Food for Thought
Submitted by Ann Foster
While enjoying a lovely lunch with friends at one of Ridgefield’s local and well-known restaurants the other day, as I often do, I wondered how much of the items on my plate could be sourced locally – from within Clark County. Much of the time, it is a passing thought.
The restaurant, located just east of I-5 and off of Pioneer Street, by my count has within a 10-mile radius the following food growers – and this just a sampling:
- Harvest Moon: a variety of lettuces throughout the year, grown hydroponically.
- Red Truck Farm: a variety of seasonal produce, including greens and lettuces. Always eggs.
- Munoz Berry Farm: (within a mile of this particular restaurant), growers of just about all seasonal berries.
- Green Jungle Farm: provider of pastured meats, eggs and seasonal produce.
- Danny’s Fullplate Farm: specializing in vegetables for the winter season, and certified organic.
- Kestrel Cascadia Farm: for milk and cheeses from adorable goats.
- Mo-Mo’s Flower Farm: for fresh flowers.
- NW Organic Farm: for organic produce and eggs.
- April Joy Farm: for sustainably grown produce
As I said my thank-you’s to the nice person behind the counter of this particular restaurant, I gently asked her about “sourcing ingredients locally”. She was speechless and explained that the manager was the one to ask but was only there between 11 and 1 on weekdays. She acknowledged, however, that she did not know of any locally-sourced ingredients and mumbled something about “costs”. I quickly pivoted to a “think about how much money would be saved in freight costs” and she smiled. I noted to her that I would try and return during the week in order to chat with the manager. I let her know that I would also bring a thorough list of farms, growers and food producers in the restaurant’s neighborhood that could happily supply basic food items.
I felt the need to explain to the woman behind the counter the need to connect with local producers, how important it is for the economic well-being of the community and the environment, and that customers react very positively to learning where the menu items are coming from. Placing that factoid on a restaurant’s menu can be an effective marketing tool.
I encourage you all to think about where your food is coming from when you buy it at Freddie’s, Safeway, Costco – even Chuck’s; and I encourage you to ask your favorite restaurant management about the possibility of sourcing locally as much as possible, especially NOW, when so much healthfully-grown food is available.
In case you would like to find outlets for locally-grown product, here is a helpful list:
- Second Mile Food Hub, Salmon Creek: a hub for a variety of foods and products grown within Clark County, available to order on-line.
- Four days a week of farmers’ markets –
- Wednesdays, 3 to 7 p.m., Camas Farmers Market
- Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Salmon Creek Farmers Market at Legacy Hospital
- Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., East Vancouver at the Columbia Tech Center
- Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Ridgefield Farmers Market
- Saturdays and Sundays, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Downtown Vancouver Farmers Market, Esther Short Park.
- On Facebook, try Clark County Farm to Table, Clark County Organic Farms and Homesteaders, or Clark County Grown.
Buying your food locally keeps your dollars within the community, helping to keep local businesses viable and supporting farms to keep these high-quality, gorgeous soils used for the purpose in which they were divinely created.
Buying your food locally builds resilience in the event of severe climate events, strengthening local supply chains and distribution points—all critical as our future becomes more and more unpredictable.
Buying your food locally saves the earth from the greenhouse gas impacts from multiple levels of freight movement over land and sea, helping to reduce emissions. (nsert quoted percentage of GHG emissions from imported products).
Buying your food locally gives you firsthand knowledge of where your food comes from, how it is grown and when it was harvested, contributing to your health and the health of your family.
Food for thought!