This post is a little different folks. I hope you give the below newsletter a read and continue to follow along on this journey. I will be posting every couple of weeks on the blog about our discoveries and challenges that we face while preparing for this. I’ll be especially active on Instagram posting every couple of days. Thanks again for your support and for following along!
Fabulous concept, wonderful timing and daunting challenge indeed! xo
Yes. Thank you for doing this! I’ve had the same concerns as you. I switch between trying to just eat what I grow in my garden to looking at cookbooks that are “healthy,” but none of the ingredients are local. I’d love to know what resources/books you used in making the decision to stop being vegetarian. I am currently vegetarian and have tried to convince my family to start eating local, meat again but no one is convinced. I worry that all of these plastic containers of tofu (that we eat about once a week) are more harmful than eating local, well cared for animals. I’ll be watching on instagram as you prepare for this, with the goal of preparing myself as well for a Local30. I love it. I also love your cookbook and refer to it often for recipes to prepare for food from my garden. Thank you for being a voice for sustainability.
Wow! This is an incredible and important challenge. I will most certainly follow along – and see if I can convince my family to participate right alongside you! Thank you for the inspiration, Andrea!
Those is a fabulous idea and i can’t wait to be a part ! I will definitely struggle to cut certain things out of our regular diet – quinoa for instance and finding a local source of other grains. Looking forward to eating out of my garden and CSA all summer !
So inspired by this Andrea!
I’ve often thought about the locavore movement as an honourable idea but too hard for me to implement. Love how you’re making it seem not only achievable but also something I’m intrigued to try.
Count me in for September!
It will be Spring here (I’m in Australia)
Jx
Great post and admirable quest. Reminds me a little of the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle-great read if you haven’t read it yet.
I loved Animal, Vegetable, Miracle! It was so inspiring and really changed the way my husband and I think about sourcing food.
The ten things especially fascinate me. Salt and Pepper would seem to top the list for me…
A great idea, Andrea. You may have heard or read the book, The 100 Mile Diet, which is a similar experiment. Several years ago, I took inventory of my non-local food and really became aware of how many items I use that are not local and have pared down some of the more exotic while creating this ‘rule’ about extending my radius to include the PNW and eventually the West Coast. In discussing with others in other parts of the country, I became very aware of how lucky we are in our region to even have a local food economy. Many US regions simply don’t have access – which is scary on several different levels. Looking forward to the challenge! Looks like a good challenge for blog readers, too.
I’m game to try it. I never thought about who harvested the coconuts for my beloved coconut milk and I like the idea of the challenge to bring more awareness to where all of our food comes from and who is the grower, transporter etc. I will carefully choose my ten treats and also make an effort to learn about them.
Ohhh wow, you summed up a lot of my own feelings and desires when it comes to food! I love this concept and am so on board. P.S. this blog has been an excellent resource as I work through my first year of local seasonal produce (CSA!).
Hi – check out a book (and a tv series here in Vancouver) called “The Hundred Mile Diet” from a few years back. Eeeks it is actually over 10 years….
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_100-Mile_Diet
Can’t wait to see how it goes. Good luck and thanks for paving the way.
I’m also in Oregon and have often thought about eating more local. I’m growing herbs already and I often shop at the farmers’ market.
I’d love to find a local substitute for lemons. A lot of recipes call for lemon juice or lemon zest (sweet and savory) year-round. I try to only use them during the winter (citrus season in California). Sometimes I’ll use vinegar or homemade preserved lemons, but those are not always good substitutes.
Lemons are so tough! We’re growing the herb Lemon-Thyme which has a very citrusy flavor. I’m also experimenting with making my own vinegars out of white and red wine. Will keep you posted with how it goes as a substitute!
You might also check out Groundworks Organics farm near Junction City — they have been growing lemons and I think they are within the 200 mile range of you!
I’m in CA, but when I get a big crop in the winter, I zest and juice and freeze them both separately! Making preserved lemons are also a good way to “save them”. I’m getting ready to move to New England, though, and really concerned about the lack of citrus and wondering what I’ll use in replacement!
I will happily participate. I hope your presence brings awareness not only to the general public but also to the billion food bloggers who post recipes with coconut milk and cashews and other unseasonal and imported ingredients and produce and call themselves “sustainable”.
Love the idea, it has been done before many years ago by the people before us.I also am trying to eat with the seasons. I started growing beans, all kinds along with veggies and fruit because I wanted to know where they came from. I am also lucky to live in a small farming community with great organic farmers.
Andrea, wonderful idea. I have long called what I tried to do at Nora’s the Mt. Hood Food Shed … the 100 miles around Mt. Hood that are fed by the water from the mountain. Check out Gary Paul Nabhan, “Coming Home to Eat” if you don’t know of him yet. But I have never gotten radical enough to leave lemons, limes, etc., behind. I do love the idea, though. You will likely discover all kinds of things from this region you didn’t know existed. I so excited to watch your journey.
We’ll be there with you. A little tougher in the Northwest Montana but this is something we’ve wanted to do as well
So excited to follow your journey!! I bet you’ll discover places for grains, dairy and of course all the great meat you’ve got up there!! We just found a place (150 miles) making walnut oil. The research so far for this has been really fun! Get out there girl!
Great idea!!
I’m a very big fan of your blog since three years now. My mom bought me your book for christmas and I couldn’t have thought of a better gift! All your recipes are great and your photos have such a unique style.
Thank you for all the inspiration and the work you’re doing on this Earth! Long live the farmers!
This is so inspiring Andrea! I
am totally going to give it a try. I just broke the news to my husband, and he’s in too! Well, I told him that it would be for one week in September, but that’s a start.
I’m already doing research about all the staples in my pantry. It’s eye-opening!
Thank you so much for making us consider all aspects of the products that feed us!
I’m in and am really excited to try this! I live in the southern Willamette Valley where we have a large garden and lots of local food producers – it’ll be a great place for this challenge. My 200 mile radius overlaps yours, so I look forward to reading about the sources you find!
I love this! I look forward to following you on your challenge. My day to day job promotes the work of farmers and sourcing local produce so I am a huge advocate of local produce. Plus, there is nothing better than a home prepared meal cooked using locally sourced seasonal produce. Good luck!
This is a great idea!!! I will be tagging along for the journey!!!