May, 2008 - Volume 9, Issue 7



Buy Local—It’s Better for the Earth...& You!



They say the average American meal travels about 1500 miles to get from farm to plate. But if you shop at NP, you can bet that most of your purchases have traveled fewer than 100 miles. And if you buy produce at NP that is grown on Jan and Francis Thompson’s own Twin Brooks Farm in Loomis, those gorgeous fruits and vegetables have had a 6.5 mile, 10-minute car ride—with no packing houses, no distributors, no middlemen. 

As fuel prices continue to rise, it makes even more sense to buy local products from local stores and lend support to your local economy.

When you buy local, it is better for the earth and better for you. Produce shipped from far away is picked before it is fully ripe (so it can survive during its long journey), and think of all the greenhouse gasses pumped into the atmosphere during the hundreds (or thousands) of miles traveled! “When you pay attention to your taste buds, you know that local produce tastes best,” says Jan. “At our own Twin Brooks Farm, we pick produce fresh every morning and take it to NP to sell at its peak of flavor and nutrition.”

“I always look to Placer County producers first, then to the surrounding counties of our region, and then to Northern California,” Jan adds. “There is a tremendous wealth of products to choose from within a 100-mile radius of our own front door.”

Over and over our customers tell us how much they appreciate our selection of locally grown produce, like this testimonial, one of the many from the KCRA A-List, which ranked our store as one of the top 5 gourmet grocery stores in the greater Sacramento region: “Varieties are heirloom and unusual, not the same old bland stuff from who knows where that (sadly) comes from most grocery stores. They are beautiful to look at and they actually taste like something! Plus it supports keeping local land as farms, not sub-divisions.”

IN SEASON NOW
Stop by today and see what is in season! NP has a wealth of locally grown and delicious spring produce including lettuces, kohlrabi, sweet spring onions, and basil. And summer will be here soon, bringing tomatoes, peppers, squash, and much, much more!