 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
The Market and The "Super" Market
baltimore eats - June, 2006
by John Shields
For most of us born in the last 50 years or so, the image of a
typical Baltimore area food market ranges from the old A&P and Food
Fair stores of my childhood to the Superfresh / Giant model we see
today - everything under one huge roof. But actually this type of
"One-Stop Shopping" is a relatively new phenomenon, barely two
generations old.
Before the age of the "Super Market" most food purchased here in
Baltimore was grown within a 100 to 150 mile radius of the market. In
the 1800's, as Baltimore grew from a post-colonial harbor town into a
major shipping port and industrial center, municipal markets sprang
up where local farmers, dairies, bakers, and artisan crafters of
cheeses and meats sold their wares. Seven of these locations:
Lexington, Cross Street, Hollins Street, Broadway, Belair, Northeast
and Lafeyette are still in still in existence today, the last
vestiges of that old market system.
While these markets were eventually roofed-over and managed by the
municipal government, they had humble beginnings as simple outdoor
farmers' markets. Farmers and their families would load their wagons
and make their way into old Baltimore town - which actually was not
that far away from the farms. In fact, all of our inner suburban
neighborhoods, the likes of Pikesville, Hamilton, Overlea, and
Cockeysville, were once farming regions.
The Baltimore Municipal
Markets gave farmers a guaranteed location to sell their products at
locally competitive prices, ensuring economic viability. Just as
important, they ensured that wholesome food would be available to the
residents of the city. The farmer was only competing with other
farmers within the same growing area, who were subject to the same
rigors of weather and economy as himself. The city's residents were
ensured a reliable source of sustenance; unaffected by international
wars, fuel supplies and tremors in the larger economic spheres.
Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, government policy makers
deliberately decided to change food production from small scale,
local farming, into the food industry - now doesn't that have a cozy
sound to it? Well actually, there was a lot of playing footsies going
on. The government subsidized the same chemical and munitions
manufacturers who supplied the military during the previous World
Wars to develop fertilizers and pesticides, primarily from fossil
fuels like petroleum and natural gas. The "Green Revolution" was born.
Larger farms, many of which were owned by, or partnered with,
corporate food companies, bought up thousands of smaller family
farms. Thus began the process of saturating our farmlands with
copious quantities of chemical fertilizers and pesticides to enable
industrial mono-cropping on huge acreages. This was done on a scale
unknown and unimagined, by any previous human civilization and
utterly at odds with the natural order of the planet's complex
eco-systems.
President Nixon's Secretary of Agriculture, Earl "Rusty" Butz,
summed up the new government policy with his declaration to the
country's farmers: "Get big or get out!"
And so it went. Eventually most did get out, losing their farms and
homes and devastating rural American communities. Well, at least it
left lots of cheap land to make way for suburban sprawl - now, that's
another story!
With this new centralized food system, totally reliant on long
distance transportation, the age of the factory farm and the
supermarket was upon us.
As each successive local farm went out of business there was one
less farmer-owned food stall at the City's Municipal Markets.
Bombarded with persuasive advertising, the modern housewife was
quickly lured into the brightly lit, ultra convenient, thoroughly
modern "Super" market. Our entire relationship with food changed
quickly.
Now our supermarkets have gotten bigger and bigger - a virtual food
arena. Take a walk around one of these food-a-ramas and see just how
many of the items come from anywhere near here. Trust me, the
percentage is very low.
The other day I ran down to the supermarket and picked up a few
items to make a simple pasta dish for dinner - Oh all right, I got a
couple pints of Ben and Jerry's too! My one little bag came to a mere
$26 and contained products that collectively journeyed well over
20,000 miles to get to my kitchen. And it was a small bag!
I'm not
sure about you, but after taking one step back to look at that
picture, (and honestly... I'd never looked before), here's the only
conclusion that I can come to: This is collective insanity!
So I'm making a vow that from now on the basic ingredients for my
at-home dinners are coming from one of our neighborhood farmers
markets - or one of the small independent food markets around town.
It's not really difficult. There are quite a number of them. Our markets are vibrant and overflowing with wonderful fresh local
produce, seafood, poultry and meats, flowers, healthy free range
eggs, dairy products from locally pastured herds, handmade cheeses,
smoked fish and poultry. I could go on and on... and I will!
Next issue let's go shopping and see what's what, meet some of the
folks doing the growing and selling, and meet some of our neighbors
shopping. I'll let you in on a little secret: Our local food economy
is still around... maybe not what it once was, but it's coming back,
and I'm loving it!
If you have any thoughts, comments, or ideas on our local food
economy give me a shout at: John@JohnShields.com
 |
 |
|
|