Local veggies may ‘green’ pockets

By Mike Ford, The Delphos Herald
Published:  Saturday, May 10, 2008 (2 months, 1 week ago)
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DELPHOS — As costs increase at gas pumps, grocery stores and elsewhere, one way local families may offset extra expenses can also keep their money in the local economy. It can also support local farmers and help the environment.
These are just a few of the benefits of growing and buying locally-produced vegetables whenever possible. Another benefit may make one’s pallet very appreciative.
“Some of the benefits to growing one’s own produce would be the freshness. Vegetables can be picked on a more timely basis, closer to the preferred ripeness for preparation. Many times, vegetables and fruits are harvested when they’re not quite as ripe as they could be for shipping purposes so they don’t spoil,” Allen County Extension Educator Curtis Young said.
Many residents cannot garden for various reasons. Many who do cannot grow all the vegetables they eat and need a secondary source. Farmers’ markets grow and sell fresh produce during warmer seasons, keeping local dollars in the area.
“Buying locally supports local farmers rather than having it shipped from California and Florida. That money is spent in your own back yard by supporting local farmers,” Young said.
He also indicates nationwide trucking has a negative environmental affect that could be diminished if food supply systems were downsized.
“By not shipping at great distances by truck or rail, you’re not using as much fuel and adding pollutants and carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. By doing it locally, there is going to be some level of impact on the overall carbon load,” he said.
Farmers’ markets operate within a regional network to meet customer demand, according to Nathan Ankerman of Gessner Farm Market near Delphos. In addition to what his extended family grows, he says the market gets additional items from farmers in Indiana and near Toledo.
Though the market has not kept track of its sales volume, Ankerman says the operation has expanded from five to 10 acres over the past 10 years.
“We’ve gone from growing about 12-15 zucchini plants to around 60-100 plants in general over the last 10 years. The amount of tomatoes we grow has increased, as have onions and green beans. We’ve gone from probably eight bushels of green beans a week to 20-25 in 10 years,” he said.
Many residents who do not farm or own a market do their own gardening in order to save money.
Joe and Bonnie Klausing are foster parents. They currently have eight hungry children in their home and feeding them is expensive.
“We’re foster parents with eight children living here and the grocery bill has been killing me. They’re ages 5-13 and they eat four cans of green beans at a meal. So we grow those, as well as strawberries, grapes and rhubarb also. We’re only on two acres, so we don’t have much room to play with,” Bonnie said.
Others in the area also make use of their property to diminish food costs. Landeck resident Ken Miller says he is “just a large gardener” with approximately 2/10 of an acre. He grows produce for his family and friends, then sells some of what he may have left over. He says freshness is the largest difference between growing his own and purchasing other produce.
“I’m still eating potatoes and onions I grew last year and I’m not doing anything magical in terms of storage,” he said.
He explains that by large businesses harvesting vegetables early so they are fresh after crossing the country, the taste is diminished because tomatoes and other items release sugars and nutrients just before becoming ripe. While many grocery store chains may do this exclusively, the grocer located in Delphos tries to balance its year-round operation with a local focus in light of heavy sales volume.
Chief and Ray’s Supermarket President and Chief Executive Officer Stephanie Skylar indicates her company purchases produce from area and nationwide growers.
“We purchase our produce through a distribution center and nothing really gets stored there anymore because of the sophistication of growers. We don’t keep anything in our back room and they don’t keep anything on-site. It comes directly from the growers to us. We have to have produce year-round, so we get the best opportunity from around the country but we also use a lot of locally-grown produce. We are probably the biggest customer of Lugibill Greenhouse in Columbus Grove. We also buy entire orchards, locally-grown orchards, for our apples, so we definitely believe in that,” she said.
The company’s director of marketing, Annette Hoeffell, added the grocery chain cuts back on “outside sources during peak growing seasons in our area” to favor area growers.

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