What is the Eat Local Challenge?
> >> HOW DO I PARTICIPATE? << <
It's simple: 1) Decide how long and how strictly local you would like to eat. The important thing is to challenge yourself and to get to know our local food system.The longer you do it for and the more local you eat the better it is for your health, the earth and our local economy. 2) Sign-up for the Challenge. We will be keeping track of how many people take on the challenge to see how much of an impact we will make.By signing-up you will also receive weekly updates through the challenge period. 3) Prepare yourself - visit our tips and resources, collect some recipes, organize a pot-luck, preserve something!The more prepared you are the more enjoyable the challenge will be. 4) Do the challenge!Who knows - you might like it so much you'll never stop! .> >> WHY EAT LOCAL? << < Southwestern British Columbia offers incredible diversity in terms of food production. Despite this, our average meal travels 2,400 km from farm to plate – a fact that not only contributes to issues such as climate change, but also compromises our local economy and food security. Eat local and:
> Eat a healthier diet with fewer processed foods; > Support small farms and the local economy; > Burn fewer fossil fuels; > Try foods you've never even heard of; > Taste foods at their freshest!
>> read our 13 lucky reasons to eat local! .
> >> WILL PARTICIPATING IN THE EAT LOCAL CHALLENGE HAVE ANY IMPACT? << < Absolutely! By committing to eat local you will not only get to know the local food system and support the local economy, it will also be a chance to significantly reduce your greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, in terms of the quantity of greenhouse gases emitted, if the entire city of Vancouver were to eat an exclusively local diet for one day it would be the equivalent of taking approximately 55,000* compact cars off the road for one day. If the entire population of the Greater Vancouver Regional district were to eat local for one day, it would be the equivalent of taking 182,500* cars off the road for one day. .
> >> MORE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS << <
Will you be keeping track? Yes we will!Please check our home page periodically and make sure you're signed-up to receive weekly updates. Does doing the Eat Local Challenge mean eating a strict 100-Mile Diet? Not necessarily. Many people use the 100-Mile radius as a guideline, but the most important thing is to both challenge and enjoy yourself. Explore new foods, try different recipes, host a pot-luck, but… if it all sounds like a nightmare without your daily cup of coffee than maybe that's an exception you need to make. One suggestion for foods you can't give up is to make sure you get locally processed ones. For example, Ethical Bean and Salt Spring Island Coffees are roasted locally; Uprising Bakery, Terra Breads and Silverhills Bakery are local bread makers. Just check labels to be sure! Do I have to do the Eat Local Challenge for the full 38 days? Once again it's up to you! Make a commitment you can stick to, whether that be just a completely local Thanksgiving dinner on October 8th or a 100% local diet for 38 days. Just remember, the longer and more local you go the greater your positive impact will be on the local economy and the lesser your ecological footprint will be. Have more questions?Send them in! .
*According to Lifecycles Project Society, a rough rule of thumb is that kilogram of food imported creates approximately 1 kilogram more greenhouse gas emissions than the same amount of food produced locally.The average British Columbian consumes 2.275 kg of food per day.Assume that 2 kg of that is imported.Population of Vancouver is approximately 600,000, which translates into 1,200,000 kg of imported food and greenhouse gas emissions.The population of the GVRD is approximately 2,000,000, which translates into 4,000,000 kg of imported food and greenhouse gas emissions.Compact cars produce an average of 8,000 kg of greenhouse gas emissions per year (EPA).
