Summer time in Ontario is a good time to consider the 100 mile diet which gained popularity with the 2007 publication of **The 100-Mile Diet: A Year of Local Eating.**
Canadian writers *Alisa Smith* and *J.B. MacKinnon* recount their experiences, including motivations and challenges, on restricting their diet for one year, to include only foods grown within 100 miles of their residence.
The 100-Mile diet encourages us to eat only the freshest food, picked or preserved at its seasonal peak; that has traveled the shortest possible distance. The benefits of choosing to buy local include: reduced food miles and greenhouse gas emissions; support for local agriculture; and fresher, better tasting food.
But the 100-mile diet is not without its challenges. A more realistic approach may be to plan a single 100-Mile meal with friends or family. According to *Lynn Ogryzlo*, Ontario Local Food Ambassador and creator of the [$10 Challenge](http://www.ontariotable.com/10-challenge-billion-dollar-impact/), if every household in Ontario spent $10 a week on local food, we’d have an additional $2.4 billion in our local economy at the end of the year. Keeping our money circulating grows those dollars to $3.6 billion and creates 10,000 new jobs.°
Whether or not you plan to follow the 100-Mile Diet, don’t miss out on the fresh local produce available in Ontario. Farmers markets are a terrific place to buy locally grown food and to interact with farmers and growers. Ontario has been experiencing a rejuvenation in the popularity of farmers markets since the 1980’s, with new markets being established and old markets being revitalized as shoppers discover a more personal shopping experience. [Farmers Markets Ontario ](http://www.farmersmarketsontario.com/) lists markets in your area, and [Foodland Ontario](http://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/availability.html) (http://www.foodland.gov.on.ca/english/availability.html) provides a list of the Ontario fruits and vegetables available by month.
Keep your eye on this space for weekly ideas to use the fresh local produce you’ve just purchased! The first in the series, **bacon wrapped asparagus**, can be found [here](https://gelderman.com/blog/48/bacon-wrapped-asparagus).
°*These numbers were compiled by Dr. Kevin Stolerick of The Martin Prosperity Institute, University of Toronto, and Doug Vallery of Experience Renewal Solutions, Toronto.*
