Hugh Weathers Article on "Eat Local" Copied From the SC Market Bulletin

Eat Local and Celebrate SC Farmers Market Month by Hugh E. Weathers, Commissioner of Agriculture August 5, 2008

You probably learned about carnivores and herbivores a few years back in school, but have you heard of locavores? Locavores are individuals who make a conscious effort to eat only food grown or produced within 100 miles of where they live. This new term has really caught on throughout the country. In fact, the New Oxford Dictionary named locavore the word of the year for 2007.

Eating a locavore diet positively impacts your health, the environment and our state’s economy. We ought to realize just how lucky we are to have an abundance of fresh Certified SC Grown produce available at our local farmers markets here in South Carolina. In fact, Governor

Sanford proclaimed August as SC Farmers Market month, an extension of National Farmers Market Week, August 3rd to the 9th.

We want you to make this a personal celebration for your family as well. We’re encouraging all South Carolinians to “Eat Local for a Day – The Certified SC Way” during Farmers Market month. Sort of a locavore initiation.

Locally grown products are fresher, healthier and safer. Often grown only a few miles from where it is sold, local produce has more ripening time and less travel time therefore it tastes better. Unlike products that are shipped from other states and countries, local products do not require any preservatives or additives and are less susceptible to harmful diseases or bacteria. So, you shouldn’t have to worry about watching a food scare saga unfold daily in the news.

Eating local promotes a healthy lifestyle, something that we should be concerned about in South Carolina. Unfortunately, we were just named by the CDC as the seventh most obese state in the nation. We used to be fifth, so we’re improving on this front.

Going local is also going green. According to the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, food typically consumed in the U.S. travels an average of 1,500 miles from production to consumption. By choosing locally grown foods, we reduce the distance and the carbon footprint of our food system. With fuel and food prices on the rise, buying local makes financial sense too. You are supporting your local farmers and producers, and your dollars go directly back into our state’s economy.

I hope that you will be motivated by all of the positive benefits that come from eating local and that you and your family try the locavore diet this month. Pick up fresh ingredients to cook a locally grown meal by visiting one of our 75 local farmers markets or our three state farmers markets. Look for our Certified SC logo at Wal-Marts, Piggly Wigglys, IGA’s and other participating retailers to make your grocery purchase. Or dine at restaurants participating in our Fresh on the Menu program, where chefs pledge to prepare meals with local foods when in season. You’ll be improving your health, our economy and the environment- supporting your local farmers while enjoying the freshest, finest produce and products. That’s just a good South Carolina way to go.

Look for your nearest Farmers Market and Certified SC members, who grow, produce and sell locally grown products. 

Buy South Carolina. 
Nothing's Fresher. Nothing's Finer.