No Farmers Market? Don't Worry, You can Still get Wholesome Produce Wherever You Live

(Here's a guest post about finding local foods.  Enjoy!)

The biggest benefit of living in a food conscious area is the over abundance of farmers markets. There, you can find a range of the most exotic foods, all home grown, organically produced, and completely wholesome and healthy. But if you don't live in an area where you have the opportunity and privilege of venturing to the local farmers market to pick up your usual produce, never fear. There are simple and affordable ways and means of finding and stocking up your fridge full of good, wholesome produce.

The easiest and most convenient way of getting a hold of those wholesome fruits and veggies is by taking a trip down to the local mom and pop grocery store. Usually, the produce you will find there will be locally grown in co-ops or even from the market owner's own backyard. This produce might look a little different than the produce you'd find at your neighborhood Ralphs, but that's because home growers don't use the same chemicals and pesticides in the production of their produce that can often alter the physical appearance of the fruits and vegetables.

You can also hit up the local ethnic market, maybe the Asian market down the street or the Mediterranean market around the corner. Most people walk passed these markets assuming there is nothing inside that they would commonly buy or use. However, these mom and pop ethnic markets are chalk full of gems. They have got the usual produce that you are used to using in your meals, for a far cheaper price, and while walking through the aisles of the produce section you might just find something new to use to spruce up your daily menu.

Try starting up your garden at home. Most of us might not have ideal locations to grown a full garden with ample sunlight at home. But veggies like peas, radishes, spinach, lettuce, broccoli, and collard greens can all be grown at home with minimal effort and even in the most shady of places. Not only will this prove to be much cheaper in the long run, the only expense is really the initial purchase of the seeds needed to grow the plants you choose to grow, but it will keep you stocked on the veggies you need daily without having to inconvenience yourself by going out and searching for the local market that has them cheaper than any other neighborhood grocery store. You'll have the sense of satisfaction when it comes to harvest time, and you'll be able to eat easier knowing exactly where your produce came from and what was used to help them grow.

Worse comes to worst, though, and none of these options work for you, you can always head to your usual grocery store and search out the organic produce section. Most chain grocery stores these days have portion of their produce aisles sectioned off for their organic produce, and this type of produce is typically much more wholesome than the conventionally grown and harvested fruits and veggies. Prices for the organic produce are comparable to that of the non-organic produce, but are free from pesticide chemicals and synthetic nutrients.

Dana Livingston is a writer for a culinary school website where you can browse schools and the latest trends in the culinary arena.