Chapter 3 Reflection

1.   What are two weaknesses in the buy local argument? Don’s first main point is that most “local” products are not produced 100% locally. That is true. However, if we are to compare apples to apples we need to take into account the entire LCA (life cycle analysis) of a product. He mentions industrial inputs associated with the local products when in reality, the local products that I purchase from my farmers market do not use industrial fertilizers, pesticides, or pollinators. However, those are often used in globalized produced foods that we find for cheap prices at the supermarket. His second main point is that you can’t expect the local farmer to spend all of the money you pay them for the products locally. That is true, however, how much does the Walmart in your town spend locally from the money it gets from your purchases? Sure, they pay the minimum wage to an employee that may live nearby (but probably not enough for that person to afford all of their needs, so that employee may need extra assistance from the government in the form of healthcare, food stamps, utility assistance, etc). But my hunch is that the owner of the Walmart in your town isn’t frequenting the local restaurants, barber shop, holiday craft markets, and the school sports events. 

2. After watching the video are you still going to make an effort to buy local on occasion?  Why or why not? Yes, I am going to buy local goods and services as much as possible for many reasons NOT covered in the video, such as the true (external) costs of producing and shipping globalized goods and services. Watch this video to understand what I am speaking of, https://vimeo.com/37835035. The video produced and distributed by George Mason University is misleading, inaccurate and offensive. I believe food products are the most important to buy locally. Of course, we cannot buy a local car or a local computer, but we can buy it from a local computer store or auto dealer. If we do that, then at least the retail markup will go to support local jobs at fair wages, local utilities, local landowners and other local businesses where the local employees, managers, and owners will spend some of their income locally. 

3. What economic strengths of buy local are not mentioned in the video? There are innumerable strengths of buying locally like those above. When considering buying from local farmers instead of globalized industrial farms it is often easy to justify the convenience and price of goods from Walmart, Safeway, City Market, etc. But instead, if you buy directly from farmers at farmers markets, from coop grocery stores and from local restaurants that use local ingredients the benefits are enormous. For instance, you can have a conversation and relationship with your farmer and ask difficult but important questions of how your food was grown and how that might affect you and your family’s health. Second, most of the fuel used for transportation is eliminated and instead of buying food that is trucked on average of 2000-3000 miles, you can find food trucked less than 100 miles, often grown without toxic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and inorganic fertilizers that are polluting our global ecosystems. When buying local food, you are increasing the soil health and the health of local streams and rivers, thus consuming food with more nutritional value which means you have to eat less to feel satiated and content, which then translates to better performance from the energy gained from the local, healthier food. I could go on for days as I’ve studied and participated in the local food movement going on 13 years now, including when I ran my own local organic farm in my hometown in Kansas. It breaks my heart to have to convince consumers that is worth paying the extra 50 cents for a head of lettuce, when in fact it is a bargain for the true value it possesses. 

4.  From the perspective of Colorado, is trade with Wyoming different from trade with China? Why or why not? Keep in mind that Colorado doesn't trade with Wyoming.  Individuals in Colorado purchase items produced in Wyoming (coal probably. :-)). Yes, trade with Wyoming is different from trade with China for a few reasons. First is proximity, if you can get the same or better quality good closer for the same or better price, it makes economic sense to do so, because the cost of transportation and time are less (as well in this case, import taxes would not exists if trading with WY vs. China). By definition trade “involves the transfer of goods or services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money” (Trade, 2019). Again, it is important to consider externalities in this scenario. The definition of an externality is, “A side effect or consequence of an industrial or commercial activity that affects other parties without this being reflected in the cost of the goods or services involved, such as the pollination of surrounding crops by bees kept for honey” (Externality, 2019).

Works Cited

Externality | Definition of externality in US English by Oxford Dictionaries. (n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2019, from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/externality

Trade. (2019, January 26). Retrieved January 27, 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade