Support local veg boxes and farmers’ markets
If you’re looking to buy local seasonal food, veg box schemes and farmers’ markets are two of the easiest ways to do it. Many towns and villages have one or the other, often within walking distance!
Farmers need a government license (and liability insurance) to sell to the public. Read more on food hygiene rules.
Keep veg boxes away from pets (due to mushrooms, onion, garlic etc). Bin acidic scraps (peppers, onion/shallots, garlic, leeks, chives, tomato, citrus, rhubarb) to avoid harm to compost creatures.
Some veg boxes also sell groceries. Before recycling tins, rinse/remove lids (pop ring-pulls back over holes). Step on upper cans to pinch rims together, so wildlife don’t get trapped at landfill.
Freshly harvested food
Unlike supermarkets that tend to store ‘fresh produce’ for weeks or even months in chilled central distribution houses (using up unnecessary energy), local box schemes and farmers’ markets usually sell produce that has been harvested the day before. Or even that morning!
Almost zero food miles!
Most veg box schemes and farmers’ markets are grown nearby. So the food is not just local (avoiding unnecessary lorry trips clogging up roads).
And you are not paying for the fuel, to deliver the produce to market.
Eating seasonally tastes good!
When you eat organic food in season, you notice the different in taste. A fresh juicy tomato always tastes better than a chilled out-of-season one. Same with summer strawberries, spring asparagus or autumn apples or pears.
Not much grows during England’s hungry gap around April (after winter harvests and before summer harvests). So you’ll likely get to know kale (one of the only crops that grows year-round). Time to learn to make soup! Check medication before eating lots of leafy greens.
Less packaging
Veg boxes are delivered in returnable boxes, and farmers’ markets let you take your own reusable cloth bag to fill up with fresh produce. Again you save money, as a lot of the price of supermarket fresh produce is to pay for unnecessary packaging.
And again this means less oil (which plastic is made from).
Know where your food comes from
There’s nothing better than buying from the farmer who actually grew your food. As he or she will know what varieties are best for what recipes (he’s know his onions to his apples!)
Keeps money in local economies
When you buy fresh produce from supermarkets, most of the profit goes up to head office or into shareholder profits. Or is used to pay for chilling in factories or oil for lorry delivery.
When you buy direct from local farmers, the money goes straight into the farmer’s pocket. He or she likely then buys items from local suppliers. And likely gets his hair cut at a local salon!
Less waste
When you buy fresh produce from an organic box, you get what’s in season and there is incentive to use up whatever’s inside in recipes. And at farmers’ markets, you only buy what you need.
If you only want one stick of celery for a salad (or just one onion for a curry), you can just buy what you need. And stop leftovers going to waste.
Where to find local seasonal food
Growing Communities (East/South London) has boxes starting from £10, using pick-up points to keep prices low. Farmers receive 50% of the price you pay (three times more than supermarkets) for a resilient food system that is not affected by rising oil prices.
Kentish Town Veg Box (London) offers affordable veg bags (and optional fruits like rhubarb) with farmers receiving around 60% of each pound spent. Buy basil from London and aubergines from Kent!
Find CSA farms. These are where you pay farmers in advance of the harvest. They can then focus on growing food instead of selling out to supermarkets.
Wonky Veg Boxes buys up and sells ‘imperfect produce’ that farmers have had rejected by supermarkets: often carrots, parsnips, potatoes and apples with odd shapes or little scars.
