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FEATURES
KEEPIN’ IT LOCAL
The locavore movement has taken Athens by storm. Local businesses are making the decision to purchase products within a 30-mile radius of the city limits. BY KELSI BOWES | PHOTOS BY AMANDA PUCKETT
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he sky is gray and the trees bare— Farmers Market has many benefits for as we can,” Thom Hirbe, food optheir leaves long gone. Despite the the local community. erations coordinator for Casa Nueva, warm sun, the air has a bite that cuts says. “We always try to source locally “It means that farmers are able to make through even the warmest coat. Har- a living, customers are able to get good before anything else.” vest season may be over, but vendors at food, there’s less fuel involved in the To promote sustainability, Casa Nueva the Athens Farmers Market will pro- whole process, the dollars stay local,” is an advocate of the Slow Food movevide the community with fresh, local Parker explains. ment, the “locavore” movement and products year-round, in any weather, participates in the 30 Mile Meal project. He also says it allows customers to get bringing color and life into the other- to know and trust the local farmers, and The idea of the locavore movement is wise dreary landscape. simply eating local, as herbivore is to know where their food is coming from. On the first day that the Farmers eating plants. And the 30 Mile Meal To make sure this fun event benefits Market started in 1972, project, which started in 2010, is there were three or four initiative that promotes buying I think that the local restaurants are an vendors, Kip Parker, site food products within a 30-mile ramanager and treasurer of dius of Athens. Its goal, according the only ones that add anything the Market, says. This past to its blog, is to “assist residents and interesting to the food selection,” visitors in finding local foods and summer, the Farmers Market celebrated its 40th anniplaces where they can savor the reCorinne Zachry versary and now boasts over gion’s flavors while supporting food 100 vendors. producers and sellers, all within a Ohio University senior Parker estimates that it 30-mile radius of Athens, Ohio.” brings $2 to 3 million in revenue each the community, members must be from Its blog also states that they currently year for the vendors. The market itself within 150 miles of Athens city. But the have “over 125 farmers, local foods is a nonprofit with a yearly budget of Farmers Market isn’t the only group markets and businesses, and related $30,000. It runs Wednesdays and Sat- trying to boost Athens’ economy. Upnonprofits,” and it continues to push its urdays year-round from 10 a.m. until 1 town eateries Casa Nueva and Jackie radius out further, hoping to become a p.m. And when the weather turns win- O’s Pub & Brewery both pride them100 Mile Meal project. try, part of the Market moves indoors. As for the Slow Food movement, selves on the use of local food products With the growing move to create a in their menus. Hirbe says, “It’s the idea of buying raw sustainable economy in Athens, the “We’re doing as much local buying ingredients as opposed to [already]
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backdrop | Spring 2013
In Singapore, it is illegal to chew gum in public and has been since the 1980s.
prepared ingredients.” Hand-in-hand with buying local, Casa Nueva incorporates seasonality into its menu selection. Rather than buying produce out of season, and outside the community, Casa Nueva focuses on the produce available during the individual seasons. For instance, Hirbe says the restaurant will run specials that focus on squash, sweet potatoes and beets—more roots—during late autumn. And when something, like tomatoes, is not in season, they will have none or next to none in their foods. Like Casa Nueva, Jackie O’s also participates in the 30 Mile Meal Project. Justin Berry, kitchen manager at Jackie O’s, says that sustainability has always been a personal goal of the owner, Art Oestrike, and that he has applied that to the pub and brewery ever since. “We just try to source as much stuff as we can locally as far as food products and employees,” Berry says. “And right now we don’t source a whole lot of things locally as far as the beer goes, but we’re getting more and more involved in that as well.” Jackie O’s uses the grain from the brewery to make its pizza dough. They also sell food items from other local businesses—all of their desserts are provided by Fluff Bakery and maple syrup from Sticky Pete’s is used in their beer. Corinne Zachry, OU senior, says she appreciates Athens’ restaurants incorporating locally grown foods into their menus. “I think the only [restaurants] that I really, really enjoy are the local ones,” Corinne says. “I think that the local restaurants are the only ones that add anything interesting to the food selection.” For many OU students, food sustainability can be a hard thing to define. Despite its prominence around campus, there are few people who truly understand the concept and know how to apply it to their lives. For those interested in helping to promote sustainability, there are a few easy things to start doing. The easiest and most important? Buy local foods. By doing so, people are keeping the money in the community: the essence of sustainability. Also, support the restaurants that buy local products so that money can go to farmers to help them expand the food they are able to provide. In other words, the key to sustainability is local, local, local. Eggplants are considered a fruit.
One thing that makes food sustainability difficult, however, is that it isn’t always possible for vendors to buy products from within the community. Sometimes farmers aren’t able to provide enough meat, vegetables, cheese, milk, etc., for the restaurants that need it. Hirbe says Casa Nueva goes through so much sour cream that it would be too big an endeavor for any local company to make it for them. Hirbe says the biggest challenge is finding that balance between what Casa Nueva can buy locally and what it is forced to buy from outside vendors. “What can we still put on the menu and say ‘I’m okay with having that even though it does come from one of those services,’ while still trying to help the local producers ramp up their production so that they can one day in time provide that service for us,” Hirbe explains. He further explained this challenge by providing an example of Casa Nueva’s business relationship with King Family Farms in Albany, Ohio. When Hirbe first started working with J.B. King, owner of King Family Farms, King could only sell bacon to Casa Nueva. But after Casa Nueva continued to provide him with business and money, King was able to build up his poultry supply. Now, Casa Nueva buys all its chicken from King Family Farms. Overall, the Athens community puts a huge effort into creating a sustainable economy. Between the Athens Farmers Market and the local restaurants, farms and businesses, a person would be hard pressed to find produce from Wal-Mart or Kroger that they couldn’t find locally. “I think that it’s a good example of a community trying [its] hardest to be
sustainable,” Berry says. “I don’t think we could be considered totally self-sustainable. But I think the community as a whole is doing everything that we possibly can to be self-sustainable.” Even in the cold, the passion for quality and community that drives the vendors is apparent. And it’s obvious the people they serve share this passion. Despite the chilling wind, customers still frequent the Farmers Market, exchanging their money for the assurance that the food they will be eating helps support not only their bodies, but the community body as well.
CHECK OUT YOUR NEAREST 30 MILE MEAL EATERY WITH BACKDROP’S LOCAVORE MAP www.backdropmag.com
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