A Farmer's Market Manifesto.

Recently, I've really begun thinking about where our food comes from and how it's sourced.  A couple of months ago, a video went viral that showed the terrible mistreatment of farm animals on an industrial farm.  It was beyond heart-wrenching to watch.  Although my family has been talking about humane meat for years, I wasn't truly on the "humane train" until recently.  That video was the catalyst for me, and I began reading all about the industrial farming industry.  I couldn't stop. 

After several sleepless nights, I got brave and posted my opinion about it on Instagram...Ooof!  The floodgates were open!  I began looking up meat labels, and apart from the occasional meal with friends, we stopped eating and buying inhumane meat and eggs.  I started going to the local Farmer's Market.  I am now a convert and a believer in organic vegetables (oh, the pesticides!), and I now consider myself a *semi* farm animal rights activist.  I read an extremely insightful book called Farmageddon, and have since learned that the effects of the industrial farming industry are much more far-reaching than just animal cruelty.  

The factory farming industry is entirely unsustainable.  It is sucking the Earth's resources at an unprecedented rate, and the destruction of the environment in heavily farmed locations is indisputable.  It has left many farmers physically, emotionally, and financially broken.  Industrial farming compounds can be unsafe for workers, who are often exposed to dangerous conditions and health risks.  People who live in surrounding towns consistently suffer from health problems and increased cancer rates related to runoff pollution in their water and chemical pollution in the air.  And last but not least are the billions of farm animals that suffer inhumane treatment everyday.  It is an industry driven by money, consumerism, and politics...and people, animals, and the environment are the collateral damage.

I could go on and on and on about Farmageddon.  Suffice it to say, it has encouraged me to do my part in the fight against "cheap meat".  Here is the short list of changes I'm trying to make:

1)  Eat less meat

2)  Buy local or humanely raised meat, eggs and dairy

3)  Know my food labels

3)  Reduce food waste

4)  Grow my own food (someday!)

All this to say that we had a summer of learning and growing, of trying to be more green and much more aware of where our food comes from.  Tuesday nights have become a fun tradition for me and Auggie where we walk to the Lawrenceville Farmer's Market to buy our lettuce and cheese.    

This whole food thing has been eye-opening, and it feels like this is just the beginning of a lifelong relationship with real food.  I still eat a lot of things that I shouldn't (and waste a lot of things that I shouldn't), but I'm certainly trying harder than I ever have before.  We are doing our best.  It sounds cliche, but I feel empowered through these changes.  

Although our impact on the world may be small, it is certainly important for me.  

{My favorite "non-meat" meal.  Veggie burgers!}