30-Day Challenge: Triple Dog Dared–Now What?
I’ve accepted this challenge to eat locally grown and produced foods for 30 days–and now reality is setting in. The question arises: Do I or do I not make compromises? And if
so, what? Or more importantly, why?
The 100-Mile Diet got me thinking about what I eat and where it comes from. I grew up knowing where my food came from since it was pretty much the barn or the garden. Or maybe the neighbor’s barn or garden. Somewhere along the line, though, I lost track and the 100-Mile Diet brought me back.
So for this challenge, I’m following my version of the 100-Mile Diet. I went to their Web site, typed in my zip code and discovered that a good portion of my 100-mile radius winds up in Long Island Sound; frankly, I’m not eating anything that comes out of Long Island Sound. So I adjusted my circle just far enough north to avoid the polluted water and was happy to discover that I can safely enjoy the bounties of most of Connecticut, upstate New York, western Massachusetts and a bit of southwestern Vermont.
Experience has taught me that it is not wise to run headlong into such an undertaking with no real plan. So I’m making one. My 30-Day Challenge will begin on Monday, August 2; in the meantime, I’ve been scoping out local farm stands and farmer’s markets, planning menus based on what’s in season and making a few crucial decisions.
For example, what do I do about olive oil? After two-plus hours of Googling my brains out, I still don’t know if there’s any such thing as olive oil—or my second favorite, grape seed oil—that is locally grown and produced. So I’ve made a List of Exceptions—not as a loophole, but as a matter of practicality and what is important to me. For me, olive oil has been a healthy addition to my diet and so it makes the list.
Also making the List of Exceptions is the lovely and so very useful lemon. I use a lot of lemons. I start off my mornings off with a mugful of hot water and a slice of lemon for cleansing. It’s also how I gave up coffee. I don’t use bottled salad dressings, but rather olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. I use lemon zest and juice in a lot of my cooking and just when you might think that little lemon has nothing more to give, I use the rest for cleaning. On balance, I’ve decided that lemons are valuable enough to make the list.
The only other items are things like salt, pepper and spices—all of which I already have in my spice cabinet. The policy here is that if I have it already, I’ll use it, but if I run out, I won’t replenish it during the challenge.
By the way, if you come across a resource you think will be helpful in this endeavor, please feel free to pass it along!
About the artist: Love my lemon? Local CT artist–and my good friend–Kae Kean has done a beautiful series of fruits and vegetables for me and I love them! You’ll see her work cropping up in this blog from time to time. Feel free to contact me any time for more information.
July 28th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
You won’t eat oysters from Long Island Sound? That seems misguided to me.
July 28th, 2010 at 4:51 pm
Thanks for the comment and you raise a good point. However, as much as I would love to eat oysters from the Sound, I have serious reservations. In the early 90s I worked for ConnPIRG in support of a cleaner Long Island Sound. After reading your post, I did a little research with hope that perhaps things have improved. Here’s an excerpt from what I found on Wikipedia:
“Major environmental problems currently affecting the Sound include hypoxia, toxic substance and pathogen contamination, debris and other man-made pollution, and overdevelopment. Industrial pollution includes mercury influx from the hatting industry in Danbury, Connecticut.
New York City and other municipal sewage systems have long dumped nitrogen, among other pollutants, into the Sound, which contributes to hypoxia. By 1994 a plan to reduce the dumping of nitrogen into the Sound was agreed to by the federal government and the states of New York and Connecticut. The goal was to reduce the amount of nitrogen entering the Sound by 58.5 percent as of 2014. New York City agreed with New York state and Connecticut to reduce nitrogen levels in 1998, but backed off its commitment and was sued by the state. In early 2006 the city agreed to lower nitrogen emissions and was given until 2017 to meet its reduction goals. By 2007, $617 million had been spent in upgrading sewage treatment plants, with 39 out of 104 retrofitted with devices to remove nitrogen.
A 2007 report by the Long Island Sound Study, a project of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said the nitrogen flow is down 20 percent since 1994. But a study released in June 2007 by the Connecticut Council on Environmental Quality stated that in 2006 the area affected by hypoxia was a bit larger than in 1991.”
So to answer your question, until and unless things improve I’ve decided not to eat oysters from the Sound.
July 28th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
This sounds like a VERY interesting challenge and I look for to hearing how you navigate through it. As a native Long Islander, I am in total agreement with you about NOT eating oysters (or other shell fish for that matter) from the sound. I do love so many local things that I can get here on the Island, but food from the sound is not one of them! Bon apetite!
July 28th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
Thanks, Gian. I’m looking forward to it.
And just to be clear, if I thought shellfish from the Sound were safe to eat, I’d be happy as a clam–no pun intended.
July 29th, 2010 at 8:59 am
Wikipedia is painting the entire 100 miles of the Sound as one and the same.
The hypoxia issues are real, but it exists mostly in the western end of the Sound. That’s not where the oysters are coming from.
Good luck with your quest.
July 29th, 2010 at 9:06 am
Wow, thanks for sharing that. I’m definitely going to look into it. Could it be that oysters are on my horizon after all?
July 29th, 2010 at 11:30 am
I want to gear myself up to do just the same. The challenge for me is feeding my little ones (9 and 12) healthy stuff – bought locally – that they will like. Any suggestions my favorite food guru??? I’m sure others are faced with the same dilemma. – Susan Polese