My rough model of the political left is that it’s good at finding problems and bad at finding solutions. Thus, people on the left correctly diagnose that there’s a serious housing shortage in many places, but then advocate for more rent control and say things like
Lots of benefits of buying local. Tangible and non-tangible.
Driving to a supermarket or a farmers' market is about same distance for consumers but a farmer driving a truck 15 miles to market is better than a truck driving from California across country is it not? Also consider the local farm will use less packaging and yes the food is higher quality and less food waste since it can be donated to local food bank or composted if not sold. I can go on and on.
Intuitively, local food should produce fewer emissions, but as I say in the piece, transportation makes up a small part of a food's overall emissions. Another part is that there isn't just one truck driving to a farmers' market, but many. This is also why food delivery also produces fewer emissions overall. There's no evidence that local farms produce higher quality food, and any food can be donated or composted, so that isn't a difference.
An interesting post. I do think there are other arguments in favour of local food. Even with regard to emissions, I imagine much has to do with context. Heating greenhouses becomes a lot less carbon intensive if geothermal or nuclear is the power source. Car emissions similarly matter less the more people use EVs. But local food may also become important in Ontario if California's water supply issue continues to degrade. And some food simply *taste better* if they're local: this is simply undeniable when it comes to things like strawberries and tomatoes. That all said, important to have a more nuanced look at all the trade-offs. The global food supply chain will always be important.
Absolutely: there are other factors to consider, but I don't think any of them can plausibly justify the current focus on local food. We want a robust food system, but local food isn't the way to get that any more than buying all our food from California is. And sure, sometimes local food tastes better, but that isn't a good justification for a municipal, provincial, or federal policy.
Lots of benefits of buying local. Tangible and non-tangible.
Driving to a supermarket or a farmers' market is about same distance for consumers but a farmer driving a truck 15 miles to market is better than a truck driving from California across country is it not? Also consider the local farm will use less packaging and yes the food is higher quality and less food waste since it can be donated to local food bank or composted if not sold. I can go on and on.
Intuitively, local food should produce fewer emissions, but as I say in the piece, transportation makes up a small part of a food's overall emissions. Another part is that there isn't just one truck driving to a farmers' market, but many. This is also why food delivery also produces fewer emissions overall. There's no evidence that local farms produce higher quality food, and any food can be donated or composted, so that isn't a difference.
An interesting post. I do think there are other arguments in favour of local food. Even with regard to emissions, I imagine much has to do with context. Heating greenhouses becomes a lot less carbon intensive if geothermal or nuclear is the power source. Car emissions similarly matter less the more people use EVs. But local food may also become important in Ontario if California's water supply issue continues to degrade. And some food simply *taste better* if they're local: this is simply undeniable when it comes to things like strawberries and tomatoes. That all said, important to have a more nuanced look at all the trade-offs. The global food supply chain will always be important.
Absolutely: there are other factors to consider, but I don't think any of them can plausibly justify the current focus on local food. We want a robust food system, but local food isn't the way to get that any more than buying all our food from California is. And sure, sometimes local food tastes better, but that isn't a good justification for a municipal, provincial, or federal policy.