Robert's Market Report
Friday, January 15, 2010
The Winter of Locavore Discontent
In case you haven't noticed, the Fair Food Farmstand has been importing a few items from quite some distance these days. Sea salt from Maine, oranges from Florida, salmon from Alaska.
The latest are root vegetables -- parsnips, carrots and rutabagas -- from Deep Root Organic, a coop of 18 farms in Vermont. In the stall's weekly newsletter, product manager Emily Gunther is at pains to explain why: Pennsylvania farmers are only starting to exploit cold storage techniques for over-wintering produce, and Deep Root is ahead of the curve. She also emphasizes that Fair Food will only sell produce from Deep Root that is unavailable from more local farmers.
In case you haven't noticed, the Fair Food Farmstand has been importing a few items from quite some distance these days. Sea salt from Maine, oranges from Florida, salmon from Alaska.
The latest are root vegetables -- parsnips, carrots and rutabagas -- from Deep Root Organic, a coop of 18 farms in Vermont. In the stall's weekly newsletter, product manager Emily Gunther is at pains to explain why: Pennsylvania farmers are only starting to exploit cold storage techniques for over-wintering produce, and Deep Root is ahead of the curve. She also emphasizes that Fair Food will only sell produce from Deep Root that is unavailable from more local farmers.
