Local Food For Your Health And World Peace
June 9, 2010 by Akemi
Toward the end of my post Yin Yang For Balanced Health, I mentioned the benefits of eating local foods. You are one with your environment. Asians (and perhaps other indigenous people) knew this for centuries, and I am glad some Americans are taking notice, too. (Photo credit)
The produce that grows well in your climate is good for you. This is beyond the current nutritional science. Part of the reason is the yin yang balance, and I am sure there are more reasons we don’t know yet.
But it gets better. Local food is not only good for your health but good for the health of Mother Earth by reducing carbon footprints. Further, it can even help world peace.
I seldom talk about politics, but in this article, I am going there. But first, let me explain with a story. . .
The story of three villages
In the beginning, all villages were growing their own sustenance. Produce from faraway lands were considered occasional treats. Life was slow and stable.
Then, Village A, which had the largest land expanse, decided to increase its productivity by modernizing its agriculture. They started to use large machinery, rich chemical fertilizer, insecticides, pesticides, herbicides, and they developed more business-efficient seeds with hybrid and genetic engineering.
Before, most villagers were farmers, but now Village A didn’t need so many farmers. So many Village A people became factory workers, engineers, and business people. There were tons of foods and people got fat and . . . greedy.
Even with overeating, Village A couldn’t consume all the foods it was producing. (Now do you see things are getting rather ridiculous? Why do they produce more foods than they need? But read on. . .)
Village A approached other villages and said, “Hey, you don’t need to produce your own foods. You don’t have to do that hard labor. We will sell you all the foods you need and that will cost you less.”
Village B bought this idea. They were good at technical thinking, so they decided to manufacture the parts Village A needed to make their large machinery. This way, Village B could earn the money to buy foods from Village A. Part of Village B was also very scenic, so they made nice resort where Village A people could come and have fun.
Village B thought this was a smart move in the globalized economy.
Village C, on the other hand, refused Village A’s offer. They decided to keep their way of living.
For a while, things looked really good for Village B. They became as rich as Village A. Village A and B were close friends.
How they lost their lives
But one day, Village A and B had an argument. Like, everyone does from time to time.
Village B didn’t like what Village A was doing and said they don’t want to join Village A’s new movement.
Village A said, “Fine. I don’t care. I just stop selling the foods to you.”
“What?” Village B people thought. “Then what do we eat?”
Village B had turned all their farmland to manufacturing sites and resorts. They were not making foods locally any more. To turn the manufacturing sites back to farmland would take years. People would starve in the meantime.
And so Village B had to die. Either physically by starvation or spiritually by selling off their freedom.
What happened to Village C? Village C didn’t like Village A’s new movement, either, so they, too, said no. The difference was Village C could feed itself. It wasn’t the fancy foods, but Village C was independent and had freedom.
Local food as the foundation of world peace
Happiness is the prereq of true peace. Happy people don’t fight. And independence and freedom are the critical components of true happiness. Peace without freedom is not real peace but forced silence.
To actualize world peace, we want to be more self dependent on the local level. We want to reduce our need to rely on others for our basic sustenance and also our need to control and manipulate others.
I think this new local food movement is good for Village A, too. Do you want other people to be honest and truly friendly with you or do you want them to be obedient because they are afraid of your controlling power?
Sometimes, people attack back with desperation when they are too controlled. Some people in Village B may even suicide attack Village A . . So, because peace is good for everyone, this new local food movement can help Village A, too.
Local food is about independence and freedom
So what is Village A? Well. . . it could be the big agribusiness or the country with that kind of business. (The fact that the world’s biggest Village A country’s name actually starts with A is only a coincidence.)
Big agribusiness controls food supply and steals people’s independence and freedom. Because we are dependent on foods and therefore on those who provide foods. It’s the same logic that financially-dependent people are not truly free.
I’ve been living in the Northwest for the last two and a half years, and I think people here intuitively know this. They are super big on local foods. They try not to rely on the supply system on the east of the Rockies.
The ultimate local foods
So, wherever you may be on Mother Earth, choose local foods when you shop. You can find your area’s info at Local Harvest.
And grow your own foods even on a small scale. Homegrown is the ultimate local foods.
You don’t even need a sunny garden to grow your foods. If you are totally out of space, grow some sprouts. Seeds don’t need the sunlight to sprout (in fact, they are best kept in the dark). And despite the thin tiny look, they are big on nutrition. They are full of the energy of the seeds coming to life.
If you have a bit of sunny spots, you can grow microgreens and other greens in containers. Greens are the easiest to grow even in partial sun. You can do this even in winter as long as you get some sun and if you choose cold-tolerant seeds such as kale and endive.
Of course, if you have more space, you can grow various fruits and vegetables. There are many good books, blogs, and your local garden center can educate you, too.
In many urban areas, there are also small gardens you can rent. Some people are even negotiating the cities to let them “green” unused city blocks, which help the area clean and clear of crimes, trash, etc. So gardening has various benefits!
I love growing foods
During the last winter, I did poorly not because of coldness but because of the too many rainy days (and therefore lack of sun) here. This fall to winter, I might buy a grow light. That would help me grow some microgreens indoors.
This summer, I am growing a cherry tomato, vitamin-greens (a speciality green), purslanes, shiso (Japanese herb — like basil), salad burnet, and spearmint. And some garlics in the tomato container — they grow fast and repel some unwanted bugs. I also sprout lentils, broccoli, buckwheat, and sunflower. (The sunflowers will be more like shoots.)
And I can tell you, the few minutes I spend each day caring for these plants are so nurturing to myself. My plants teach me so much about life and love.
Are you growing any foods? What do you think about local foods, food politics, and freedom?
(Here are my sprouts, buckwheat and broccoli, getting the final touch of light to green up.)
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