Locavore Challenge: Weekend Stockpiling

Our plans for the weekend include a visit to a farm southwest of Portland (at about 80 miles out they'll be likely the furthest source of food for us during the EcoChallenge) for our flour supply, and then a farm a little closer for dairy, eggs, and possibly a chicken or two. They are slaughtering chickens in the morning, so if they are ready in time we'll pick one up-- definitely haven't had meat that fresh before!

I just finished reading Farm City, by Novella Carpenter, and her tales of gardening and raising animals in inner city Oakland were inspiring- and I imagine the EcoChallenge will further my interest in knowing the source of the meats we eat.

As a former vegetarian (for 10 years or so), I know I can easily find plenty to eat without including meat in my diet. But, I also know that I feel a lot better when I am eating some meat so my current priority is to make the best choices around what meats I do eat. For me this generally means not eating too much meat at restaurants (because it's harder to source) and buying meat from natural food stores. The EcoChallenge has launched a new research effort for Mark and I to find out what other options are out there.

One such option is buying a portion of an animal directly from the small farm where it's raised and slaughtered. Our vegetable CSA farm has relationships with other farmers and first introduced us to this idea. At this point we're not sure we have enough freezer space, or the will to fork over that much money for meat at one time, but after a farm visit this weekend who knows...