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 Our locally grown food helped to spur on the emergence of our communities across the South Shore during their early days, providing those first generations of settlers with not only the food they needed to survive, but also valuable commodities upon which the local economy could be built.

 As time passed, however, technological developments revolutionized the way we thought about food - and not necessarily for the better.

 Mass, cross-continental transportation opened our little Nova Scotian marketplace up to the entire world and, as time passed by, a greater premium was placed on the affordability of food and not necessarily its quantity or the safety of its origins.

 But early in the 21st century, there has been something of a return to the appreciation of locally grown food and there is a burgeoning understanding that investing in one's own local economy by supporting nearby primary and secondary producers has far-reaching benefits.

 Not only is supporting local producers important for the economy, but in an era in which food supplies are stretched and there are a variety of different threats to imports, having access to a strong supply of local food can prove critical for localized communities during times of emergency.

 Arguably the most popular approach to promoting local consumption has been the "100-Mile Diet," in which participants strive to eat food produced within a 100-mile radius of their home community.

 The concept first really garnered attention when Alisa Smith and J.B. Mac-Kinnon began a one-year experiment in local eating within a 100-mile radius, which became a bestselling book of that very name.

 Since then, the concept has been adopted in many corners of North America by those who understand the economic and health benefits associated with buying sustainable, local food - the book itself becoming a source of inspiration for those who are looking to thrive as much as possible on locally produced food.

 For those living here on the South Shore who are interested in pursuing a 100-mile-diet type of lifestyle, there are plenty of avenues to find the food you or your family need.

 Farmers' markets are often great venues where you can go and chat with the person who actually produced the edible goods you'll be buying.

 Whether you live near Hubbards, New Germany, Lunenburg, Mahone Bay or, coming soon, Bridgewater, there are plenty of easily accessible farm markets which can get you started on the path to changing your dependence on imported foods one purchase at a time.

 In addition to the farmers' markets, there are also many other producers that you can buy from here locally in Lunenburg and Queens counties.

 In fact, the Lunenburg Queens Regional Development Agency has recently released its own virtual catalogue of the best places to get fresh agricultural products in our two counties.

 The document, which numbers approximately 90 listings, is a remarkable directory and includes contact and location information for an incredible range of businesses in 15 different categories.

 Among the categories are baked goods, beef products, berry crops, beverages, field crops, field vegetables, fish and shellfish, herbs, maple products, organic products, pork, poultry, sheep and lamb, services and specialty products.

 For more information, or the complete agricultural directory, you can visit http://www.lqrda.ca.