Guest Post: What is sustainable food?

My friend, Missy Patrick, is guest blogging today with her thoughts on what "sustainable food" really means.

I hope you enjoy!

 

Photo from doityourself.com

     Sustainable food to me is food that gives more than it takes from the land. When food is grown sustainably, it is done in a way that it doesn’t destroy the environment and leave the soil depleted. It is also grown specific to locations on the globe that it would do best in, i.e. plants that need a lot of water to grow are grown in rainy places, and plants that can take the cold are grown in the cold etc. So instead of trying to fight nature by trucking in a lot of water or using chemical fertilizers, the plants are grown in geographic areas were they would naturally thrive. This also ties in to local foods. 

     Everyone has probably heard more about ‘eating local’ nowadays as it is becoming a ‘green’ trend. Eating local means finding farmers in your town that you can buy your produce from instead of heading to a supermarket and buying produce that says ‘from Guatemala’ on it. This is an important part in eating sustainably because right now the only reason we are able to get produce from Guatemala, Chile, South Africa, etc. here in America is because of oil. The carbon footprint required to ship food all around the world is huge and it can be drastically reduced when buying local. Buying organic produce is also an important part of sustainability because non organic produce depletes the soil and puts dangerous chemicals into our environment, many that are known to cause disastrous effects on our health and the health of other creatures. 

     Conventional produce does not replace the trace minerals in the soil and is usually grown in monocrops that are susceptible to disease and insect infestations. This type of set up is not sustainable or ideal. However because we have such a large population and so many people depend on food from farmers, this type of farming has become the norm. To help reduce dependence and contribute to this, people can take up the backyard hobby of growing their own produce. When growing your own you have complete control of what goes into the soil and on your produce. You can add trace minerals to your soil and decide not to use any chemical fertilizers or pesticides. You can instead choose to plant your produce in a way that is can naturally thrive. By planting herbs and produce in different ways, you can naturally repel pests from your garden. By using fertilizers that come from your own compost pile, you can replenish the soil. 

     I have had very good experience growing my own produce. I recycle any uneaten portions of produce into my worm bin, where worms break down the organic matter and turn it into a very fertile compost complete with enzymes and healthy bacteria. This creates a suitable cycle in which anything that is removed from the soil is returned to the soil. Sunlight is free. Rain is free. Which reminds me, rain, an essential part of it, falls freely from the sky but maybe not as often as your plants need. It is then just a simple matter of storing rainwater to be used later by placing a couple rain barrels on the gutter system of your home to collect rainwater. This then can be easily used at the specific times you need it. 

     For people who feel like they have no time to tend a garden, all they need is a timer to water their garden for them and some grown cover to limit weed growth. If the plants you have chosen are suited to your environment, they will grown and be fruitful with little help from you. All you need do then is enjoy picking the fruits and vegetables that you have grown all by yourself.

What does "sustainable food" mean to you?