There’s a funny phenomenon when you walk into a supermarket. Look at the produce section. Look at where your produce comes from. What do you see?

You’ll see avocados from Mexico, bananas from Costa Rica, fish from China. And if there are fruit or vegetables that are locally grown, I can almost guarantee that they’re more expensive than the ones that are imported.

Why is this happening?

It can be summed up in three little words: economies of scale.

Economies of scale is a simple enough concept. Basically, the more of something a manufacturer can produce, the most the cost of production goes down. And for the consumer, that means they have to pay less money.

Economies of scale … is why large companies succeed where small farms struggle

This is why large companies succeed where small farms struggle. This is why we get produce imported thousands of miles from across the country. Yes, to meet our demand for avocados or watermelon in winter (I’m guilty of this) and pomegranates in summer, but also because it costs less for a large scale manufacturer to grow and sell this produce than a small, local farmer.

Funny, though — the local farmers are the ones that need the money more.

‘Eat seasonally, eat locally, eat whole foods’. It’s a simple slogan, but one that’s rather difficult to keep up with on a budget.  And that’s the whole problem with our food system right now. Yes, it can be fairly easy now to eat healthy on the cheap. However, all the money is going to large manufacturers and supermarkets, not the local farmers.

Supporting local farms … is supporting a community and investing in that community

But if you have the money to spare, your local farmers’ market is just the place you should spend it instead.

So do it. Make friends with your local farmers and ask questions. Ask where your food comes from. Educate yourself. Learn. I promise, you won’t be sorry.

Supporting local farmers goes beyond just buying local food. It’s building a community, supporting a community, and investing in that community.