Eating Local

A scene from Gary Paulsen’s novel Hatchet comes to mind when I think of “eating local.” In one scene, the main character Brian Robeson stares at the aisles of cans and packaged foods in bewilderment after spending a few years providing for himself in the Canadian wilderness. 

Although to a lesser extent, my personal view of “eating local” is similar. Eating local means more than just consuming food that is produced a short distance away; it means eating freshly-grown produce and surviving on one’s own - sustainability. Eating local helps promote sustainability practices on farms and other areas where the food is grown for a small population. 

Back in China, some of my relatives live off the land in rural towns (such as those in Wenling). They produce their own greens, catch their own fish, peel their own shrimp, and shuck their own clams. When I visited, I actually found it surprising that some of the local stores had packaged goods; they just didn’t seem to connect with the environment and culture there. Moreover, many of the older men and women still spent hours cleaning vegetables and/or reaping their produce from the fields. 

Overall, “eating local” and the sustainability lifestyle is very different from the modern restaurant - grocery store eating norm we are used to today.