A couple months ago the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment published a paper by Andrew Zumkehr and Elliott Campbell. The paper was widely reported in the press. For example the Washington Post the headline: As much as 90 percent of Americans could eat food grown within 100 miles of their home. Another outlet: Most Americans could eat locally.
I promptly wrote a blog post asking: even if Americans could eat locally, should they? Shortly thereafter, I exchanged several emails with Pierre Desrochers, the author of the excellent book The Locavore's Dilemma: In Praise of the 10,000-mile Diet. We decided a more formal reply was warranted.
I'm pleased to report that a couple days ago Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment published a letter by Pierre and me.
We write:
We offer these specific critiques of their model: