Mealtime Magic - Best Cities to Buy Local Food

 

Where in America can you easily find farm-fresh food? With harvest season around the corner, LawnStarter ranked 2024's Best Cities to Buy Local Food. We compared the 500 biggest U.S. cities based on 4 locavore categories. More specifically, we factored in access to u-pick farms, on-farm markets, and local dairy farms. We also considered local food movement chapters like Slow Food USA and Buy Fresh, Buy Local, among 21 total metrics. See the 10 best (and 10 worst) cities for eating local food below, followed by key takeaways. (Don’t see your city below? Check out the full ranking.)

Best Cities to Buy Local Food Rank City 1 Portland, OR 2 New York, NY 3 Baltimore, MD 4 Washington, DC 5 Seattle, WA 6 Frederick, MD 7 Beaverton, OR 8 Chicago, IL 9 Philadelphia, PA 10 Somerville, MA Worst Cities to Buy Local Food Rank City 1 Anchorage, AK 2 Flagstaff, AZ 3 Laredo, TX 4 San Angelo, TX 5 Odessa, TX 6 Pharr, TX 7 McAllen, TX 8 Abilene, TX 9 Midland, TX 10 North Las Vegas, NV

Key Insights: Portland, Oregon (No. 1), continues to dominate the local food scene, alongside its suburbs, Beaverton (No. 7), Hillsboro (No. 11), and Gresham (No. 19). This region has a high density of farm stands, u-pick farms, and agri-tourism businesses. Foodies from Maryland to New Hampshire take eating local seriously. All ranked cities across 7 Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern states score in the top half of our ranking, with impressive access to farm stands, u-pick farms, and farms offering on-farm markets, pickup, and delivery services.  Texas cities and Southwestern states finish near the bottom, alongside Anchorage, Alaska, in last place. Most cities in Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas lack farm stands, on-farm markets, and u-pick farms for finding fresh produce. These cities also claim fewer local businesses like craft breweries and wineries.   Read the full story here: https://www.lawnstarter.com/blog/studies/best-cities-for-locavores/  Other helpful links: Methodology Media Resources (editor’s quotes, hi-res image files, and 2023 ranking)   While you’re busy cooking up a locavore storm, hire a local LawnStarter pro to keep your lawn looking as fresh as your local food. More from LawnStarter:  Best Cities for Urban Gardening States Where Farms Use the Most Water Best Cities for Picnic Lovers Top States to Try Edible Insect and Wildlife Cuisine Best Cities for Naked Gardening Best Cities for Fast Food Lovers