Buying local & fresh from the garden

Been thinking about my foodmiles lately, and with careful shopping I can improve. All these new terms, we never knew much about such things years ago did we! We just bought our foodstuff, never thinking where it came from. Ask most city kids where milk comes from ... corner store or supermarket. That is sad ...

Ask yourself these questions ...
Do you know where your food comes from, no not the supermarket but where it's grown. What chemicals or perservatives are used?

Are you happy eating GM foods (Genetically modified)? I read somewhere that in India you could be jailed for speaking/protesting about GM food, so they are forced to eat it or starve. Hope none of that is ever available in your supermarket.

Do you support Beef being imported into Australia, from countries that could have diseases such as mad cow or foot& mouth &&. Human blood is not accepted from anyone that was in England when they had the madcow decease. Our farmers here suffer under all our rules and regulations. From the minute the animals is born, all vaccinations etc needs to be recorded, they need tags with a number to regulate where it comes from and without all that it can't be sold at the sales yard for slaughter. Then the farmer is not the one making the money, no it's the middle man or the supermarket. All other countries need to do is apply to bring meat in but there is no prove of the above, cause not all countries have the same laws. Here we have the best beef! How will we known where the meat comes from when it's all neatly sliced and packed?

Are you buying eggs that are laid by caged birds or do you buy barn laid or free range eggs?

On the Back of tins or packets there should be a made in (your country) Australia. Check out the Homebrands ... I bought creamed corn from Thailand ... you wanna tell me we don't make creamed corn here.

These are all questions you need to ask yourself and lets be truthful one's budget does play a big role in our shopping trolley decisions. Cooking healthy meals from scratch instead of grabbing the frozen meal, that tastes like crap anyway.

Just up the road from us are a few farm stalls, stuff grown in their own fields. Freshly picked! One in particular sell Tomatoes and Honey, and a few in season's veggies. They just the best tasting tomatoes!
It's fig, prickly pears and strawberry season. Yummmy strawberries dipped in chocolate.

I love the firm plump cherries from U.S.A, dearer than our local cherries which are smaller. Never buy alot so no I will keep buying cherries from U.S.A, my one weakness.

Did you know farmers have had to rip out orange trees and bulldoze them, because there is no market for the oranges. What else can they do with them. But we import orange juice concentrate. Go figure! Seen that on ABC Landline (TV)

OK your head must be spinning from all this information. Protest to your Minister, send him a email. Why should we put up with it!