A Great Education, and Healthy, Too!

Eating local foods-and teaching your kids about local foods-is a fun, enriching, and nutritious experience.

Eating locally provides a great learning opportunity. You discover more about your community and the people growing foods nearby. You learn how buying local foods benefits your local economy and gives you better nutrition for less money. You find out how choosing local foods can deliver more nutrients and greater variety than a typical trip to the grocery story. And you learn about the local environment and how making small changes, like eating locally, can mean a smarter use of resources.

From science to health to ecology to economy to social studies to personal finance-eating locally delivers a lesson about them all.

Layers of Benefit from Local Foods

When you treat your family to local foods, you reap many benefits. There are health benefits, environmental benefits, economic benefits, and community benefits.

• Most food you buy in the grocery store is shipped over a great distance to be there. This conventional model is an efficient way to grow and distribute food, but it lacks some of the advantages of the local food model.
• Because many fruits and vegetables have to travel so far, they're often picked before they are fully ripe or mature. This reduces the nutritional content of the foods. They also lose nutrients while sitting in trucks and on shelves.
• Local foods, on the other hand, reach you in a much fresher state and that means a higher nutrient content. It also means the food will keep longer in your fridge. I grew lettuce in my garden last summer and was floored when it was still fresh four weeks after I'd picked it. Store bought lettuce doesn't usually last a week in my fridge-I realized how old the store-bought lettuce must be when it reaches me. Yikes!
• Purchasing local foods (or growing your own) supports a more responsible use of resources, and that has an environmental benefit. Farmers who sell locally don't have to treat foods with chemical preservatives. The foods also don't require as much fuel to carry them to their destinations. Fewer resources are consumed and fewer polluting chemicals are released into the environment.
• When you buy locally, you put money back into your local economy and support people working in your community. Both are good things. You may even get to know the people who are growing and raising the food you eat. Many of them offer tours of their farms-what a great learning experience for your kids!

Great Food Sources in the Treasure Valley

Eating locally here in Idaho is easier than you might think. Many grocery stores, from small mom & pop stores to larger chains, participate in the Buy Idaho program. Look for foods with a blue and yellow Buy Idaho sticker on them to be sure. Or check the packaging-the food's source is usually listed below the nutritional information or on the product sticker for produce.

Locally-owned grocery stores tend to carry the most locally-grown or produced foods. Paul's Market, Albertson's, and the Boise Co-op are just three great places to find local items such as produce, meats, and baked goods. Also check out local markets like Henny Penny Produce in Nampa or the Town and Country Farmer's Market in Meridian. 

Aside from grocery stores and local markets, there are many other ways you can discover local foods:

• Farmers markets: Nearly every city in the Treasure Valley has a summer farmers market where you can buy farm-fresh produce, including garden starts in the early spring, vegetables, fruit, and eggs. See page 23 for a list of markets.
• Visit farms and orchards: There are many of these around the valley. The best ways to discover them are to look them up online, watch for them in your newspaper, or just go for a drive through the country. Many farms and orchards offer a u-pick option where you can hand-pick your own fruit and vegetables. You can also schedule a tour through many local farms and orchards. (See page 50 and this month's Family Day Trip column and treasurevalleyfamily.com for a more comprehensive list of local u-pick orchards).
• Community Supported Agriculture: Many local farms in the valley offer a subscription or membership. You pay a seasonal or monthly fee, and each week you get a portion of the harvest. This is a great way to support local farms and get farm-fresh food.
• Idaho Bounty website: This is an online project that supports Idaho farmers and also helps connect Idahoans with local foods. You can visit at idahosbounty.org.

As you can see, there are lots of options when it comes to buying local foods. If you can't find a particular food grown in Idaho, you can still check the labels and choose one that was grown in Oregon or Washington rather than California or Florida. Keeping your food choices as close to home as possible means fresher food, stronger communities, and a healthier environment.

Eating Locally When You Eat Out

Even when you're eating out it's possible to eat local fare. Many restaurants in the Treasure Valley are committed to serving local foods. Typically these restaurants are locally owned and have good relationships with Idaho food producers. They want to provide Idahoans and visitors with the freshest, highest quality foods available while supporting the local economy. The really wonderful thing about eating at these restaurants is that you can find inspiration for cooking your own meals with local foods.

        With summer just around the corner, you and your family will have many opportunities to enjoy locally grown foods. Not only will you get foods at their freshest, you'll also support your community and share many learning experiences with your kids.

Guide to Local Farmers Markets

There are many options to support local farmers and businesses at Saturday markets, where fresh produce, flowers, arts, crafts, and locally made products abound.

Capital City Public Market: 9:30am-1:30pm every Saturday, 8th St. between Bannock & Main and on The Grove Plaza in downtown Boise. Featuring local produce and food, Arts For Kids, live performing artists, and selected work by local artists. www.capitalcitypublicmarket.com.

Eagle Saturday Market: 8:30am-1pm every Saturday, at the corner of Second St. and Old State St. in Eagle. Providing residents and visitors a flourish of local vendors and growers displaying their wares of fine art, crafts, herbs, flowers, local produce, live music, and lots more. www.eaglearts.org.

Nampa Farmers Market: 9am-1pm every Saturday, 12th Ave. S. & 1st St. in historic downtown Nampa. Local produce, crafts, entertainment, and the new Chef at the Market program. www.nampafarmersmarket.com.

Meridian Farmers Market: 9am-1pm every Saturday, 3630 N. Eagle Rd., between Boise First Community Center and Baldycyprus St., ½ mile north of Ustick Rd. in Meridian. Fresh produce, food specials, family fun activities, and charm. www.meridianfarmersmarket.com.

Heather Robson is a local freelance writer with a passion for healthy families. You can send her questions and comments to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it