The couple, Alisa Smith and James MacKinnon, took on the challenge to see if they could get their food within 100 miles of their Vancouver, British Columbia, home. I went to the couple’s website, 100milediet.org, to read this couple’s story. It seems that when we sit down at the table to eat, most of the food we eat typically travels 1,500 miles to get to the table. With fuel prices so high and the move to cut fuel consumption, it would make sense to get our food, and other products for that matter, from a source closer to home, which will lessen the impact on the environment.

Well heck, this makes sense. We are all trying to conserve fuel and lessen our impact on the environment. So the closer to the market the food, the less fuel is needed to ship it and the product will be fresher when it arrives.

I know, I know, you could grow your own vegetables and have really local food and many people do. But my mission was to see if it was possible to buy healthy organic food locally that was from this area.

On the home page of 100 mile diet I clicked on the “get started” button and then entered my zip code. Up popped a map with a circle that showed me my 100 mile area. It went through Greensboro, Ashville, Greenville S.C., Florence, and close to Fayetteville. This was a pretty big area, so I knew there had to be sources for food grown in this 100 mile circle.

I went back to the home page and at the bottom I clicked on the local resources tab. On the next page I clicked on the local harvest link and up popped the greatest resource for eating healthy -- all kinds of information tabs that will lead you to a better and healthy eating life style.

Since I was interested in local outlets for local food I looked under the farmers’ market section. Again, I entered my zip code and a map with information about all the farmers markets in my area came up. All the write-ups stated the markets specialized in local produce and products. So many of these markets listed could provide the same offerings as the one I went to.

Since I was close to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market, I decided I would go there. I have been to the Charlotte Regional Farmers Market several times to get fruit and vegetables but never thought about asking where they came from.

Without doubt, Saturday is the day to go to the market. I have been there during the week and while it offers many fruit and vegetable vendors, there are many more on Saturday. In addition to all the produce sellers, there are vendors selling flowers, shrubs, bird houses, crafts, cheese, and bakery goods.

My mission was to find local food so I started asking the folks behind the tables if their produce was local. All were happy to talk to me about the produce and were open and honest about the origin of it. Most of the vendors had some local produce but most was trucked in from Georgia or Virginia. I know this is close, but I wanted to see if I could get it from within 100 miles.

As I made my way down the isle I started to see items marked “local.” Oh, I was getting close. I moved past signs stating the products were from such and such farm that was very local and used no chemicals. There was a sign proudly stating the benefits of the North Carolina Department of Agriculture. Oh man, I am close. Soon there were tables with local cheese, sausage, beef, lamb, and pork products. All of this from farms much closer than 50 miles. Some small growers were from Mecklenburg County. As I went from table to table I could see that it is possible to have a meal from a local and chemical-free source.

I think commitment is the biggest thing that has to be made in order to shop for your produce and select meats on Saturday. But I think that if it becomes a habit and part of your weekly chores, it won’t be that hard to do.

Since I have started eating organic fruit and vegetables whenever I can, I feel much healthier and have more energy. I can tell the difference in flavor plus I am eating food that is not laced with chemicals. It seems the sustainable gardening movement is catching on and the local farmers and stores are listening to the consumers.

Just some random thoughts I would like to share: With daylight saving time coming to an end on Nov. 4, I hope everyone has changed their light bulbs to fluorescent bulbs to help save energy. Artificial lighting adds 10 to 15 percent to our home’s electricity use so let’s do what we can to lower our energy use and lower our electric bills.

Walking through my neighborhood this weekend I noticed people starting to rake and blow their yards. Some were even blowing the leaves into the road! I see commercial companies do this all the time. The road is not a receptacle for leaves and sticks. It is to drive on. Eventually the leaves and sticks will get blown into the storm drain and cause all kinds of problems down the road. Don’t these people watch our Water Wise segments? All this extra work could be eliminated by mulching your leaves and small sticks and let it lay on your lawn. It will break down and provide food for the lawn and any trees you may have. Just like nature intended.

Thanks for stopping by and remember to stay Green.