Groxie

One of our local weeklies recently had a cover story that portrays local agriculture as a new status toy for the wealthy. It pissed me off—here’s my letter to their editor.

I was extremely disappointed and upset after reading your cover article “The $5 Tomato.” I was shocked by a poor piece of journalism, steeped in personal bias, ignoring the most important aspects of local farms.

I believe in sustainable agriculture.  I eat locally grown food whenever possible.  I visit the farmer’s market on Saturday if I’m not working.  I go to the Best of What’s Around Farm for 2 hours every week to help pick and package produce for their Community Supported Agriculture program.  For my time and a one-time payment of $75, I get a half-bushel of fresh, organic, local produce every week for the entire growing season.  I don’t drive my Lexus to pick up my veggies - I ride my bike.  And I am not alone.

The “bobos” who buy locally not because of their principles but because of their pocketbooks are neither the largest nor the most important supporters of local food, and their decision to spend their money on status symbols is not worthy of the cover of C-Ville. The consumption habits of the wealthy few are not nearly as newsworthy as the decisions that are being made by conscientious citizens that choose to support our community.

Your disdain for the “bobos” plagues the entire article, tainting any useful information you present.  I am amazed and concerned that a local magazine would do such a disservice to its own community.  Sustainable agriculture (and this most definitely means local agriculture) is the most important food movement afoot, not just for the environment, but for local citizens and farmers as well.  Buying locally keeps money here, prevents the use of extra shipping and packing resources, and connects citizens to what they eat and who grows it. Â

You run the risk of scaring away potential new supporters with this tirade against upper-class silliness. You harp on the $5 tomato, but I purchased a large, locally grown, organic tomato for 75¢ today at the farmer’s market.  If I didn’t care about the organic label, I could have gotten it for 55¢. That’s a big difference in affordability that you could have explained instead of carefully detailing the clothing choices of your rich representative.   Â

The next time you bite into that wax-covered Chilean apple from the megamart, know that you could be enjoying a juicy Ginger Gold from Albemarle County for a measly 63¢.

Heidi