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Eating Local Could Slash U.S. Energy Use

The amount of energy used to produce food in the U.S. could be cut in half if Americans ate less and ate local foods, in addition to eating less meat, dairy and junk food, and using more traditional farming methods.

About 19 percent of the total fossil fuel used in the U.S. goes into the food system -- about the same amount that is used to fuel cars

Food travels an average of 1,500 miles before it is eaten, meaning that a head of iceberg lettuce requires 4,000 calories of energy just for shipment from California to New York. Locally grown cabbage, on the other hand, requires only 400 calories total to produce and transport.


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Comment on This Article Community Comments (3)
 
 
Posted On Aug 26, 2008
I am not sure how many calories of energy it takes to create food in a hydro/aeroponic system, but the systems are easy to build once you know how. You can have hundreds of tomato plants in a limited space and even in the winter too. There are grow lights that are 15w high power led bulbs that screw into normal light sockets and cover 5 square feet of space. If you happen to need to cover more i believe there are ones that even cover 70 square feet and they are on par with those HID lights at around 400w. That is if memory serves me right on the latter of the lights.

 
shaneperrone
Apprentice User Apprentice User, Joined On 11/2007
shaneperrone  
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BeeGirl
Savvy User Savvy User Joined On 4/2008
BeeGirl  
 
Posted On Aug 27, 2008
There's been quite a bit printed lately about the unhealthiness of indoor agriculture because it supposedly provides an ideal environment for things like mites and mold spores. I'd be more worried about attracting federal pests myself.


Aaltrude
Moderator User Moderator User Joined On 4/2007
Aaltrude  
 
Posted On Aug 28, 2008
The following is a quote from the book by Michael Pollan "In Defense of Food".

"Haber completely overlooked the importance of biological activity in the soil: the contribution to plant health of the complex underground ecosystem of soil microbes,earthworms and mycorrhizal fungi. Harsh chemical fertilizers (and pesticises) depress or destroy this biological activity, forcing crops to subsist largely on a simple ration of NPK. Plants can live on this fast-food diet of chemicals but it leaves them more vulnerable to pests and diseases and appears to diminish their nutritional quality.
It stands to reason that a chemically simplified soil would produce chemically simplified plants".

This was not written about hydroponic growing but I consider it is easily applied to this form of growing. I will be avoiding hydro/aeroponically grown plants as I feel they are nutritionally inferior to those grown organically in natural soil.

 
 
 
 
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