The Experiment

For the entire month of July I will eat only food that was produced within a 100 mile radius of my home.  I already receive locally grown produce every week from Pioneer Bluffs CSA in Matfield Green, KS and will shop at the Emporia Farmer's Market.  I plan to fish the Cottonwood River for catfish and will be eating chicken eggs from my friends' flocks.

Since I am only attempting to eat locally for one month, I'm going all the way.

No coffee
No sugar
No oil

My only exception will be beer.  I will drink locally brewed beer despite its non-local ingredients.

Also, my sister and I are taking a weekend trip to NM, so I will have a 2 day vacation from the diet.

The Inspiration

About 5 years ago I stopped buying meat at grocery stores.  I began eating seafood and wild game for my meat intake.  Luckily my husband and my father both hunt and fish, so I have been well stocked.  Last January instead of creating a New Year's Resolution I decided to try a new diet for the month.  I went without eating dairy products and gluten.  For those unfamiliar, gluten includes anything with wheat flour.  I spent that month eating a whole lot of fruits, veggies, rice and eggs.  This January I decided to challenge myself again by going Vegan for the month.  When February came around, the only thing I really missed was cheese.  Since then, I have been totally vegetarian, still eating dairy and eggs.  

The underlying reason for my selective diets is my environmental concern.  A friend told me once "not eating meat is the best thing you can do for the environment."  I hadn't ever really thought about the environmental impact of my food consumption, but ever since that awakening, I have been concerned.  A common statistic is that most meals travel 2000 miles before being consumed.  Thus was born my July diet challenge of eating exclusively locally produced food.