There are so many benefits to growing your own food. For one thing, it’s a lot healthier if you do switch from shop-bought produce to your own. You can control exactly how it’s made and it’s going to be the freshest possible option if you have just harvested it. It will be nutrient rich if it’s grown fresh in your garden. Growing your own food encourages you to eat healthier and helps you become more aware of what you are buying. There is something so rewarding about tucking into produce you have grown yourself. Aside from the health benefits to you and your family, there are benefits to the planet too. Here are a few reasons why growing your own food could help the environment.
It helps your children to learn more about natural organic food
Growing your own produce is an excellent activity that the whole family can get involved in. The kids can watch the process from seedling to produce. They can watch you growing the food in your greenhouse or even a polytunnel which you can get from companies like First Tunnels and they can help tend the produce. Growing your own produce helps you and your children be more self-sufficient and they are far more likely to eat their veggies if they grew them!
It can help stop the use of fossil fuels
Food you buy at the grocery store often travels long distances to get there. This increases the use of fossil fuel. You can reduce your carbon footprint by buying seasonal fruits and veggies from local farmers and by growing your own. As this article from One Green Planet shows, the use of fossil fuels produces excess waste which has a negative effect on the environment.
It reduces pesticides and fertilisers in the air and soil
A lot of people don’t realise how much pesticides, fungicides and herbicides are part of the growing process of commercial farms. These poisons are not only on the fruit and veg we eat, but also trickle down into the water supply. They affect every aspect of the eco-system. Growing organic vegetables supports a healthy eco-system. Birds, bees and other insects can find a safe place in your yard. You can control exactly what goes in your produce and as Grow Veg reveals, eating it straight from your garden without pesticides is better than produce from the shop.