7 Great Reasons to Buy Local Produce

We get it, sometimes its hard when you’re busy to pay attention to where your food is coming from. But if you knew there were wonderful local products available in your local area, would you seek them out? If you found them, what would be some great reasons to keep buying them over larger national or international brands? Would you buy from an independent store or from a larger retailer? We give you the lowdown on why shopping local food is good for you, your community and for us too.

1. You’re supporting a family

That choice to buy a little jar of honey from your local retailer over the big brands at the big supermarket chains has a lot of meaning. Profits don’t go to shareholders, or straight overseas, but into the pockets of families just like yourselves. The owners of the store, the makers of the honey, their staff are all people from your community. Your choice is making a big difference in their lives.

2. It’s great for the local economy

When you shop a local product, and especially if you shop that product in a local store, then your money stays in the area. Local business owners are often more motivated to support local producers and makers too and hire local staff.

3. They live here too

Your local mum and dad company is making decisions which will impact them in the community that they live in. This means their decisions will probably benefit you too.

4. You know where your food is coming from

When it comes to imported food, it can be hard to know just what has gone into the making of it. But when you buy local, your purchase can be traced back much more easily to its roots. You can understand the process, and quality in what you’re purchasing.

5. Local food is healthy

Your food hasn’t travelled thousands of miles to get to you. That means there is less of a need for preservatives to keep it fresh. Smaller-scale producers are often choosing less chemicals in general, and this has a big benefit to your health. Because your product hasn’t travelled too far, there is less impact on the environment – reduced energy emissions and food miles.

6. It has a story

Local food has a story attached that you can understand. How it’s handcrafted using a secret recipe, or homegrown on a local farm near you. Or sold in a corner store that’s been in the family for generations. It’s food that’s made, grown, cooked or sold with love for the people around you.

For instance, when you buy Olympus Cheese from your independent local retailer they may tell you that our product is largely handmade in our factory in Coorparoo in Brisbane, Queensland. This factory has been making cheese since 1974. We make it with beautiful milk sourced from a farm on the Sunshine Coast. This dairy farm has been in their family for about 100 years. There are many stories just like ours out there, and if you buy local, you can discover it.

7. It’s personal

Everything about a local business is personal. Your local business is the face behind the counter, in the factory and on the farm. They are people you can get to know. People you want to support, who support you. Shopping local is fostering a sense of community and in the end, this makes us all richer.

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