The locavore diet, or eating 100 percent locally, has been a massive learning curve for me. I’ve really struggled on some days.
Some days, I’ve found it so easy I laugh in the face of my dinner options. On other days, I’ve sat down to some serious ideological debate in my head as to why exactly we’re doing this.
There are lots of things I’ve learned, and with just one month left of the 100 miles in 100 days challenge, I wanted to share some of the best parts of eating 100 percent locally. One thing that runs through all of these ideas like a golden thread is the connection I have with where my food comes from.
1. The Joy of Fermenting
Fermentation is some kind of magic. The Art of Fermentation by Sandor Ellix Katz is an incredible book and the boys over at Handsome Boy Pickles spent an evening to show us just how easy preserving and pickling is—and how delicious it can be when you get it perfectly right (their jalapeño pickled eggs were out of this world).
Fermenting foods such as cabbage to create sauerkraut, or beetroot to create a form of beetkraut, is so simple anyone can do it. What you get is a delicious and nutritional food. Fermentation can be found in loads of cultures across the world, with a huge variety of recipes from kimchi to kombucha showing there is something out there for everyone. This is a perfect way to keep vegetables for winter and I’m sure those five cucumbers I’ve been hoarding under the potatoes will taste delicious with some nasturtium seeds and a couple of pints of cider vinegar.
2. The Vices: Chocolate and Coffee
Diets are dangerous. I have never proclaimed to have much self-control and this diet has shown my true colors. After a serious commitment in the first few weeks, once I was out of my home and into the festival world, lots of things went out of the window—chocolate and coffee, however, were some of the last. Only in my extreme moments of weakness (birthday parties, hangovers and premenstrual moments) have I succumbed to these two.
I truly believe that everything is okay in moderation and these two foodstuffs have been around the houses to get to where they are today. Some chocolate companies are founded on their sustainable and fair credentials such as Green & Blacks and Booja Booja. And some coffee companies are doing all they can to support indigenous communities across the world by using certification processes such as Ethical Trade, Fair Trade, organic certification and Rainforest Alliance. If I’m going to lapse back into these two, I’ll try and make sure I do it in the fairest way possible.
3. Getting Fruity
Now, I have a sweet tooth. A really sweet tooth. I love exotic fruit. I love bananas and oranges in particular and I thought I might cry when these were taken away from me. But, as it turns out, I don’t really miss them. I’ve mostly missed apples and now that they’re in season I’m feeling very content. Overall, I’ve really enjoyed eating seasonally when it comes to fruit. First cherries and rhubarb, then plums, strawberries and blackberries. Now the raspberries are out and soon I’ll be able to harvest some rosehips and elderberry. Who needs a pineapple when you’ve got a hedgerow?
4. Herbal Teas
Tea is something that I thought I would be struggling with quite significantly and at the beginning it felt very surreal not to have a cup of tea when I woke up. It turns out that I can live without tea. Shock and horror. In fact, I don’t really miss it anymore. Some herbal teas I miss (like, pretty much everything Pukka ever made), but I have taken to using fresh lemon balm, mint or rosemary. Rosemary is kind of like a roast dinner in a cup—it’s delicious. And it feels amazing to refresh your digestive system in the morning with a cup of hot water and fresh herbs. My body loves me for this change.
5. Feeling Fresh
The best thing about this project, which has hands down changed the way I think about food, is the joy of fresh food. Now, hardly any of the vegetables I eat have been plastic wrapped. Most of them come straight from my veg box from Sims Hill Shared Harvest and salad bag scheme from Edible Futures. My meat is fresh from the small local farms Source supplies from—they know each of their suppliers incredibly well. Fish is more or less the same from Source. I buy eggs from Wiltshire, England, or from Elm Tree Farm at St. Nicks' market on Wednesdays, complemented by delicious Netherend Severn Vale butter and River Cottage yogurt from the Better Food Company. The only things that I eat that come in packages are Hodmedods peas, Pimhill oats, flour for bread from Sharpham Park and honey from my good friends and beekeepers Ollie and Eve down in Dorset, England.
All in all, it’s pretty good. The convenience of food is highlighted to me here—there is not much snacking happening apart from fruits or cheese. Booze is pretty much off the table, although now I do allow myself the occasional drink as long as it’s a local brew from a local company like Wiper and True. And eating out has relaxed somewhat as well. I’m not going to kick myself if my meal is seasoned with paprika or covered in olive oil. In fact, I’ll probably embrace it.
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Here are three new films to watch this Earth Week that will transport you from pole to pole and introduce you to the scientists and activists working to save our shared home.
1. The Year Earth Changed
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
When to Watch: From April 16
The coronavirus pandemic has brought home the stakes of humanity's impact on the environment. But the lockdowns also proved how quickly nature can recover when humans give it the space. Birds sang in empty cities, whales surfaced in Glacier Bay and capybara roamed the South American suburbs.
The Year Earth Changed captures this unique year with footage from more than 30 lockdowned cities between May 2020 to January 2021. Narrated by renowned wildlife broadcaster David Attenborough, the film explores what positive lessons we can take from the experience of a quieter, less trafficked world.
"What the film shows is that the natural world can bounce back remarkably quickly when we take a step back and reduce our impact as we did during lockdown," executive producer Alice Keens-Soper of BBC Studios Natural History Unit told EcoWatch. "If we are willing to make even small changes to our habits, the natural world can flourish. We need to learn how to co-exist with nature and understand that we are not separate from it- for example if we closed some of our beaches at for a few weeks during the turtle breeding we see that it can make a huge difference to their success. There are many ways that we can adapt our behavior to allow the natural world to thrive as it did in lockdown."
2. After Antarctica
Where to Watch: San Francisco International Film Festival
When to Watch: 12 a.m. PST April 9 to 11:59 p.m. April 18
In 1989, Will Steger led an international team of six scientists and explorers to be the first humans to cross Antarctica by dogsled. Steger and his team weren't just in it for the adventure. They also wanted to draw attention to the ways in which the climate crisis was already transforming the icy continent and to rally support for the renewal of the Antarctic Treaty, which would keep the continent safe from extractive industries.
In After Antarctica, award-winning filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt follows Steger 30 years later as he travels the Arctic this time, reflecting on his original journey and once again bringing awareness to changes in a polar landscape. The film intersperses this contemporary journey with footage from the original expedition, some of which has never been seen before.
"Will's life journey as an explorer and climate activist has led him not only to see more of the polar world than anyone else alive today, but to being an eyewitness to the changes occurring across both poles," Van Zandt told EcoWatch. "But now, these changes are happening in all of our own backyards and we have all become eyewitnesses. Through my journey with Will, I have learned that although we cannot always control change, we can change our response. I feel strongly that this is a message that resonates when we look at the current state of the world, as we each have power and control over how we choose to respond to hardships, and we all have the power to unite with others through collective action around a common goal."
After Antarctica is available to stream once you purchase a ticket to the San Francisco International Film Festival. If you miss it this weekend, it will screen again at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival from May 13 to May 23.
Tasha Van Zandt
3. The Race to Save the World
Where to Watch: Virtual Cinema
When to Watch: From Earth Day, April 22
While many films about the climate crisis seek to raise awareness about the extent of the problem, The Race to Save the World focuses on the people who are trying to stop it. The film tells the story of climate activists ranging from 15-year-old Aji to 72-year-old Miriam who are working to create a sustainable future. It follows them from the streets to the courtroom to their homes, and explores the impact of their advocacy on their personal lives and relationships.
Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Joe Gantz told EcoWatch that he wanted to make a film about climate change, but did not want to depress viewers with overwhelming statistics. Instead, he chose to inspire them by sharing the stories of people trying to make a difference.
"Unless millions of people take to the streets and make their voices heard for a livable future, the politicians are not going to get on board to help make the changes needed for a sustainable future," Gantz told Ecowatch. "I think that The Race To Save The World will energize and inspire people to take action so that future generations, as well as the plants, animals and ecosystems, can survive and thrive on this planet."
Check back with EcoWatch on the morning of Earth Day for a special preview of this inspiring film!