Reason #2 to Buy Local Food

#2 Local produce is better for you!

A recent study showed that fresh produce loses nutrients quickly. Food that is frozen or canned soon after harvest is actually more nutritious than some "fresh" produce that has been on the truck or supermarket shelf for a week. Locally grown food, purchased soon after harvest, retains its nutrients.

See source on Reason #1 post.

The Top 10 Reasons to Buy Local Food

1. Locally grown food tastes better!

Food grown in your own community was probably picked within the past day or two. It's crisp, sweet and loaded with flavor. Produce flown or trucked in from California, Florida, Chile or Holland is quite understandably, much older. Several studies have shown that the average distance food travels from farm to plate is 1,500 miles. In a weeklong (or more) delay from harvest to dinner table, sugars turn to starches, plants cells shrink and produce loses its vitality.

Adapted from Growing For Market, the national monthly journal for direct market farmers. PO Box 3747 Lawrence, Kansas 66046 785-748-0605 Email:growing4market@earthlink.net

Check back for the reasons countdown!

Small Farm Update



Sue Gray, Tulsa County OSU Horticulturist, has developed a small farm newsletter for the counties around Tulsa County in Oklahoma (NE Oklahoma). What a great idea! This newsletter will keep our farmers updated from now until October (basically our growing season). The March 28th issue includes pests of the week, book of the week, horticulture tip of the week and much more.

If you want to receive this update, please email: sgray@tulsacounty.org

I hope you are looking forward to this 2011 season of the Nowata County Farmers Market as much as I am!