Choosing to Buy Local

So recently, especially if you're in Canada, you may have heard about the beef recall due to possible e. coli contamination.

Upon hearing about it, we decided not to buy meat (beef in particular) from the grocery stores anymore, since we don't know where it's from, what's been done to it, etc. Besides, too many times in the past few months, one of us has gotten ill from meat (beef) bought at the grocery stores.

We also learned that if Charlie won't touch it...it's probably spoiled or bad in some way. He loves meat and it's rare that he won't eat it, but if he refuses, and we still eat it...one or both of us is sick the next day.

Lesson learned: Pay attention to the toddler when it comes to meat. LOL.

Anyway, there is a butcher shop in town, they've been around for longer than I've been alive. When I was little, my parents got their meat from him all the time, but stopped when I was probably five or six, and started buying it at the grocery store.

Because of the recall...my parents have started going to them regularly again, and I have as well. I told the lady who waited on me today that I will be a regular customer of theirs because of that recall, and the fact that it's just so much better.

It's also kind of cool that they know my parents...and that the lady recognized me as their daughter (even without seeing me with them) and we were talking about them while I was there today.

They get the meat (beef, chicken and pork) from local farms in our county. They also sell eggs, cheese, apples and other stuff, all of it from our local area. No chemicals, nothing. The meat looks fresher (heck, most of it, they will slice it fresh right in front of your eyes, to your specified thickness, as I discovered today) and tastes a million times better than meat bought at the grocery stores.

So far, we've had ground beef and pork chops. So...freaking...good. And it just feels good to be supporting our local butcher and local farmers, you know? I know it's not for everyone, but it's really not more expensive (if anything it's cheaper!) and it has to be better for you (but that's just my opinion).

I can't wait to try other cuts of beef and pork, and chicken, from them, ha ha!