Click here for more information on buying local.