Buying local food is often better for the planet than buying organic, since an organic potato from Peru takes so much more energy to ship than a nonorganic one from Idaho. With more markets starting to label their food, it's just slightly harder than learning your ABCs.

The Benefits

• Ridin' the fresh train. Produce shipped from outside the country travels up to two weeks before it arrives in grocery stores.
• Giving local farmers a chance now. If you buy goods produced nearby, you'll keep more money in your community...and more farmland.
• Jumping back from energy waste. It takes 4-17 times less oil to produce local food compared to nonlocal.
• Getting off the bruise-control track. Food that has to travel long distances usually requires additional packaging and may have been genetically modified in order to survive the trip.