LOCAL IS THE NEW BLACK
At the end of my experience, I can give an account of what has remained with me the most, my change of mentality and the difficulties encountered.
DIFFICULTIES
Certainly it was a difficult challenge to be able to feed only by food found nearby. Thinking about the lifestyles of my grandparents, that is not too far, this challenge would not have been a challenge, but everyday lifestyle.
The availability of an increasing number of products concentrated in just one supermarket that has flexible hours is a time-saver, and this is the first major obstacle that does not push people to investigate other ways of finding food.
The second factor is the journey. Reaching different places where only one kind of product is sold is a waste of energy and resources. The journey should be made through sustainable and environmentally friendly transport, or the problem could be amplified rather than reduced. In future scenarios, however, there will be robotic machines without drivers and low-impact to deliver products. This resource, as well as objects, could also be extended to food.
POSITIVE FINDINGS
The fact of not finding anything local in supermarkets, however, has a very positive response; I avoided to buy every unhealthy and elaborate a habit, moreover contained in single-use packaging, because it was not in my category of products.
The circularity created is: NOTHING AVAILABLE = MINOR WASTE OF MONEY = LESS WASTE AND DISPOSABLE PACKAGE = HEALTHY LIFESTYLE
I notice a noticible decrease in the percentage of waste. The minor waste of resources adhering to this mentality is both personal and systemic.
Furthermore, in the supermarkets it is not possible to eat bad-looking foods, that is deformed fruit, foods near expiration, because they are not considered attractive to the customer. Thus becoming waste. While the fruit vendor of a little town gift you the same fruit or vegetables that must be consumed in a short time.
In large cities the presence of figures like food bloggers are of help to identify the places where you can make a good and healthy meal that respects sustainable principles. Indirectly, the consumer on the others activities are forced to innovate to satisfy a request that is increasingly focused on environmental respect. From the 2015 Milan Expo, attention to slow food and raw materials has increased considerably.
EVENTS
However, the local product remains more attractive than industrial products, and nowaday eating them has become an event. In the little cities of the province like mine, there are some summer festivals, in which local products are sold, all products of small entrepreneurs of the area. One of the most known is called “Tri di in cumpagnia”, it takes place at the end of July and lasts three evenings. The event always welcomes a large number of people, and the monetary proceeds are used for charitable purposes.
So can an open attitude towards local food be a driver for some places? Improvement means going back to buying like in the past or being more and more technological?
