CSA concerns?
November 13th, 2009
Photo via Flickr: Thebittenword.com
Who could argue with local, sustainably produced food, right? Well evidently, Western Growers isn’t too thrilled about community supported agriculture (CSA) cutting into their market share. To wit, the email I received regarding my regarding my Eco Etiquette post this week, in which I recommend winter CSAs as a source for local food after farmers markets have closed for the season:
Are you recommending that readers drive many miles to these hot houses and farms in the country to buy locally-grown food in the winter? Did you know that most food miles are compiled by consumers driving to purchase food rather than food producers shipping food to retail stores? It might be worthwhile to crunch some numbers before you recommend an action that actually increases the carbon footprint.
My response:
Most CSAs offer convenient pick-up locations for their subscribers, so people aren’t really driving much farther than they would to the supermarket. Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm in Illinois offers a pick-up in the city of Chicago; Garden of Eve on Long Island has a location on NYC’s Upper West Side; Hog’s Back Farm in Wisconsin has a drop-off in nearby Minneapolis.
But when it comes to the environment, final delivery of food from producer to retailer is only half the picture. Much of the environmental damage (and associated carbon footprint) of large, conventional farms is a direct result of their agricultural practices: the pesticides polluting our drinking water; fertilizer runoff creating vast aquatic dead zones; and the large amounts of petroleum required to produce these pesticides and fertilizers to begin with (and to fuel the machinery to grow these large-scale crops). And carbon footprint alone isn’t enough to paint the whole picture; there’s the nitrogen footprint to consider, as well.
And let’s not forget the public health threat that has arisen as a direct result of industrial animal farming — excessive growth hormones in our food supply, antibiotic-resistant superbugs like E. Coli, and rapidly mutating viruses like H1N1. CSAs aren’t just about produce; Cedar Valley, for instance, provides a sustainably raised source of meat for its subscribers.
Eighty percent of the farms in the US are small farms, and if some of those farmers want to sell their sustainably produced fruit/vegetables/meat directly to the public — especially considering the dire economy — why would anyone be opposed to that?
Happy to look at any number-crunching studies you want to send my way –
–Jennifer Grayson
Do this now: Find a winter CSA to join in your area.
Related posts:
Small steps to sustainability
No time for the farmers market? Try an organic food delivery service
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November 13th, 2009 at 10:03 am
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bal-op.vozzella23oct23,0,5991715.story
The “Meatless Monday” program in Baltimore City school cafeterias has the meat industry madder than a factory-farmed hen. A spokeswoman for the American Meat Institute warned on CNN this week that students aren’t getting enough protein. The Animal Agriculture Alliance urged people “shocked” by the once-weekly absence of meat on school menus to write schools chief Andrés Alonso “to ensure this effort does not spread.”
Industrial Ag is fighting back.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Wow — thanks for sharing this, Ross. We talk about the “meat industry,” and “big Ag,” but many of the people who work for these companies are parents, too. Can they honestly say they would rather have their children eat processed chicken patties that are full of antibiotics and hormones than vegetarian lasagna?