30 Days of Local Food

Yesterday, I wrote about my need to follow my instincts and live my dreams.  I resolved to work on the outdoor school I am developing, and to act in the here and now to create foods from the earth with as little harm as possible.

The first step in my personal actions is to embark on a local food challenge.  

I have thought about making the plunge into a diet based solely on locally grown food since I moved to Hawaii, and I figure there is no time like the present.

So from today until 30 days from now I will subsist on Hawaiian grown plants- fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes and grains.  Here are the guidelines:

• I will only purchase Hawaiian grown plant foods as stated above.  That means no processed or shipped from mainland foods.

• My consumption will by 90% locally grown food; allowing for the occasional slip-up or using up some ingredients in my fridge that would otherwise go to waste.  (in other words the equivalent of 2 meals per week)

• I will track my expenditures and anything left-over money I save, I will donate to the local school garden programs.

Sounds simple enough.  Mind you, this is day one.  Naturally, I need to keep up my training and strength for upcoming races; my hope is that cleaning up and subsisting on even more local foods will benefit my recovery and performance!

Why am I doing this?  There is a long history of Hawaiian people subsisting on the bountiful and fertile lands here.  Now, Hawaii ranks 2nd in the nation for Diabetes and Obesity rates, with a 8.3 percent of the population living with Diabetes.*  With imported and fast foods a staple of the Hawaiian diet, it is difficult to believe we live in a paradise of fresh nutrient rich foods.  I'd like to demonstrate how we can return to health and wellness through the plants all around us.

*Statistics from the 2012 Hawaii Health Statistics: http://www.americashealthrankings.org/HI