Patrons browse fruit at the Green City Market.
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Food frequently travels thousands of miles before it reaches the dinner table in the United States. Buying direct from the producer at farmers markets like Green City is one way to reduce your negative impact on the environment.
1,500-2,500mi
is the typical distance food travels from farm to plate in the United States,
according to #0000ff">a study by the Worldwatch Institute.
91.5
= Average
miles
from the
producers to
#0000ff">Green City
Market
Really, it's 183.
Remember, they have
to drive both ways.
#0000ff; text-align: left">(bigger map)
"For us, local means Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan."
-- Roman Solowski, Green City's market manager.
They require that all producers are local.
14 MPG = combined city and highway mileage for a #0000ff">new Chevrolet Express van
$3.951 = average cost of gas in the Midwest (#0000ff">Energy Information Administration)
$51.63
(Estimated average round-trip cost for a Green City producer to get to market.)
"I just felt
absolutely forced."
-- Vicki Westerhoff on
Genesis Grower's first price increase in four years of selling at the Green City Market. Getting to market is only part of the problem.
"Everything we've purchased has cost us more because of the shipping crunch."
She raised prices 5 to 10 percent this year.
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