SA Dining Services Committee

BE HEALTHY Locally grown food is usually the freshest! The nutrition you receive from produce declines after harvest. Most produce in the U.S. is harvested four to seven days before it reaches our supermarket shelves. That means the non local produce you buy at the supermarket can be days to weeks old. Local Farmers can grow food that is bred for taste and freshness instead of for shipping and a long shelf life. Fresh food tastes better! When you buy local you buy fresher, healthier, and tastier food.

When you buy from a local farm you can learn about how your food is grown. You can choose food from farmers who reduce or do not use hormones, antibiotics or synthetic pesticides.

PROTECT OUR ENVIRONMENT Most of our food travels an average of 1,500 miles before it reaches our tables. About 90% of the energy used in the world food system goes to transportation, packaging, and marketing. Buying local reduces �food miles�, packaging, and fossil fuel consumption.

Food grown for local markets, even when it is not organic, is usually produced with fewer synthetic fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, and preservatives. Small family farms typically take a less chemical intensive approach to producing their food.

Small Farms often grow varieties that are best suited to the local or regional environment. Growing a diversity of delicious varieties of fruits and vegetables supports biodiversity and widens the gene pool. Crop diversity helps ensure our long-term food security.

Local Farms sustain beautiful rural landscapes and open spaces. In 2002 New York State was able to maintain 7.6 million acres of farmland, one quarter of the total land area of New York. When you buy local you �eat the view� and increase awareness about the connections between local food and open spaces.

GROW OUR LOCAL ECONOMY Spending your food dollars locally keeps money circulating in the community. If everyone in Tompkins County spent 10% of their food dollars locally we would generate $16,000,000 in economic power for our region annually.

On average only 19 cents of every dollar we spend at the supermarket goes to the farmer. Local food purchases can go directly to the farmer and allows farmers to receive a fair share of the profits for their products. Buying locally preserves agricultural history and ensures agricultural livelihoods.

Developing local food systems can create jobs and contribute to building a strong local economy that helps insulate us from national and global recessions.

According to several studies Farms contribute more in taxes than they require in services, whereas suburban development costs more than it generates in taxes. For every dollar of revenue raised by farms, governments spend 34 cents on services. Governments spend $1.17 on services for residential development which requires higher taxes for all taxpayers.