A couple of weeks back we had Irish guests staying… not often that we have homegrown guests. However, one of the guests past a comment about the fact that as we grow much of our own food, we don’t really contribute to the local economy!
His comment kind of floored me. It really stopped me in my tracks. I suppose without going into a deep analysis of it, I would have considered us to be good at supporting ‘local’.
Home grown tomatoes
I was prompted to analyse our shopping.
If I’m truthful, no we don’t buy from the nearest local shop. There are a few reasons – they don’t stock what I’d want to buy food-wise. I gave up buying newspapers years ago … and they don’t stock my preferred read anyway. Yes, they do stock nice gift items. I, however, tend to bake/gift home-made food items.
So here’s how our shopping breaks down:
Meat : we grow pigs and sheep too – so we never, ever buy pork, bacon or lamb. We also raise our own duck meat. Chicken : we have a certain supply, but do buy free-range on occasion. Beef which is considered a luxury in this house is bought from a local butcher, who now rings me when he kills and saves the cuts I like – now, that’s customer service! We plan to get a few turkeys this year too, just to add to the mix of meat choices.
Fruit and vegetables : again we grow a lot. We try to eat seasonally, but sometimes you get a glut of vegetables coming at you so fast that you cannot eat another carrot or pea – so we freeze them to have later in the year. Right now I’m busy preserving all sorts. When we moved here there was a local vegetable shop, that’s now gone. Our local country market which was another great resource closed down earlier this year, so we are left with the ‘multiples’ as our only choice. However, even then I do aim for Irish and /or organic/fairtrade (thinking bananas and exotics).
Eggs : we have our own and if I do need more, I buy from our neighbour.
Fish : there are no local fish shops, so we shop in Barna (Co. Galway) for our fish when we can. Not quite local to us, but it is a small independent fish shop that does great fresh fish. We’ve also been known to swap pork for line caught tuna. Nice!
Flour: we buy organic in 25kg bags from a local bakery.
Cleaning products : we do refills from our local independent Organic Store. They are also a great spot for nice cheese, chocolate and seasonal vegetables. (I just don’t get there every week.)
Animal Feed : We buy Tipperary grown grain from our local mill, and organic pig feed from “Robins Glen“.
Butchery : We are lucky to have a neighbour who does the necessary dispatching on hens and ducks. And, we have two local butchers who take care of our pigs and sheep for us.
Yes, unfortunately, we do buy the staples from the ‘multinationals’…. tea, butter, etc.
So are we contributing to the local economy? I think so. We are bringing guests into this part of the country that would not otherwise visit. We recommend local attractions. Friday night guests are often encouraged to attend the dance at our local GAA Club.
So, yes, I do believe we are contributing in our own small way to our local community.
A Year In Redwood 
That was a very I teresting read! It’s sometimes “funny” how others, people just dropping g in and out, perceive what they find. By all accounts you DO support the local community where possible. It’s not always obvious, but when you sit down and analyse it…
Thanks Mary… you are right about how others perceive us, and I guess it does no harm for us to analyse ourselves occasionally!
Margaret
Sounds like your guest is under the impression that economy is simply buying stuff… an incredibly simplistic view and one that prioritises money over everything else in life. I wonder if he understands about the importance of the environment, community, health, happiness, well-being, animal welfare, food miles, chemical inputs, food processing…
Stop fretting and don’t feel you have to justify yourself. If it bothers you, you can always add an information sheet to your visitors’ pack/folder explaining your ethics and your contribution to an abundant and ethical world.
Thanks a million for the words of support… I would doubt that he understands much of what you’ve said from the brief conversation I had with him. Yes, money would matter more to him.
Margaret
One of the reasons I started writing my blog was to throw a stone into the pond and let the ripples spread out – and that is what you are doing too. Every word you write on the blog and every conversation you have with a visitor changes the world a tiny bit, and sows seeds that may well bear fruit eventually.
Margaret, I think your guest’s comment was a bit insensitive and clearly shortsighted. You deserve high praise for being as self-reliant as you are. Also, you point out that when you do need to buy something, you shop small and as local as possible, not from large stores. You’re extremely fortunate that you have those choices. In my city, we don’t. Your contributions certainly comprise your lucky guests, and also the excellent quality of meats that you make available to people. Rock on!
Thanks Cynthia!
I shall certainly rock on doing what we do. It has been wonderful getting the lovely supporting comments from folks.
Margaret
You bring in tourists like your guest to spend money in the local economy. And you massively contribute to the public good by supporting a healthy environment. So just pat yourself on the back and stop fretting.
Thank you Kathryn for your words of support.
Margaret