My seven-year-old son made me a sandwich this weekend, and it was the best sandwich I have ever had.
And it didn’t even have bacon on it.
It may be hard to believe that a piece of bologna slapped between two pieces of bread with a VERY generous helping of unevenly spread mustard could even be a contender for this honour – but it reveals a simple truth about the food we eat.
Food tastes better when you have an emotional connection to it. The sandwich that my son made for me was the bee’s knees because it was made FOR me, with love and care, by someone I love.
There is science to back this up, but there is a simple test that we all have experienced: when you try to replicate family favourites from Mom’s cook book, it always seems like there is something missing.
That emotional connection is a powerful thing when it comes to taste and flavour, but our bodies also respond more deeply – secreting enzymes that improve digestion when we have a positive emotional association with the food we eat.
The power of this emotional connection extends beyond the hands of the cook to the producer of the food as well. When you know who and where your food comes from you get the same physiological response. Our bodies prefer local food.
Yet despite this, the industrial food system has removed almost all of the connections between you and the people who produce food.
Our need for big box convenience has come at a high price as food has become a commodity where all foods are the same. The narrow view that “A chicken is a chicken is a chicken” and “a bean is a bean is a bean” robs us of the subtle differences and tastes that can be found when you see the world as “Ben’s Chicken” or “Tim’s beans”.
When you meet Ben or Tim, or when you visit their farm you have a connection to your food and a transparency about how it is produced.
The goal of Local & Fresh is to maintain that connection while still providing the convenience that our busy lifestyles demand.
The “Producers” section of our website is where will find biographies and web links to our suppliers is just the start. In the coming months we will grow this section to add photos and videos, as well as hosting “meet your farmer” events to help build and maintain a connection to the people produce the food we eat.
What’s the best sandwich you ever had?
@andrewrathwell