Cool, sunny...and dry for a change.

     That's what we need now to salvage our strawberry season. Will it happen? Who knows, but one thing is known: No matter what the weather, SW Michigan strawberries will always be hands down, a better choice than anything shipped in from 1500-2000 miles or more.
     I'm predicting a few raspberries and sweet cherries will be harvested by week's end. A very early start, indeed. But remember, we had apple blossoms open on April 21rst! That's the earliest in my lifetime, and earlier than anyone I know can remember. If someone can tell me an earlier season, please let me know.
     This bodes well for growers, wholesalers, Day Buyers and consumers, for it allows us to be weaned off the industrialized food of these past six months, and onto our superior local foods. Very soon, we'll once again have knowledge of who grew the food we're eating, where it was grown, how it was grown, and when it was harvested. Won't that be nice? Yes indeed. 
     For more than a decade now, I've been advocating a concept I call "Harvest dating." It's really a simple concept, yet it's one that is long over due. It would replace the ubiquitous and insane system of "Sell by dating," and "Best if used by dating." For the current system keeps consumers in the dark as to the critically important date of harvest. And the harvest date is closely correlated to nutritional value and flavor.
     Still, "Harvest dating" is only one component of a transparent food system. Consumers should have a right to know how many food miles their dinner traveled. They should be able to tell how many times the food was transferred (in other words, how many times it changed hands--often an indicator of food safety problems).
     They should not only have access to the Country Of Origin Label (COOL), but also, who grew the food--an industrialized farming corporation, or a small grower-owned cooperative? (Almost 200 countries are exporting food to the U.S. now.) Consumers should also have ready access to the varietal name, for often times, the variety indicates quality for a specific use.
     We're all trying to do our part to reestablish our once vibrant local food system and help restore our once vigorous local economy.