Joshua 5:12“That year they ate the produce of Canaan”
What are the advantages of buying local?
Fresher food is available at your local market.
Fruit and veg that you buy in your supermarket often crosses the entire country, from farm to distribution centre and back to the supermarket! Your local vendor is selling directly from the farm or their small holding to public. The food is fresher.
There is way less packaging involved.
Buying from your local vendor, you can often reduce use of plastic completely if you bring your own bag or ask for a cardboard box. If you have veggies delivered by a local company, you can have quite a lot of impact in asking them to lose the plastic wrapping. We are almost through COVID now so those COVID related issues of covering everything in plastic must be challenged!
Buying local helps the local economy.
If you buy from a local vendor, the money goes directly to that family for food and other necessities. If you spend the same amount of money in a supermarket it won’t even, make a ripple. That vendor will then have cash to spend locally, and it keeps the money circulating in the community.
You know where your food comes from if you buy it at the market.
This is often something that not enough people consider. How is your food produced? What types of pesticides or herbicides are being used on your produce? Does the farmer use any form of permaculture? You can ask these questions directly to the seller. This connects you to your food and allows you to choose healthier choices for yourself.
Buying local is better for the planet.
Not only does buying locally reduce waste from packaging, but it also reduces the use of fossil fuels. Food miles not only consume energy, but they contribute to poor air quality, and you will be served older food, which could have effects on your health.
Reference: One Green Planet
https://www.onegreenplanet.org/lifestyle/reasons-to-buy-local/