Synthesis Essay-Locavores

Locavores is an interesting issue in which many topics need to be reviewed. A Locavore is someone who has decided to eat locally grown or produced products as much as possible. These people have made a smart decision in the fact that it is true that whatever produce is grown locally is most likely healthier, and they are supporting their fellow townspeople. Locavores from cities however face the challenge of trying to find a local producer to buy from. Locavores is a large movement, that although is good for the community, is not always an option open to everyone. Locavores are good for the economy. “According to a study by the New Economics Foundation in London, a dollar spent locally generates twice as much income for the local economy.” (Maiser) They make many faulty points though. Source A says, “Eating local is better for air quality and pollution than eating organic” but source C says, “a shipper sending a truck with 2,000 apples over 2,000 miles would consume the same amount of fuel per apple as a local farmer who takes a pickup 50 miles to sell 50 apples at his stall at the green market. The critical measure here is not food miles, but apples per gallon.” Most locavores don’t realize that there is no difference between the two. Although buying local might be good for the economy, keeping local farms open, and even keeping harmful pesticides out of your body, it doesn’t really affect the amount of carbon footprint being given out. According to source C, “transportation accounts for only 11% of food’s carbon footprint.” This shows that although locavores might be doing a slight amount of good for their community, there is not really a major difference. Also, by referring to the chart in source D, you can see that production takes up the most space in each category for carbon footprint. So although a locavore might argue that it is helping reduce carbon footprint by buying locally, it is only doing so on a minimal level. Locavores