Circle M Farm

A customer recently sent us a link to a really cool site, The Madison 100 Mile Diet Map, a resource created by four UW-Madison cartography students who wanted to provide an easy way for area residents to find locally produced foods. And Circle M is on the map!

Of course, the map is not about dieting, it’s all about eating and eating well. You can find not only local farms like ours that direct-sell to customers, but also a comprehensive list of farmer’s markets, restaurants that serve locally grown food, and even coffee roasters and chocolatiers that buy their materials overseas, but process them here.

The concept of the 100 Mile Diet is actually a movement introduced by a Canadian couple in 2005 as a way to access fresh food from known sources. By eating more foods that are grown and processed in a radius 100 miles from your home, participants hope to also reduce transportation costs and invest more in their local economies.

“I think people view it as a challenge,” says Heidi Banfi, one of the Madison map’s creators. “One of the goals of our map is to show that it’s easy.” She and the other students hoped to dispel the idea that eating locally requires radical changes and to show how small steps can fit into many everyday lifestyles.

“The goal of this isn’t to be hard and fast and not eat anything from outside of 100 miles, it’s trying to get people’s attention shifted more toward that idea,” says Fran Ellsworth, another co-creator. “If everyone tried to incorporate as many food items from within 100 miles as possible, that’s a lot more powerful than five people being so strict that they won’t even cook their food in olive oil.”

The students also hope the map will counter the idea that local products are more expensive than conventionally sourced counterparts.

“Especially with food costs skyrocketing and gasoline prices going up, it may be cheaper to buy a quarter of a cow from a local farmer and put it in the freezer,” Banfi explains. “Educating people about their other options is important.”

Hmmm. Food for thought. And by the way, we’ve got steers going to the butcher this week, so if you want that economical quarter of a cow, get in touch with us right away!