Dan Nielsen: Food doesn't need to travel the world

Local food makes sense on so many levels that it is rather surprising society moved away from that norm.

The old adage, "Don't put all your eggs in one basket," is simple wisdom.

But our society has moved toward putting our entire population's eggs in fewer and fewer baskets for decades. The rise of massive corporate farms and single-crop operations certainly made money for someone. Specialization is a hallmark of economic growth in the modern era. Factory farms can produce food for less cost per unit.

But specialization includes inherent dangers. In the food realm, those dangers include health safety and massive crop loss. Flavor sometimes suffers, too.

The last few years have delivered a series of corporate food contamination problems that resulted in sickness or death. Peanut butter. Cantaloupe. Sausage. Cheese. Poultry. Spinach.

Contamination can happen in small or large agricultural operations. But when the problem originates in a massive agricultural operation, many consumers can suffer rather than just a few.

The growth of agriculture in California's central valley has made the entire U.S. dependent on weather conditions in a small geographic area. When a drought or frost damages a crop there, grocery stores in Traverse City and across the entire nation end up in short supply of strawberries or lettuce or whatever. It's true that northerners 50 years ago simply didn't have access to fresh produce in the winter. But even in summer Americans have become incredibly dependent on central California and Mexico for produce.

Other food sources also have migrated away from local production. Fish, beef, chicken and pork once were primarily raised and consumed locally, no matter where you lived. Today, protein mostly is raised and processed in corporate environments, then shipped across the country for consumption. (Oleson's locally raised buffalo is a notable exception.)

Every time I eat something out of a can or box or freezer pack, I think about the energy and effort expended to package, preserve and transport it hundreds or thousands of miles from the source to my table.

That's why the movement toward growing and consuming local food makes me smile.

Northwestern Lower Michigan is a leader in the local food trend. Small farm operations are springing up across the region and increasing local choices. Greenhouse and hoophouse technology is extending our local growing season. Farmers are finding new ways to grow a wide variety of crops in the area, and are finding plenty of residents anxious to taste their products.

Other entrepreneurs are processing local agricultural products into packaged foods like jams, crackers, honey, bread, cooking oil and pie.

Traverse City and the surrounding region are so agriculturally active that an increasing number of products are becoming regional exports. Cherries, wine grapes and apples have been exported from the region in various forms for decades. Farmers are accelerating production and export of hops. Fresh fruits and vegetables are making their way from northwest Lower Michigan to mouths in southern Michigan through means including Traverse City-based distributor Cherry Capital Foods.

Locally grown food is a simple choice in a complicated world.

Residents in northwest Lower Michigan are gaining access to safe, healthy food that has a shorter back story of railroad and semi-truck miles. Local farmers are providing us with food that doesn't depend on the weather in a valley more than 2,000 miles from Traverse City.

California is a great vacation destination and its agricultural diversity is amazing. But Michigan measures up on both counts.

Contact Business Editor Dan Nielsen at 231-933-1467 or dnielsen@record-eagle.com.

Source: Dan Nielsen: Food doesn't need to travel the world