Another September Practice

Another great thing to do regarding food is to buy locally. The other day, I was in the produce section and noticed that there were muscadines for sale. These are type of grape that grows wild in Tennessee and much of the South. If you live near woods, you can likely find them on the ground and hanging from vines this time of year. I looked at the packaging for them and noticed that they were produced somewhere in Georgia. From the store I was then shopping at, I could go to a local farmer’s market and buy muscadines harvested in Benton County, just a few miles from my house. Why should I care about that? There are several things to consider.

Much more had to happen to the Georgia muscadines to get them in my grocery than the Benton County versions. There was the road trip from Georgia, of course, which used gas. On top of that, their transport had to be cooled in these hot summer days when the temperature might make them spoil faster. The Georgia muscadines have to be packaged in a specific type of plastic that will keep them fresh but not contaminate them. And, to make the trip to Tennessee (and probably farther on to other supermarkets as well), these muscadines probably have some sort of preservative to help them last long enough to get to the store, wait for you to buy them, and not spoil immediately after you get home. The Benton County muscadines just have to be picked and driven down the road.

So, you cut out the pollution, use of resources, and probably eat healthier muscadines, but you also invest in your community. In this great era when we can have Costa Rican bananas and Chilean Plums shipped right to the store down the road, you can help out the people who live within walking distance who are trying to grow food themselves. You will likely get to know these people, thereby becoming more a part of your community. This is at the essence of what God teaches us throughout the Bible—to live in community with those around you.