EE2 Rough Draft

Growing up in Oregon I was fortunate to be surrounded with fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables. I never realized just how fortunate I was until I left Oregon for the great state of Colorado. However shortly after moving to Colorado I realized just how lucky I was growing up in Oregon. Some of my fondest memories growing up come from going to the farms. The closest farm to my house is just a short ten-minute drive. I remember summer mornings waking up in anticipation of going to the farm. Upon arriving my parents would shop around buying fresh fruits and vegetables that were either grown at this particular farm or other farms in Oregon. They would buy me an orange crush in a glass bottle, give me some quarters and off I went to go see and feed the animals at the farm. I can testify that nothing tastes better than fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables. This experience, which I would learn later, would help contribute to the ways I eat now. I realize that I took for granted knowing where my food came from. Arriving in Colorado and looking through the various aisles of the grocery store, I realize I have no clue where these fruits and vegetables are coming from. After talking to my older sister who has been a resident of Colorado for about eight years now I learned that not a lot is grown in Colorado. There aren’t many local farms in and around the Denver, Colorado Springs area. She told me that the nearest place to pick strawberries was at least a two-hour drive, and even then they weren’t the same caliber as fresh locally grown Oregon strawberries. This seemed absurd to me. Every summer my mom and I go pick fresh organic strawberries from a small local berry farm within five minutes of my house. These facts made me further realize just how much I took growing up in Eugene Oregon for granted. Through my manifesto I wish to explore the ways in which fresh locally grown produce contributes to my food consumption. I am also going to explore the sustainability factor of locally grown produce and farmers markets. 

During the summer one of my favorite things to do is go berry picking with my mom. Nothing beats waking up early before the afternoon heat to go pick fresh berries right off the vine. This has been a tradition in my family for as long as I can remember. Just five minutes from my house in what seems to be a typical neighborhood is a small organic berry farm. Every year we frequent this farm because of its close proximity to my house. One of my favorite berries to pick aside from raspberries is the marrionberry. Recently I found out that the marionberry was “developed by Oregon State University's Agricultural Research and Development Program in Corvallis, Oregon” (Mersinger p.1). Oregon State with the help of George F. Waldo of the USDA began development of this hybrid in 1945 in the Willamette Valley. The new berry was tested at Willamette Valley farms and later introduced to the public in 1956 (Mersinger p.1). The berry was originally named the marion blackberry or marionberry for short. The new berry was named after Marion County, the county in which the berry originated.

Because the marionberry is mainly grown in Oregon it can be found in a variety of products. The marionberry is quite a versatile berry. The marionberry as most berries are considered to be good for your health. During the summer restaurants all over Oregon offer special marionberry foods. One of my personal favorite restaurants McMenamins offers marionberry cobbler a la mode in the summer. The sweet yet also tartness of the berries mixed with the melting of the vanilla ice cream makes this dessert irresistible. Aside from marionberry cobbler there is also marionberry pie, milkshakes, jams, jellies, syrups, and ice cream. All of which are wildly popular in Oregon. One local ice cream company Tillamook during the summer month’s makes marionberry pie ice cream, which happens to be a personal favorite of mine. All of the products listed above are all local products. Eating the marionberry I am assured that it came from Oregon. I have a sense of security knowing that a fellow Oregonian grew this berry. It is important to me to know where my food is coming from. When I go pick marionberries I feel a connection with the berry that I am eating. I am able to meet my fellow neighbor who grew this berry. Knowing who grew the food that I am consuming gives me a sense of security.

            Oregon is known for being a very green and sustainable state, so it comes to no surprise that there are several farmers markets around the state. Farmers markets are places where local farmers come to gather and sell their produce to fellow community members. This produce is grown locally, meaning it has been grown within one hundred miles of where the farmers market is held. Living in Eugene I am privileged to have the ability to frequent the farmers market during the summer. Every Saturday starting in April and running through November several local farmers gather in downtown Eugene to sell their produce. This along with the Saturday Market has been a long-standing tradition within the Eugene community since nineteen seventy. Many people seek farmers markets to buy their produce because of the notion that they are supporting their fellow community members. Talking with my parents who have been long time residents of Eugene can testify that Eugene’s Saturday market has grown not only in size but also in popularity over the years. However Eugene is not the only state in which you can find farmers markets. According to Roseanne Harper’s article Farmers Markets: Fresher to You offers that farmers markets in the United States has “increased from 1,755 in 1994 to 3,700 in 2004, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service figures. The numbers continue to grow” (1). This increase in farmers markets across the United States could be attributed to the publics growing interest in knowing where their food comes from and who grows it. Speaking with friends and family members on the idea of farmers markets I got the notion that they liked knowing that their food was fresh and grown within close proximity to their homes. It has been said that food bought at a grocery store can travel as much as thirteen hundred miles before reaching your plate (Cohen 1). To put this into perspective the distance between Eugene Oregon and Denver Colorado is one thousand two hundred and seventy-seven miles. That is a large distance for a tomato to travel, not to mention how long it takes for that tomato to reach the store to then reach your plate. Knowing this fact I can further relate to the appeal of farmers markets and locally grown produce.

            Shopping at farmers market has numerous positive impacts not only on health but on the local and state economy as well (DeWeerdt 20). When choosing to give your dollar to a local farmer you are not only helping the farmer but the local economy as well. This dollar will continue to circulate the community thus helping the local economy. To further support this notion Sarah DeWeerdt’s Article Local Foods: The Economics mentions that “If people in the Central Puget Sound region (Seattle and nearby cities, including Tacoma, Bellevue, and Everett) spent 20 per- cent of their food dollars at local food businesses such as farmers markets and locally owned restaurants, it would inject an extra billion dollars every year into the region’s economy” (21). This is a huge deal considering the current economic state that we are currently facing.

            However the local economy is just one benefit of buying locally. Considering that food travels at least thirteen hundred miles before reaching the plate means that there is a lot of energy going into not only the production but to the travel as well. According to the Center for Disease Control’s website “Food grown and produced far away requires transportation to reach the dinner table, eating locally saves energy by reducing the amount of fuel used to transport these products”. If you think about it farmers who travel to farmers markets are using minimal energy and fuel to transport their food, as compared to food that travels great distances. As we are well aware oil is becoming more of a scarce commodity and has stark consequences on the environment. I can only imagine how many gallons of oil it takes for a tomato to travel thirteen hundred or more miles before it reaches the dinner table. By buying locally you are helping to reduce oil consumption as well as helping the environment.

            Lastly and perhaps the most important benefit to eating and buying locally is the health benefits. When buying produce locally it is picked at the peak of freshness and then brought to the farmers market. In the introduction of Barry Estabrook’s novel Tomatoland he mentions that because of the mass production of tomatoes they contain “30 percent less vitamin C, 30 percent less thiamin, 19 percent less niacin, and 62 percent less calcium” as compared to tomatoes produced in the nineteen sixties (5). This is a significant drop in essential nutrients. Lisa Ramirez a writer for The Herald-Record further supports the notion of local produce being healthier. In her article Farm Fresh:the Health Benefits of Buying Local produce lends that “How long a bunch of romaine lettuce has been sitting around, it turns out, has a direct impact on just how good that romaine really is for you. That's because food starts to change as soon as it's plucked from the earth and tender vitamins such as C, E, A and thiamine begin to deteriorate”. When buying fresh local produce you are fully reaping its nutritional benefits. Although I cannot prove it I can assure you that along with health benefits fresh produce taste better. Every summer my parents grow tomatoes in the back yard. These tomatoes are by far tastier and juicier than the ones found in the grocery story. My sister’s who both frequent the farmers market also cite the taste factor when buying local produce.

            I feel very fortunate to have grown up in an environment, which allows me to buy fresh locally grown produce. There are numerous benefits to buying local, which include economic, sustainability and health factors. I gain a sense of satisfaction when I go berry picking every summer knowing exactly where my dollar is going. I am able to meet the person behind the berry and ask them questions. I also feel that by buying local I am reducing my carbon footprint. Plus there is always the satisfaction of eating the berries after a hard morning’s work. For me going to the farms is a nostalgic experience. Waking up early going to the farm, seeing real life animals and feeding them. I feel as though American’s have become disconnected from their food. We no longer know where our food is coming from or who is growing it. As a nation we need to become healthier, the first step starts with reconnecting with our food and the people who grow it.