How buying local food will help save the planet
Discover fresh, local food. Whenever possible, support your local farmers and neighbours by buying locally produced and organic foods. It promotes sustainable living by reducing the fossil fuels needed to transport the food.
Did you know? In the average North American Home, ingredients for a small meal usually travel between 1,500 and 4,000 kilometres. There's a better way. When you buy produce from a Farmer's Market, you get fresh, local flavour at a fraction of the environmental cost. For example: you can reduce the travel distance of a Caesar Salad from 13,485 km to 125 km - that's a 99 percent reduction!
Slow Food, Green Living
You can visit the following websites for more information on Calgary's local food scene:
You can also organize or join a community garden in your neighbourhood. Calgary has a number of community gardens and orchards. For more information, visit Calgary Parks.
| Local Food Q and A |
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| What is local food? It's food that's grown or raised as close to Calgary as possible.
How do I know which food is grown locally?
- Look for a sign, sticker or label on the food.
- Ask a store clerk how far the food has travelled
What grows best in Calgary?
Seeds or transplants that mature in under 65 days, such as lettuce, carrots, radishes, beans, zucchini, beets, sugar snap peas and kale. For more information, find food gardening tips at the Calgary Horticultural Society.
Where can I garden?
Turn a part of your yard or flower bed into a veggie patch. You can also make compost from your vegetable peelings and leftovers, which helps produce rich soil and reduces waste.
Start a balcony garden with pots. For tips and resources, visit Balcony Bloom.
Join the Community Garden Network program. Calgary has dozens of public and private community gardens and orchards around the city. For details, visit Calgary Parks.
Where can I find more information on growing local food?
For more information on growing local food, green living, slow food or sustainable eating, visit the following links:
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