Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver

In Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life, Ms. Kingsolver chronicles a year in which her family decided to eat locally produced foods, homegrown when possible, with few exceptions. Each family member got to pick one item that is not local to continue to consume. Each family member also contributed to the project by providing recipes, writing articles on the industrial food industry or, as entrepreneurial Lily did, by starting a chicken and egg producing business.

It was interesting that three of us read the book, Judy, Karla and I, but only Karla wanted to try it out. I’m not sure I’m that savvy with food preparation or gardening, and I know it wouldn’t go over well with my family. So although I’m not going to become a total locavore, after reading the book, I stop and consider where certain foods are produced before purchasing them. I try to keep things local and organic. I hope to try out the recipe for homemade mozzarella, one of my family’s favorite foods. My husband’s daughter found a great coop in North Carolina where she gets a new fun gift of different foods every other week, including cabbage, tomatoes, seasonal berries, and even rhubarb. She loves finding recipes for each new crop, and her family loves the variety. Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Check out www.localharvest.org/csa.

I also learned quite a bit about American industrial agriculture that convinced me to be more picky about my selections at the store. This book, or any of the others like it, offers a great perspective on the American diet and the general health of the population. I recommend everyone read something about this topic, whether this book or one of Michael Pollan’s books (see Judy's review on In Defense of Food).As is my standard operating procedure, I checked out the negative reviews. These reviews focused on how smug Ms. Kingsolver seemed in the book, how she presents some of this as “new” even though faming communities (like my home town in Wisconsin) have operated locally forever, and how it’s easy for a rich family, with a flexible schedule I might add, to do this experiment and in fact own the land on which to garden. Working class families living in cities might find it a bit more difficult. I see their point. But the good news is that with some creativity, you can produce or obtain locally produced foods almost anywhere. Urban gardens are sprouting up everywhere. In Milwaukee, there is Will Allen (see “Street Farmer” by Elizabeth Royte in the New York Times, July 5) and his Growing Power Farm, which produces foods in greenhouses crammed into 2 acres in the inner city. Mr. Allen also teaches others about growing food in pots –small quantities, yes, but with a big impact. And don’t forget the farmer’s markets. So, even the smallest effort and consideration can increase the quality of the foods you provide your families and decrease your carbon footprint.