1.Farmers Markets: Farmers Markets are local markets where local and regional farmers can sell directly to the consumer. Farmers Markets not only allow the farmers to receive full retail value of their produce, but also for the fruit to usually be picked within 24 hours of being sold. Farmers markets not only supply local and organic foods, but are also a great way to connect with your community!
If you live in Santa Barbara County, check this website out for more information: http://www.sbfarmersmarket.org/
If you live outside of Santa Barbara, the National Resources Defense Council offers a "Farmers Market Finder", for all 50 states! Check this out for more information:
http://www.simplesteps.org/eat-local/farmers-markets
2.Know What's In Season: Knowing what's in season assures that you will always know what to buy and when in order to purchase the highest quality food. Seasonal produce is often the freshest, ripest, best tasting, and has experienced the least pesticides and manmade microclimates.
For those of you in Southern California, check out our "What's in Season" page!
For anyone outside of Southern California, or curious to see what's in season where, check out the National Resources Defense Council's site: http://www.simplesteps.org/eat-local , to find out more.
3.Eat Local When You Eat Out: Many restaurants pride themselves on using only local ingredients or offering local wines. So next time you decide to eat out, choose a restaurant that buys from local and regional farms, growers, and purveyors.
In the Santa Barbara Area, there are many locally sourced restaurants, such as: Simply Pies, The Seagrass Restaurant, The Arts and Letters Café, The Pizza Guru, Telegraph Brewing Company, Sojourner Café, Full of Life Flatbread Restaurant, and C’est Cheese.
4. Joing a CSA: “Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season.” This is highly beneficial to the farmer economically and great for the consumer. For more information go to : http://www.localharvest.org/csa/
If you live in Santa Barbara, Plow to Porch Organics is an (CSA) organic produce delivery service. “Our mission is to simplify the purchase and preparation of local fresh organic produce in order to inspire good nutrition, support local farmers and protect our environment”-Plow to Porch Organics. Plow to Porch Organics works the same way as any CSA does, simply purchase a subscription, and receive seasonal and local produce that is fresh, nutrient and vitamin filled, and very, very tasty. 5.Joing or Start a Community Garden: Growing your own food is the ultimate way to eat local. Anything from your own personal vegetable garden or lemon tree outside the back door to a community or neighborhood garden on the corner not only provides you with fresh produce, but encourages community interactions.
If you live in an apartment, or any other dwelling that inhibits your ability to grow your own food outside, there are many ways to still grow your own food. You can grow your own indoor vegetable garden, http://www.ehow.com/how_2156424_grow-indoor-vegetable-garden.html, use products such as the topsy-turvy tomato(and pepper) grower to grow vegetables inside with very little mess, or even simply grow herbs indoors to season your meals. You can plant almost any vegetable indoors including, green beans, small fingerling carrots, eggplants, endives, herbs, lettuces, radishes, red peppers, tomatoes, and other dwarf varieties of larger vegetables.
6.Frequent U-picks and Farm Stands: “For most city-dwellers, farm stands aren't an everyday food gathering solution. But when the opportunity presents itself, u-picks (where you go to a farm and pick your own produce) are a great source for large quantities of super-fresh produce.”
U-picks are also a great activity for families. Next time you have a free day with your family, take the whole crew up to a pick-your-own orchard, berry farm, or farm stand, and enjoy not only the ripe, healthy, and delicious produce but also the time with your family.
7. Shop the Perimeter of Grocery Stores: The aisles around the perimeter of grocery stores contain more ingredients than processed foods. Shop these perimeters for fresh produce, meats, and dairy--precisely those items that you can ask about their source and hopefully find some from near-by sources. Pay particular attention to the produce aisle: if you know your seasons, you may be able to find some locally or regionally grown items. –localfoods.about.com
8. Compost: An easy way to be green and fertilize your own garden is through composting. Composting is the decomposition of plant remains and other once-living materials to make an earthy, dark, crumbly substance that is excellent for adding to houseplants or enriching garden soil. It is a way to recycle your yard and kitchen wastes, and is a critical step in reducing the volume of garbage needlessly sent to landfills for disposal.
9. Shop at Stores that Label Food Origins: If you have a choice, next time you go grocery shopping choose a market that labels where it’s foods comes from. If markets near you don’t offer this service, you can still buy locally grown food elsewhere. For example, you could shop at Co-Ops(like the Isla Vista Co-Op or Organic Valley Co-Op in Santa Barbara), subscribe to a CSA(like Plow to Porch Organics), frequent local Farmers Markets, U-picks, and farm stands, or shop at a health food store (which is much more likely to label their food origins than the large supermarket chains).
10. Buy Family Farmed or Fair Trade Products When Local Is Unavailable: Although purchasing primarily local food is ideal, it just isn’t available everywhere or economically viable for everyone. A simple solution to that is to buy family or locally owned and farmed products, or fair trade products instead. These options still encourage healthy, small-scale agricultural practices, a large part of the eat-local movement. In Santa Barbara, there are many family farmed and fair trade products available for you, at places such as Green Star Coffee.
For more information on how to eat locally, visit: http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/eat-safe/local-food-tips-47052805
