It Starts At Home: Go Local This Holiday Season
The Bay Area’s mild climate and rich culinary culture combine to produce some of the finest local foods in the world. In 2005, four San Francisco foodies founded the “Locavore” movement, pledging to maintain a 100-mile diet, eating only foods that grew within 100-miles of their homes. A TIME Magazine article on the movement stated: “Food sold in U.S. supermarkets averages some 1,500 miles from farm to plate.” Not only does this cause unnecessary pollution, the foods require preservatives and additives to survive the travel time. Committing to eating locally is committing to freshness, quality, and support of our incredible community.
Several members of the Integrity team are member of the Laguna Farm co-operative in Sebastopol, where we pick-up biweekly boxes of fresh, organic produce. Outside of Sonoma County, the Locavores website has a “food web links” section to help locate farmers’ markets (their favorite is at Ferry Market Plaza in San Francisco), farms, and grocery brands produced locally—such as Point Reyes’ Cowgirl Creamery, and Marshall’s Straus Organics, and of course, our area’s plentiful selection of local wines.
Looking for a holiday turkey?
Willie Bird of Santa Rosa has been raising poultry for 75 years, and their free-range offerings will make you quickly forget the usual Butterball (which doesn’t have a single production plant in the western United States).
What about baked goods?
Integrity favorite J.M Rosen’s of Petaluma makes cheesecakes and desserts (see above) so divine that Frank Sinatra had a standing weekly order of four cakes. Available at Whole Foods Market, their seasonal offerings include pumpkin, cranberry, and eggnog cheesecakes. We also recommend La Boulange Bakery, with locations in San Francisco, Marin, and the East Bay (Whole Foods also sells their cookie dough if you want to impress friends with “home-baked” goodies). They use only organic coffee and espresso and recyclable or compostable packaging.
Integrity is proud to support local vendors, local industry, and the satisfied taste-buds of your clients, guests, and families. We wish you a blessed and delicious holiday season!
