I joined a fitness boot camp that started this past Monday. It is really kicking my butt, but it is giving me the needed discipline that I don't have on my own. Sure, not showing up would mean wasting my money, but I think the most important thing about the class is that I am reporting to a group. I feel a sense of responsibility and a great ability to stick to my goals.
I didn't even think of the parallels between this and the Eat Local Challenge until I read cookiecrumb's comment in this post referring to the Eat Local Challenge as a sort of boot camp. Those of us who have agreed to take the challenge starting on Monday and lasting through all of May are accountable to the over 700 other people taking the challenge along with us.
Why have so many people agreed to try and eat food that is derived close to their homes? There are as many reasons as there are participants, but most of us do it to become more aware of where our food is actually coming from. The average food on the dinner plate of Americans has travelled 1500 miles. Chad Heeter wrote an article last month entitled "The Oil in your Oatmeal" that was published in the Chronicle. It outlines the amount of fossil fuel it takes to produce, package and ship a typical breakfast.
So we are dedicating the month of May to try and eat food that is grown within our foodshed, or as locally as possible. For some, that will be within a 100-mile radius. For others, it will be their state or their region. Some of us will take the challenge very literally and try to eat as many things as possible within our area and try to cut out all that is not local. Others of us will keep coffee and bread and other items that are very difficult to source. Some of us will aim for eating one meal a week that is all local, while others of us will try for every meal.