Today I decided to commit to something I've been toying with for a while. The environmental impact of importing most of our diet is reason enough, but my rural upbringing and my love of history makes me long to return to a more local diet. So, 1Nov, 2009 will be my official first day.
My prefirst day was busy enough - a batch of squash soup to freeze (I've made three batches and froze them already) and a new sourdough starter to experiment with - the first batch of bread is rising now as I sit down to write.
Honestly, my biggest challenge will be caffeine. I may opt to limit myself to FreeTrade coffee rather than eliminate caffeine altogether. Spices are another uncertainty- we've been importing spices for several hundred years, long before there was an environmental crisis. Perhaps my version of the 100 mile diet will be "those things that originated within a 100 mile diet OR have been imported for more than 200 years". Hmmm. Would that be cheating? That would mean I could still have chocolate.
The first big issue will be determining what really is local. I went to the Covent Garden Market today, looking at bread - a vendor insisted that the ancient Kamut bread with Kamut from Germany was a local bread. I'll need to ask lots of questions.
I'm glad I live where I do - there actually is a lot within 100 miles of here (I must remember I said this once, after I've been at this for a few months). But, there will be no bananas, no oranges, no refined sugar, no ALEXANDER KEITHS! for a year.
Stay tuned!
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This is gonna be interesting!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes.