Getting food from its source to your table is a very complicated undertaking. If you are shopping in a farmers market you can assume that the farmer didn’t drive 3 days to bring you watermelons and other fresh produce. If, however, you live in Maine, you can safely assume that the watermelon you are eating in December was not grown by a farmer down the road. To rely on a local food supply, you would need to eat only those foods available in your region during that season. But we have become so accustomed to a wide variety of food year round that few people opt for a totally local food supply.
Most of the fresh foods in the US are trucked to your store. Within the US, very light perishable items, like herbs may be shipped air freight, but little else is. In a large supermarket chain, the trip for a head of broccoli from the field to your table could take a week to 10 days. The voyage would go something like this – field, local warehouse, regional distribution center, refrigerated truck, supermarket chain distribution center, second truck, local supermarket backroom storage area, the produce counter, and finally your dinner table. The broccoli you are eating tonight could be a seasoned traveler! And, think of the voyage taken by kiwis from New Zealand, oranges from Israel, or berries from South America.
