Shopping local.

Among the many things we have been changing in our lives is deciding where we spend the money we allocate to our food budget. It has become increasingly important for us to make a concerted effort to buy our food from local producers whenever possible. This means buying fruit, vegetable, and meat from local farmers. At first I thought this would be very hard to do but with a little research it hasn't been hard at all. I really like directing my money to local people rather that have a vested interest in our community rather than big factory farms across the country. The price for local food is generally as good or better than what I can get in the store and the food is infinitely fresher. Today we picked up whole organic chickens from a local farmer at the incredible price of $1.95 a pound. You certainly cannot touch that price at the local supermarket. We also have been buying our baking supplies from the local Amish bulk food store. Shopping this way is not as simple as running to the local Wal-mart and getting groceries but to me it is the same as going to the voting polls and casting a vote. When I buy local I am voicing my opinion about big business and big corporations controlling our food system. I am voting "NO" to these companies.