Today begins the 2008 Eat Local Challenge. For the month of October, we’re going to continue to live large and local here at Yankee Food. If you haven’t signed up yet, it’s not too late. Head on over to the EatLocalChallenge site to sign up and be inspired.
Here’s my statement of participation for this year:
1. My definition of local will be a 100 mile radius. This gives me a good deal of Maine, most all of New Hampshire and Vermont, and a good chunk of Massachusetts. I have been quite able to find what I need within this radius in the past.
2. My exemptions are the usual oil, pepper and spices, as well as grains, which simply don’t grow here. I would like to make it a goal to find Maine salt this month, though, and we use King Arthur Flour exclusively, which is produced within about 65 miles of here. I’ve got to declare coffee, tea and chocolate to be within limits, too. Additionally, I have to claim a travel exemption this weekend, as we’ll be in Montreal. I’ll do what I can to eat as locally as possible, but I’m also going to be on vacation.
3. My goal for the month is to post at least once per week about our meals and to eat at least 18 out of 21 meals per week from 95% local ingredients. I think we’ll even give up the bananas this month – apples and pears are in abundance and at their peak, so why not enjoy those while they’re around?
I’m looking forward to October – even more than last year, I think we’re ready and prepared for the challenge!
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Have you taken my survey yet? Check out the end of this post and leave a comment with prices in your area for a few basic ingredients. Thank you!
Wow. I am impressed with your statements for the challenge. I sometimes feel like we do a pretty good job eating locally, but we are nowhere near 95% for 18/21 meals a week. Breakfasts? Short of making eggs every morning, I am quite stumped. I’m never really convinced I can count KAFlour as local, even though it is making a good effort. We also eat lots of pasta.
Oh, and we cracked open a jar of our peaches this week for kicks and it was scrumptious! There are still NH peaches to be had if people are looking for more local fruit options.
And, last thing, we got Maine salt at Common Ground from these folks: http://www.maineseasalt.com They have all kinds of great flavors, too.
Good luck with your challenge!
I’ve been using Maine Sea Salt from
Stonewall Kitchens. It’s out of my 100 miles, but it is the closest sea salt I’ve found. They have a great story (that began in NH). I like the taste too!