Food Myths: Eating Locally

Myth: Buying local food is better for the environment.

Reality: It depends on how your food was produced and delivered.

While eating food grown locally helps small farmers, it may not necessarily be the most ecologically efficient.

According to a recent Oxfam International report called “Fair Miles — Recharting the Food Miles Map,” a tomato trucked from Spain to Britain may be more environmentally friendly than a tomato grown in a greenhouse in Britain because that process needs energy-intense farming techniques and more fertilizer and could degrade the soil.

Says the report: “Food miles are not always a good yardstick.” — D.T.