Explorations in Just Living
About this blog
Welcome to the blog of the Enough for Everyone program of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). By "just living" we mean both justice-based living and just simply living – freeing ourselves from the clutter of stuff so we can focus on living faithfully and living well. Join us in the exploration!
About the Author
Bryce Wiebe coordinates Enough for Everyone, a ministry of the Presbyterian Hunger Program. He loves slow food and is fascinated by the way things are made. He is excited to dive into experiments in simplicity with you. His sacred cow of consumption: kitchen gadgets.
Recent posts
- Songs of Justice: Magnificant
- Thanksgiving invitation and Children's sermon
- Children's Sermon for Food Week of Action
- A Cycling Meditation
- Bryce Bikes: update!!
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Honoring the Local Option
Nearly two weeks ago a group of people began a three day fast for discernment. During this fast I utilized the resources that had been developed and compiled by a large array of PC(USA) staff and partners. These writings included prayers, reflections, and information about hunger and its causes throughout the world. I found that by fasting I drew nearer to God and was able to reflect on my own life to discover ways in which I was complicit in contributing to the global food crisis.
I grew increasingly certain of two things: I have not figured out how to end the food crisis on my own and we are all deeply connected with one another and with God. As I thought more about the interconnected nature of humans, our food, the world, and God, I tried to trace my food back to its point of origin. I quickly found I lacked the investigative gumption and necessary supply of glucose to my brain to be highly successful, so I turned to Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma, where he chronicles the origin of four different meals.
Combining Pollan's writing with the fast reflections provided a bit of an "ah ha" moment for me as I began to recognize the true costs of the food I consume. This realization means I can no longer go to the grocery store, pick an item off the shelf and believe that the price I pay for that item reflects the item's actual cost. Hidden within the cost of every item I can potentially buy are multiple costs. For example, environmental degradation is exacerbated by items that are mono-cropped, shipped long distances, heavily processed, or grown with large amounts of chemical fertilizers. My omnivorous diet further complicates my cost analysis because meats tend to be grain fed and account for heavy environmental and social costs. Finally the costs of food transportation and subsidies are not apparent. I cannot fathom the impact of trade agreements on others by simply looking at the shelf price for any grocery store item. Considering all of these hidden costs, costs which someone else or the planet would be forced to bear, the cheaper grocery store food becomes less attractive.
As a part of my fast discernment I wanted to begin exploring how eating locally would help support others in my community and throughout the world. Eating locally produced food comes with a vast array of benefits when contrasted with other food options. When I eat food raised, grown, or processed locally it travels fewer miles to get from the farm to my mouth, thus reducing transportation emissions. There is also the benefit of taste for me as the eater. Local food tends to be fresher and in season. The flavors of the food are also colored by the local soil and can provide a subtle, yet distinct flavor. I feel more connected to the food and to the farmers who produced the food when I buy locally because I most often get the food from a farmer's market where I have direct contact with someone who helped raise or grow the food.
How then does my consumption of local foods assist others around the world? I can buy local foods that are not subsidized. Thus my purchase benefits the farmer directly and helps to ensure that the farmers are able to retain their land. I develop a connection, however brief, with the farmer and can learn about how the food was produced. Buying local food models consumptive practices that would be most sustainable in the long term as well.
Now I am not going to contend that local food purchasing will end the present and ongoing food crisis, but it does make a difference. Additionally my understanding of local food shaped my understanding of relief work for the immediate needs of the world's hungry. In giving to organizations providing immediate and direct relief for people in need, it makes the greatest sense to work with organizations who, whenever possible, utilize local food for relief. While it is possible to ship cases of grain and rice from fields in the United States to hungry people throughout the world, it seems wiser to use food from the United States to care for hungry people in the United States, food from Haiti to assist hungry people in Haiti, and so on. By using our money to support local food, we support local economies and communities.
Finally eating locally has been a great experience. The downside is that I cannot find everything locally and that many of the local foods are more expensive than foods that I can buy at the grocery store. However, the benefits have far outweighed the costs. The food tastes fresher: eggs have rich orange yolks full of flavor; strawberries are lush, juicy, and deliciously fragrant, and asparagus grows deep green, crisp and delicious. I have also found a local dairy that produces the best milk I have ever tasted. While I cannot eat locally all the time due to my location and financial constraints, where and when I can I am finding great joy in honoring the local option!
To find food locally visit Local Harvest where you can find a directory of farms, CSAs, farmers markets, restaurants, and other gatherings where local food is served. Also check out the Food and Faith blog for great food analysis and resouces. Good luck and happy eating!
- Posted at 9:23 p.m.
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