Hyperlocality in the food industry is a fast growing trend, and there aren’t any signs of it letting up anytime soon. If you haven’t heard of it before, the best way to explain it would be to describe it using proximity. It refers to the desires of people interested in organic and local business in a very small area or community. Instead of going to name-brand stores for products or goods that you want, you’d search for something within a few miles of your home.
By buying outside of your local community, you aren’t doing your community any favors. The main goal of investing hyperlocally is to benefit the local economy by spending money within your area, and then having that money recycled in that same community. By purchasing outside of your local community, you may not be getting the best bang for your buck. Yes, going to Walmart may be convenient and cheap, but you don’t know where your food is coming from. If this doesn’t bother you, here’s why it should.
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In order to transport food long distances, a lot of it is plucked and picked before it’s ready. Sometimes foods are chemically gassed to speed up the maturation process after they’ve been transported. Other times it’s highly processed in factories using irradiation and preservatives. Why put yourself—and your body—through that when you could simply buy food within a few miles of your home? On average in America, food travels 1500 miles to get from the farm to your plate. Hyperlocally, food transfers within a 25 mile radius or less.
Long-distance transport of food takes large quantities of fossil fuels to reach its destination, causing large quantities of carbon emissions leading to an overall larger carbon footprint. There are several companies that make it their mission to see an end or at least a minimization of these issues. In Louisville, KY, Arrow Food Couriers make local food available at your doorstep to help cut down on the problems previously mentioned. The restaurants they choose to make a part of their company often grow their own food within the community, using family farms and urban gardens—which means you get the freshest and healthiest food available. They deliver food from local restaurants within a short distance of your home to you for a very low cost, using low-emission vehicles. Hyperlocality gives you a chance to give back to your community, which in turn makes your community a nicer place to be.
Source: Arrow Food Couriers
Author: NowSourcing is an award winning nationally recognized infographic design agency. Founded in 2005, NowSourcing has strong roots in the human and technical nuances of the web.
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