Like this:

As planned, I began my investigation into the procurement and consumption of locally grown, healthier food.  I was fortunate, coincidently, to be reading over the past week a book given to me by my daughter, Becky.  The book, which I do not commend to you, was written by Joel Salatin, Folks, This Ain’t Normal.  Joel is the farmer from Virginia whose natural farm was one quartet of the food journey described in The Omnivore’s Dilemma.  Unfortunately, to mix an agri-business metaphor, something of value in Joel’s book is rarer than hen’s teeth (the book is a rather extended rant about all that is wrong with the world, from the inception of the USDA to Obama’s health plan).  I tended to agree with much of what he said, but the effort required to find the wheat in the chaff was, well, annoying (sort of like reading my stuff, I assume).

One thing of value I did extract from Joel’s tome was a “lead” to an organization dedicated to healthier food and local growers, the Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF).  I used the Google (my boss calls them, “the goggles”) and discovered, much to my amazement, a local representative and an email address.  I sent an email instanter and got an almost immediate reply from Julie Konikoff, a fellow(ette) resident of Tallahassee.  Julie answered patiently my many questions and then told me one of her favorite produce producers is the farm, get this, ACROSS THE STREET from my house.  Julie also told me there is a farmer’s market every Wednesday almost literally ACROSS THE STREET from my office.  Yeah, right?  See: stars, aligned.

So today, I headed over to the Lake Ella market and picked up a few items:

•  Sourdough bread, made naturally with olive oil ($7)
• One T-bone steak ($15.34; 1.18 lbs)
• One dozen eggs, one container of hummus, one pack of pita bread ($20)

The other day, I bought some Vidalia onion and peach salsa ($4.15) and a jar of apple cinnamon jelly ($4.50) from the country store up the road from my house.

Market Food

Look at the cost of those few items.  You getting the sense that this ain’t a pursuit for a pauper?  I knew it would cost more to buy better, healthier food; after all, the point is to buy from small producers who don’t benefit from economies of scale and government subsidies.  I am suffering a bit from sticker shock, but I’m intent on continuing.  This lifestyle change is not a financial issue; it’s a cost/benefit analysis where I’ve chosen to spend more to realize the benefits of healthier food.  Besides, every time I can buy something from a local farmer, I poke a sharp financial stick in the eye of Publix; you know that has to appeal to me, right?  At any rate, I’ve just begun the journey so I’ve yet to “learn the system, work within the system, beat the system.”

Here’s something else I learned which amazed me.

Perusing a local farmer co-op/store website (you can place orders online from Sunday until 6:00 am on Wednesday and then pick up your stuff on Thursday at a couple locations around town), I noticed the link to “Dairy” didn’t work.  And there was something else “strange” on the site: a link to “Pet Food.”

Pets Only

Reading ole Joel’s book, I ran across an offhand comment about farmers who were overwhelmed by the onerous regulations levied on all food producers by the government.  The costs required to comply with the regulations are a barrier to entry for the small producer; they just don’t generate sufficient income to comply with all the laws which would permit them to sell their products (you know, dangerous stuff like eggs, milk, cheese) to the general public.  However (and this is a BIG “however”), they can label the items thusly:  “Pet Food Only, Not Safe for Human Consumption” and sell it to any Tom, Dick, or Mary.  I shit you not.

Julie told me I can go into a local New Leaf Market and ask for raw cow’s milk (they had goat’s milk at the market today, but I’m not ready for that yet) and you can get all you want (you have to ask an employee; they don’t put it in the dairy case).  I imagine I can get other stuff there, too, but I’m really intent on forming a relationship with the farms and farmers in my area.  To begin with, I plan to visit the farm ACROSS THE STREET from me this weekend.

Ironically, despite this pursuit of better, healthier foods, I haven’t quit smoking.  How stupid is that?  I am riding my bike, though.  Baby steps, Dr. Bob, baby steps.

I invite you to follow my progress.  And I invite you to join me.  Remember, “It only takes one person…”