I know you like supporting charities, being involved in service projects.
Likely you support or have supported a child overseas through an organization such as World Vision or Compassion International.
In this vein, I want to urge you to support your local farmers.
Their livelihoods depend on it.
And our lives and society depend on them staying in business.
This is what will give us food security and good health.
The problem isn’t that we cannot sustainably raise enough food to feed the world’s population, as you all too often hear.
Or that we should accept chronic health issues as the norm.
The problem is we don’t know what REAL food is anymore. We rely on packaged and prepared foods to feed us.
And government and industry dictate what we can and should eat.
REAL food is the food that God gave us in the form it was intended to be eaten, plain and simple.
We’ve abandoned the good foods that God gave us and replaced them with the foods of modern commerce. The U.S. is one of the richest countries in the world, and it’s one of the sickest.
This should tell us something. I know it’s more than just food. BUT diet is a HUGE part of our ill health.
We would be a lot healthier if we raised all our meat outside on pasture, in the woods, as God created these species to live. And we didn’t strip everything of its nutrients, put it into packages, and add some synthetic “nutrients” that our bodies have no idea what to do with.
We could make a tremendous difference in alleviating poverty if we sought to eat this way.
Because in doing so we are supporting a system that is viable.
And this will serve everyone.
It will make a greater long-term impact than giving money or dry goods to a charity or making sandwiches for McKenna’s Wagon.
I am not saying we shouldn’t support such agencies. Rather that it isn’t the solution.
Furthermore, most farm markets accept food stamps. So, you are helping people in need by supporting a system that aids them in accessing REAL food. Also, farm markets will often give excess to agencies such as Community Food Rescue.
Here’s a brief summary of the benefits of shopping locally:
I’ve heard talk of food shortages. And it is possible. But not because we can’t grow enough food. Rather because of government and industry bureaucracy, monopolization, and control.
We can prevent this if we support our local farmers.
As Catherine Austin Fitts put it:
“A friend of mine said, ‘When we know our farmer, when we have food growing in our backyard, we are less dependent on any larger scale infrastructure and we are ungovernable.’ He meant that we do not need to worry about what is going to happen economically in the bigger picture because we have got what we need or what our family needs.”[1]
You can support local food security and a healthy and safe food system by buying food from your local farmers and encouraging them to go organic, biodynamic or regenerative if they aren’t already.
Be a part of the communities that care about regenerative agriculture and nourishing, local food!
By doing so, you will more effectively help those in need than simply supporting your local charity.
So, vote with your food dollar for sustainability! And see your generosity have a greater impact!
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TO START, get to know one of your farmers! Connect with that person who grows or raises your food.
If you live in the DMV, you can access my resource list for local foods here: Bethesda, MD Local Food Resource List
If you live outside the DMV, contact the local Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) chapter leader in your area: Find the WAPF Chapter near you
One last thing. Refer back to my blog “How is your food raised? How might knowing empower you?” to remember what terms mean and what to ask your farmer.
Thank you for listening and thank you for caring about those around us.
Peace and grace,
Karen
Not-So-Fun Fact. There’s a greater and greater push these days to be eating patented fake foods. Read why.
[1] https://www.westonaprice.org/podcast/protect-your-health-and-wealth/
