Here are 2 strategies that will save you money and go a long way to helping the local farmers in your state:-
Buy your produce locally, and while it is in season!
This way, you are combining green living with frugal living, and supporting the local economy.
Buying locally involves buying your produce from local farmers’ markets, produce stands and co-ops, rather than big box supermarkets. Buying in-season gets you the fruits and vegetables that are ripening and being harvested right now.
Buy locally, and you get the benefit of:
1. Eco-friendliness. Buying locally is more eco-friendly because the produce doesn’t have to be shipped or transported into your local area by plane or truck. Grocery stores obtain their produce from all over the country and world, and the long-distance transportation translates into the use of more pesticides, gas, oil, and energy.
2. Support for the Local Economy. You can also stimulate the local economy by buying locally, because you’re supporting local farms and farmers rather than growers all over the world. When you buy locally-grown produce, every part of the process is local. You’re supporting local growers, transportation, and merchants, which boosts the economy in your city and state.
Then, the benefits of buying in-season produce means you can enjoy:
1. Taste benefits. When you buy your produce in season, you won’t be disappointed with the taste. Fruits, especially, only ripen properly and taste their best during the seasons in which they thrive. When you buy produce off-season, the quality of the flavor will be compromised.
2. Cost benefits. Seasonal food tends to be significantly less expensive than out-of-season produce, primarily because far less effort is required to bring you in-season produce. In the proper season, fruit can grow on its own, requiring less time and labor. This translates into the most cost-friendly produce to stock your kitchen with.
3. More variety. If you follow along with the seasons rather than shopping for the same produce over and over, then you’ll enjoy a much richer and more varied collection of different vegetables and fruit. From this variety of produce, you can find new ways to experiment and enjoy new recipes.
See frugal living doesn’t HAVE to be about scrimping and depriving yourself. With this strategy, you’ll actually helping everyone. When you buy in-season, local produce is one of the greatest things you can do for your family: you’re giving them the best tasting, most nutritious food AND saving money.
