Sustainable Purchasing: Bread
I could buy bread for 66 cents. But don't let them fool you--just because it says "bread" on the label doesn't mean it is something that I want to put into my body. I can purchase a candy bar that both tastes better and has more nutritional value than a 66 cent loaf.
I buy most of my bread at the Farmer’s Market, Chico Natural Foods, and S&S, alternating between the organic options provided by Hearth and Stone Bakery, Miller’s Bake House, and Tin Roof Bakery. On occasion I will buy organic sliced bread from Trader Joe’s.
The locally made breads weigh in at 24-26 oz. and cost me around $3.75.
A Trader Joe’s 24 oz. loaf costs $2.50, and comes from an undisclosed location by way of the ubiquitous Monrovia (a Los Angeles suburb).
The $0.66 loaf is 1-lb sponge of wheat bread from Winco which is baked in a suburb of Portland, Oregon. For the sake of comparison, 24 oz would cost $0.99.
When buying the locally-made bread, here is how I justify* paying $2.75 more for my loaf:
--The crust of the Winco loaf has the consistency of damp construction paper, the inside is kind of like a tan marshmallow, and it tastes and smells. . . .well, it really doesn’t have much of a taste, it just kind of soaks up the flavor of whatever you put on it. The locally made bread looks, feels, smells, and tastes like good, wholesome, flavorful, well. . .bread, which you can tell was made by a person rather than a factory.
Value of quality: 60 cents
--The ingredient list of the Winco bread includes 24 items, 14 of which I have trouble pronouncing and/or spelling. The list for locally made breads includes 4-6 items. A loaf of Miller’s Bake House bread reveals organic whole wheat and rye flours; this and water is pretty much the bulk of the product. The other ingredients are sourdough starter (for leavening and flavor), sea salt, and sometimes seeds. I strongly believe that eating organic is better for my personal health (in the long run saving me sick days, doctor’s visits, and drug purchases), while some (all?) of Winco’s bread ingredients could very well be detrimental.
Value of personal health: 45 cents
--By purchasing an organic product, I am supporting agricultural practices that I believe are better for the health of the soil and the environment (which my taxpayer dollars would otherwise need to deal with in the future).
Value of supporting organic farming practices: 40 cents
--Purchasing locally made bread supports a friendly member of the Chico community that I will likely meet in and around town, who is in turn likely to spend his profits locally, perhaps even to employ my services one day.
Value of keeping money local: 40 cents
--The Winco bread travels at least 495 miles to get to the store. The local bread is made, well, locally (Yankee Hill 20 miles, Cohasset 17 miles, or Northwest Chico 5 miles). Dave Miller of Miller’s Bake House goes one step further in doing his customers the courtesy of identifying the source of his grains and the distance they travel.
Value of reduced food miles (and thus reduced emissions and fuel use) 30 cents
--My trip to Winco, to be frank, unnerved me. The air smelled like a combination of plastic, floor cleaner, and produce that smelled like the inside of refrigerated tractor-trailers. Babies were wailing, and all of the customers had grim, sullen faces. Even worse, I got lost in the cereal section, and had to use GPS to find the breads.
Value of not having to go to Winco: 30 cents
--Conversely, I enjoy my trips to S&S, Chico Natural, and especially the Farmer’s Market. Folks are smiling, and it is rare that I don’t bump into a friend or two.
Value of having a pleasant shopping experience: 20 cents
--I am much more likely to bike to S&S, Chico Natural, or the Farmer’s Market, rather than risk life and limb cycling in the vicinity of the Chico Mall and dodging SUV’s in the parking lot. Driving to Winco would also have a fuel cost (cost of gas + emissions).
Value of being able to bike vs. drive: 20 cents
Of course, making one’s own bread is not rocket science, though it does require one to add in another factor, time, and it can be hard to source local ingredients, if that is one of your goals. I am sure that experience and perseverance can help one to overcome these obstacles, but for the moment I will remain a conscientious purchaser.
*Yes, the monetary values I have attached to each item are semi-arbitrary, but you get the general idea: These things are important to me.