Here at home, we’ve been watching FoodTV’s 100 Mile Challenge with keen interest. The Challenge is to eat only foods grown within 100 miles of where you live…and it’s more difficult than you’d think.

The show is already two episodes along but, if you haven’t been following, you can catch up easily by watching online. I highly recommend it! Not only is the show very entertaining, reality tv style, it is also surprisingly informative no matter where you live and will change your relationship to the food you eat and to the community you live in.

We live in downtown Vancouver and have been investigating what is available within walking distance of our house.

Yesterday, my daughter and I walked down to Granville Island to the Public Market to see what we could find and I was surprised that most of the food there comes from someplace else - often, places on the other side of the globe. The one organic booth there yesterday (there are sometimes more and I’m sure harvest season is the best time to go) sold foods, primarily, from the US and Mexico but also had stuff from the UK, Australia, China, Honduras, and many other locations. I have to say, I was surprised. For some reason, I had it in my head that organic food suppliers dealt with small, local farms. I have been enlightened.

We ended up leaving with a small bag of potatoes from Pemberton and a jar of Hay Meadow Honey from Dog Creek, a place I didn’t know existed until I bought the honey.

Also available in the organic shop, were apples from the Okanagan (there has been much discussion at home as to whether the Okanagan is within 100 miles of our house and whether 100 Miles refers to the distance driven or as the crow flies), some portabello and oyster mushrooms, and some pea shoots.

In the nonorganic booths, I was also able to find tomotoes. There were carrots labeled as local but closer inspection of the bunch ties revealed a California sticker. Much of the produce was not labeled at all or had a Canada sticker on it but no indication as to precise location.

Questions that arose during this little scouting adventure: why isn’t our food labeled with location? why do we sell apple cider from Australia when we grow apples in the Okanagan? Why is food grown locally more expensive than food grown on the other side of the world and flown/shipped here? Where, oh where, are the local foods going?

After coming home, disappointed, I hopped onto twitter and clicked on EdibleVancouver’s link to their website and, through a series of link following, I found Get Local, an organization committed to finding and promoting local food growers and organizations. This is exactly what I’ve been looking for! There is an extensive list on the site containing links to producers, distributors and various services to help you eat more locally grown foods. Here’s a sampling:

Shop for Local Food:

• Capers Whole Foods Market (Vancouver, West Vancouver)
• Choices Markets (Lower Mainland - various locations)
• Drive Organics (Vancouver - 1045 Commercial Drive)
• East End Food Cooperative (Vancouver - East)
• Edible British Columbia (Vancouver - Granville Island)
• Fraser Valley Farm Direct Marketing Association (Fraser Valley)
• Hopcott Premium Meats (Pitt Meadows)
• The Organic Grocer (Surrey)
• Planet Organic Market (Port Coquitlam)
• spud! (Vancouver - Granville Island)
• Stong’s Markets Ltd. (Vancouver - West)
• UBC Farm (Vancouver - West)
• West Valley Market (Vancouver - Downtown)
• Vancouver Farmers Markets (Vancouver - various locations)

All of this information will be keeping us busy while we wait for Episode 3 of 100 Mile (available, online, on Monday April 20th). Hope you watch it so that we can discuss!

Related Articles

1. Up For The Challenge? As we continue to debate whether or not to take the 100 Mile Challenge and eat only local food within 100 Miles of our home (downtown Vancouver), I just came...
2. Grow Local, Eat Local Belonging to a community garden is easy and free (or inexpensive) depending on where you live and now, with a fresh crop of innovative initiatives, getting connected is easier than...
3. Eating Well For Less Are you eating the sames things over and over again? Does a night out on town mean standing in line at McDonalds? You can eat well on a small budget....
4. Can Low Income Households “Go Green”? An online discussion asked the question How important is green living to you?. One person cited economic reasons why many people are unable or unwilling to convert to a more...
5. 10 Reasons to Go Small We can think of 10 reasons why going small is good for you that encompasses everything from saving money to saving the planet. What are your reasons?...
6. Are Bamboo Textiles Green? Bamboo is a sustainable resource for flooring, wall treatments, furniture and accessories and other household products but, with the growing popularity of bamboo fabrics, is it a good choice for...