If you’ve ever had strawberries right off the plant, a carrot from someone’s backyard or picked-that-day tomatoes from the farmer’s market, you know what a difference freshness can make to the taste and texture of food. This type of “Hyper-local” produce is making a significant impact on the food scene.
What Is Hyper-Local Food?
Produce that is grown right in a community’s backyard and is available for consumption either at a restaurant or a market on the same day is called hyper-local food. It involves growing fruits, vegetables, and herbs right in people’s backyards and on the rooftops of restaurants, with little to no food miles.
Benefits of Hyper-Local Food
Fruits and vegetables can lose a majority of their nutritional content by the time they reach supermarkets. If you’re live in a city, food may have traveled hundreds of miles to reach your plate, losing flavor and freshness along the way. The hyper-local food movement is a move in the right direction to end this cycle.
Food that is harvested and delivered the same day stays fresh longer than conventional produce that travels long distances. Hyper-local food is also much tastier and shrinks your carbon footprint.
Ways to Gain Access to Hyper-Local Food
More and more restaurants and stores are growing hyper-local produce on their own premises. Others are buying fresh fruits and vegetable from nearby farms that follow mindful practices. Since they are grown very close to where they are eaten, there are yards rather than miles between farm and plate.
While the idea of restaurants growing their own produce is nothing new, Hyper-local food is a lot more accessible these days. Previously, this practice was restricted to high-end Michelin starred restaurants or luxurious country houses, but this is no longer the case. There is a new crop of smaller restaurants that are cultivating their own food despite space restrictions and other factors. Rooftop allotments where fresh organic produce is grown are becoming popular. So, wherever you live, it’s not difficult to gain access to more hyper-local food.
Final Thoughts
Everyday people are finding new ways to make hyper-local food more sustainable and available to all. Eating hyper-local produce is a great way to bolster your health and support your local community. Slowly but surely it is becoming more easily accessible outside of small farming projects and expensive restaurants. If you have the time and space, growing your own food is a great way to eat hyper-local and enjoy the freshest produce.
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