Yesterday, I helped out with a school tour of the Green City Market. My job, along with fellow volunteer Devin (in red and amazing with the kids), was to guide the children through a tasting of some of the market's offerings.
The kids really seemed to enjoy the experience as they tasted fresh grapes, blueberries, tiny tomatoes, green beans, cheese curds, mint and basil. The looks on their faces as they enjoyed new things they thought they wouldn't (or not so much) were priceless. It was learning at its most practical, as they found out where these foods come from and how they make it to their homes, stuff I could picture them sharing with their parents when they arrived home that evening.
Many of the children were surprised to learn how far most produce travels before arriving at most supermarkets. Many adults would also be surprised that the answer is 1,500 miles, on average, compared to the 300 miles or less that the produce travels to arrive at GCM.
In order to make such a long journey to the grocery store, most of this produce is picked before it's ripe so that it won't spoil before traveling across the country and making its way onto your kitchen table. That translates into a huge difference in quality from the produce at most farmers markets that has been picked ripe the day before it's sold.
After all the groups had come through the tasting, I received a lesson of my own from one of the farmers as I purchased same chard for that night's dinner. I had never bought or cooked with chard before, and the farmer (I promise to get better about remembering which farmers I speak with) suggested I treat it like spinach and saute it with some butter or oil and onion. I served it that night with some grilled tilapia, and Elissa and I both loved it!
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