Buying Local Facts TOP

Local businesses provide a slew of community benefits. They generate greater investment back into their local area, higher commitment from their workers, and even more sustainable environment practices.

buying local facts

Boody is also proudly stocked by a range of local retailers around Australia. You can use our Boody Store Locator to find your closest Boody stockies and browse our range of Underwear, Baby Clothes, Basics & more in person.

By supporting local businesses, you are in turn helping your local economy by creating more jobs. Even a small business needs enough hands to help it sell its products and services, which is why the more we support them, the more jobs will be created and the better off our local communities will be.

Many local businesses support local not-for-profits and charities that are relevant to that area, so by shopping locally you are helping to increase the number of local donations. It goes without saying that bigger companies and chains do also support charities, but if your preference is to support local not-for-profits and charities, your best bet is to shop from your local store.

With giant chains homogenising communities, independent businesses bring some much-needed originality. Shopping locally promotes individuality and breathes new life into communities that are dominated by generic and commodified companies.

Independent businesses are poised to draw more people this holiday season. To illustrate the ways that local businesses are growing in popularity, delivering stronger economic returns, and expanding in numbers, the Advocates for Independent Business, a coalition of 14 groups coordinated by ILSR, put together this infographic.

Signing up for a community-supported agriculture (CSA) share is another great opportunity to expose yourself to local foods that may be new to you. CSA boxes are filled with produce and prepared directly by farmers for consumers.

As I noted above, local food travels a shorter distance to markets and stores than products that come from other areas. Thus, their transport usually contributes to less pollution and fewer carbon emissions than foods that necessitate longer trips.

Some local foods may come from a farmer or purveyor right down your street, while other local items may be grown 100 miles away. Still, this is a lot closer than a farm thousands of miles away or in a different country.

A lot of local foods, especially produce, are sold at farm stands without packaging. Plus, you can bring your own reusable bags to carry the items home. This equates to less waste, particularly of plastic packaging and plastic bags.

Finally, supporting local farmers helps maintain green spaces and farmland in your area. Local farms that use sustainable practices may boost biodiversity, protect pollinators that are vital to healthy ecosystems, and promote clean air, water, and soil (6).

Personally, I feel more satisfied and mindful when I have a connection to the food that I eat. Just like using a favorite family recipe, enjoying local food can evoke positive emotions and boost your spirits.

Buying locally-grown food keeps money within a community and provides local jobs. This contributes to the health of all sectors of the local economy, increasing the local quality of life. In a community that produces its own food, consumers are able to influence how their food is grown.

On the North Olympic Peninsula we are doing quite a bit better. 4% of our population purchases local food, double the rate in 2002. The North Olympic Peninsula is a leader in local, organic food consumption by many orders of magnitude. But if 4% of the population buys locally, 96% do not. We still have a long way to go.

About $150 million is spent each year on food on the North Olympic Peninsula. If we were to increase the percentage of buyers of local food, our economy would be greatly strengthened and its sustainability increased. More of that $150 million would stay in our community, increasing local hires, and helping to preserve local farmland. Most importantly, more individuals would benefit from fresher, healthier and more delicious food, lowering our health care costs.

When you buy food locally you reduce energy consumption. Purchasing local food means that you're closer to its original source and can be confident that it's fresher than overseas products. You're also taking a stand against the air miles and carbon emissions that an overseas product would have clocked up. Locally-produced foods do not require significant transportation or storage, both of which are very energy-intensive and pollute air and water.

If consumers want to live a more "sustainable" life, with the capacity to endure in the very long term, they need to focus on what's available close to where they live. They also need to understand why it's important. Here are some global facts about food:

Shopping local has turned into a mainstream trend, with more and more people buying locally produced foods and browsing through small, independent book, vintage or vinyl shops rather than rushing through the global chains.

Read these ten reasons buying local is great for Ireland and the planet and give it a shot. And if you find a great place in your town that you love and want to support, we would love to hear about it!

Think of the farmer down the road or the lovely lady running a small independent vintage shop a few blocks from your house. If you shop locally, you support their businesses first-hand and help them feed their families, pay their bills, and, generally, survive in the aftermaths of the pandemic.

Also, many shoppers want to support local farmers. There also is the belief that local food leaves a smaller carbon footprint and so is better for the environment, though that may not be always the case.

Throughout the summer and fall, farm stands display locally-grown fruits and vegetables, and supermarkets offer fresh seasonal produce, along with organic, conventional, imported, and frozen selections. Understanding the variables associated with these options may make deciding what to buy a little easier.

Supermarkets offer variety and, more importantly, convenience. However, this does not necessarily make supermarkets the right choice. With growing numbers of local producers and retailers, there are many reasons to buy local food.

Local food is food that is grown or produced locally to where we live, nearer the physical centers of our communities and the places we spend time. Whether it is in your town or a nearby city, if it is fresh and locally grown, then it is considered to be local food.

The range of foods that we consider to be local foods is wide and varied. Local foods commonly include fruit and vegetables grown on smaller farms or even in someone's back garden or a community plot.

Local food can also include dairy, eggs, or even meat. Similarly, in many locations, we can source products, including preserves and honey, from local farms and producers. In fact, the list goes on as it can include cheese, butter, and more. Of course, what is available locally will vary significantly from place to place. See our section below on how to find local food near you.

When you choose to purchase locally, you can make a real difference in many ways. The many reasons to buy local food include lesser transport costs and environmental impacts through fewer pesticides. It also provides access to the freshest produce possible. Local food brings with it a huge array of benefits.

Most locally purchased seasonal goods grow more naturally, for example, outside rather than in greenhouses. Further, growers use fewer fertilizers in season, and many local producers choose to grow organically.

The benefits of seasonal produce can also go beyond natural growing and even aid our nutrition. One study compared the vitamin c contents of broccoli is grown both in and out of season. The findings speak for themselves, with the in-season broccoli containing nearly twice as much vitamin c as the less naturally produced out-of-season sample. Therefore, seasonal produce is a clear reason to buy local food.

Despite this, more and more people are now thinking about where their food comes from. When buying locally directly from the farmer or grower, consumers get to learn about the food, how it is grown and where it comes from.

Connecting people, both young and old, with where their food comes from inevitably helps people to make better choices6. In fact, studies have shown that knowledge is a key motivator. Enhancing knowledge of where our food comes from in our local communities can help promote healthier and more environmentally friendly food choices.

Locally grown produce rarely uses the mass production technologies used in commercial farming. As a result, farmers selling locally often grow wider varieties of produce in a smaller space to meet local needs.

Growing a variety of crops on local land helps maintain a more natural balance. For example, winter crops die off in the summer, and the resulting composted stems and leaves fertilize the land for subsequent summer crops. (and vice versa).

Further, many local producers are experimenting with more natural ways to maintain their crops and improve yields. For example, growing wildflowers near crops can encourage more bees to the area, which in turn allows for improved natural fertilization. Rotating crops also helps keep the soil healthy, which rarely happens naturally at large producers of a single variety of fruit or veg.

Of course, we consumers have a part to play in all this by being more accepting of uglier fruit and veg. And hence another reason to buy local food. It can help this issue as many growers will not look to quite the same standards. A crooked carrot tastes just as good; pick one up today from a local grower and do a small bit to prevent food waste.

Of course, many of the reasons to buy local food require farmers near you. Without consumer support, small-hold farmers can struggle to produce food viably. However, purchasing local produce can provide the means and incentive for farmers to keep tending their land and providing fresh produce. 041b061a72