Local Food Columbus » Local Food & Recipes

Defining What is Local

lfcadmin — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 22:19:13 +0000

We have all heard the term local food. But what does it mean? How local is local? Local is shorthand for an idea that doesn’t have a firm definition. Unlike organic standards, which entail specific legal definitions, inspection processes, and labels, local means different things to different people, depending on where they live, how long their growing season is, and what products they are looking for.

Practically speaking, local food production can be thought of in concentric circles that start with growing food at home. The next ring out might be food grown in our immediate community – then state, region, and country. For some parts of the year in Ohio it’s easy to eat local with lots of produce available from local farms. In winter and early spring, however, eating local requires adjustment to what is available for the season. This is an opportunity to learn about the cycles of how food is produced and will bring us closer to nature and our environment.

For me local means produced within my state of Ohio. Clearly there are some foods that are produced much more locally than others. All things being equal, we should give preference for that which is most local, starting with the food we produce or gather in our own backyards.

How do you define local and why?

Ohio Grass-fed Milk on NPR

lfcadmin — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:36:41 +0000

Ohio’s own Warren Taylor, often called a milk evangelist, passionately promotes milk like it used to be 40 years ago. Warren, and his dairy are featured in this NPR story on Dec. 10, 2009.

Read the full story on NPR

Weston A. Price Group formed in Columbus

lfcadmin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:29:04 +0000

A new WAPF Chapter has formed in Columbus.

The first event will be on Raw Milk vs. Commercial Milk: Dangers and Benefits.

Join the Meetup and RSVP if you are interested in this or future event announcements.

Anita Sorkin, Tom Meadows and David M. Augenstein–”Augie” will be hosting. Hope to see you!

This event was organized by Ohio Connections to Whole Food and Nutritional Healing

On Nov. 22nd, 2009 there will be a Seminar by Dr. Serano in Pickerington about Healthy Fats. Learn the facts about cholesterol and saturated fats, plus learn about the benefits of grass fed beef. See Details.

Urban Farms of Central Ohio

lfcadmin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:55:37 +0000

View Urban Farms of Central Ohio in a larger map

We are building a map of urban farms. If you know of a farm that is in an urban (or suburban) area and sells direct to consumer, restaurants or stores, please comment and let others know about them.

View Urban Farms of Central Ohio in a larger map

Columbus Nourishing Connections Group

lfcadmin — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:03:38 +0000

The newly formed Columbus Weston A. Price Chapter is organizing. Meet others in the Columbus area and surrounding counties who want to become more educated on the nutritional benefits of eating whole foods and how to prepare and preserve them. This includes locally and naturally grown, organic meat, vegetables and dairy and where to find this food.

via Columbus Nourishing Connections (Columbus, OH) – Meetup.com.

New Study concludes organic food is healthier

lfcadmin — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 18:23:04 +0000

A new report by the French Agency for Food Safety (AFSSA) concludes that organic foods are better for you and contain less pesticides and nitrates, which have been linked to a range of health problems. Findings include:

Organic plant products are more nutrient dense
Have higher levels of minerals
Contain more antioxidants
Organic animal products contain more polyunsaturated fatty acids

A .pdf of the article, published in the academic journal Agronomy for Sustainable Development, can be found here: http://swroc.cfans.umn.edu/organic/ASD_Lairon_2009.pdf.

Eat Local Challenge Sept. 13-19

lfcadmin — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 20:33:08 +0000

Ohio Department of Agriculture Eat Local Challenge Sept. 13-19The Ohio Department of Agriculture challenges you to eat local! This week, plan and prepare one meal every day using foods that are made, grown or raised in Ohio.

Click on your county to accept the Eat Local Challenge!

http://www.agri.ohio.gov/apps/eat_local/eatlocal.aspx

Defining Local Food

lfcadmin — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 20:38:01 +0000

What does “local food” mean to you? As Bear wrote in SlowFood Columbus recently. As big food industry scrambles to redefine their products as “local”, we must keep in mind the values we embrace as we support local food.

The locavore movement arose at a time when “local” meant not just “from nearby” but also “made by our neighbors,” “sustainable” and “not industrial.” As concepts go, it was the perfect storm of progressive foodie goodness: in one word it connoted fresh taste, a low carbon footprint and good farming practices, and appealing social values.

- Bear, Slow Food Columbus, What is Local Food?

Veggie Van is Around Town

lfcadmin — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 00:40:53 +0000

Local Matter’s Veggie Van will be making the rounds around town with their fresh local veggies in underserved neighborhoods.

See the schedule of Veggie-Van-Sites-Summer-2009 (pdf)

New CSA

frijolitofarmer — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:31:08 +0000

Frijolito Farm is offering a CSA this year running from the beginning of June through the middle of November. Vegetables, eggs, chicken, bread, sweets, and a limited selection of fruits will be available. For full details and to order online, visit the CSA page at frijolitofarm.com