Top 6 reasons why you should buy from a local farm!
Are you considering buying from a local farm? There are countless benefits to buying locally produced products. Here’s our top 6!
- You are putting money back directly into your fellow community partners. This will not only benefit you but will benefit members of your family for the future.
- You are getting a fresh product as opposed to something that was made/picked weeks before you consume it. The term “processed” food comes to mind. You take out the processing part and get a direct natural product. Fruits and Vegetables are picked weeks in advance so that when they hit the store shelves they are ripe. Harvesting the fruits or veggies ripe from the plant is the way to go.
- You will taste the difference! Fresh food tastes better because you are getting all the natural sugars and minerals that the product has into your body right away. Fresh foods also have higher nutrient content than foods that have been harvested for a period of time.
- You have the opportunity to develop a personal connection with those who produce the food you eat! This also encourages sustainable practices for the future.
- You are doing the world a favour! By buying locally sourced products you are eliminating the travel distance that the product endures from the farm to your plate. This in turn greatly reduces the ecological footprint that the product has placed on the earth.
- You will feel safe. Canada is one of the most strict countries when it comes to how our food is produced. This being in how things are grown to how things are slaughtered. Buying farm direct also greatly shortens the supply chain which in turn decreases the amount of risk when it comes to contamination or unsafe food handling.
Things to be aware of when buying local
- Not all Farms are the same. Farms are all different thus making their products different. A steak from one farm might taste different than that of another. Find the farmer(s) that work the best for you.
- Farm Stores are not Grocery Stores. This means a producer might not have exactly what you are looking for on a certain day. This could be for a variety of reasons; here are a few examples.
- When it comes to meat, it takes time to process animals in Ontario. The farmer has to truck the animal to the slaughter house then wait for the butcher to process the meat.
- Sold out. Some farms may be straight up sold out of a certain product on a particular day.
Be sure to check out fresh local options near you on G’day !
