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AUGUST 15, 2007 - Lyn Adamson didn't just organize arguably the most important local-eating communityin North America (see yesterday's blog) - she also studied it for a master's thesis in leadership and training. What she found confirms a lot of what Alisa and I would have predicted, but also raises a few warning flags about possible pitfalls as the local eating movement moves forward. Of the 250+ people signed up for the local eating challenge in Powell River, 13 households agreed to act as research participants, whose experiences would be reported to Lyn through journaling and a "world café" discussion. They ranged in commitment from goals of eating 25% to 95% local food over the five-week challenge (interestingly, many who pledged between 25% and 75% ended up eating more local food than expected). There were farmers, gardeners, and pure grocery shoppers; vegans, parents, and low-income families. Together, they were making the journey from "food consumer" to "food citizen" - the term coined by Cornell University nutritional sciences professor Jennifer Wilkins to describe, essentially, people who know where their food is coming from and understand the consequences of their choices. "The one word that I heard the most to describe the challenge was fun!" writes Lyn. That's no surprise to Alisa and I, but would be to so many of the journalists we've spoken to, who come to us already convinced that local eating is some form of environmental self-punishment and sacrifice. Most of the Powell River households also reported that eating locally - and remember, they did a 50-mile diet - was not as hard as expected, was a good a learning experience, made them appreciate farmers more, and made them more inclined to help fight for a stronger local food system. "What a nice experience to be able to chat with the makers of the food that is now stored in my pantry and fridge," wrote one participant. "It felt good to be creating instead of just opening a can," added another. The challenges? Certain holes in the food system (there are sources of wine within 50 miles of Powell River, but many became unwilling teetotalers), as well as blind spots in local food information. Both of these, though, are learning experiences that help people understand that local food systems have been left to languish for decades and now serve us much more poorly than they could. The challenges are forces for change. Time and money, for most participants, were not as big an issue. Most reported no change in their food budget. One, going by the pseudonym "Charlie," calculated that he was spending just one half-hour of extra time per day to eat locally. That said, both of the participants who identified themselves as "low income" dropped out of the project. In Powell River - as in many places - the only regular source for local food is the farmers' market or the farms themselves, both of them outside of town. The low-income participants did not have access to cars; they also did not have phones or email access to join easily in the 50-mile challenge community. We've all seen how organic food has been priced out of reach for many "food citizens" - it is essential that the local food movement work toward fresh local food for all of us rather than a privileged few. But local eating holds the promise, too, of stronger and more sustainable local economies. Lyn Adamson is no foodie - she operates an employment centre in a town hurting from the past decades' waves of industrial downsizing. "Until recently," she writes, "I had not really considered farming and food production as a potential source of economic diversification." Today, that potential is obvious. When the 50-mile challenge was over, Lyn had a chance to talk to the director of Powell River's agricultural association. The group's members, he told her, are looking at making more cheese, trying more winter crops, raising a wider variety overall. Then he told her about the biggest change of all. "They are talking like enthusiastic farmers do," he said.-JBM TOMORROW: Is anyone planning a 100-mile wedding?

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