Four years ago, Wal-Mart announced plans to double its offerings of organic products, including produce, dairy, and dry goods. But this news was met with skepticism from farmers and natural food advocates. Richard DeWilde, a co-owner of Harmony Valley Farm in southwestern Wisconsin, voiced concern that Wal-Mart would use its market strength to drive down prices and hurt farmers. Others worried that the company might lower the standards for what is classified as organic food and begin to import more produce from overseas. Ronnie Cummins, director of the nonprofit director of the Organic Consumers Association, asked, “Wal-Mart already sources a majority of its products from China because it’s so cheap to produce anything there. Why not food?”

Since then, Wal-Mart made some other changes that have gotten our attention. They invested in hybrid big rigs, sought to sell sustainable electronics, worked to set a sustainability index for all available products, and aimed to double their solar power use. For many eco-conscious Americans who have spent years shying away from big box stores, will these changes help to lure them back?

For those of us who seek to eat organic and local, Wal-Mart’s latest initiative should make us sit up and take notice. The program, which Wal-Mart calls Heritage Agriculture, encourages farms within a day’s drive of one of its warehouses to grow crops that the store would otherwise ship in from across the country. In many cases the crops once flourished in the places where Wal-Mart is encouraging their revival, but vanished because of Big Agriculture competition, particularly in states like Florida and California.

In this month’s issue of The Atlantic, writer Corey Kummer talks with Ron McCormick, the senior director of local and sustainable sourcing for Wal-Mart. McCormick told a story about how a couple years ago, “he came upon pictures from the 1920s of thriving apple orchards in Rogers, Arkansas, eight miles from the company’s headquarters. Apples were once shipped from northwest Arkansas by railroad to St. Louis and Chicago. After Washington state and California took over the apple market, hardly any orchards remained. Cabbage, greens, and melons were also once staples of the local farming economy. But for decades, Arkansas’s cash crops have been tomatoes and grapes.” Consequently, Wal-Mart’s Heritage Agriculture initiative could work to diversify crops and revitalize local farming while giving consumers access to fresh, locally grown produce.

What does this mean for prices? Even if Wal-Mart pays a slightly higher price for local food, it could easily see savings in transportation costs and by eliminating the middleman. McCormick says that Heritage produce currently accounts for just four to six percent of Wal-Mart’s current produce sales – but his goal is to push for 20 percent. Wal-Mart’s new emphasis on local and heritage produce will likely have repercussions for Whole Foods too.

If you’re committed to eating locally grown food, will this change where you purchase it? Is Wal-Mart’s new initiative a solution for local farmers and consumers alike?

What led you to decide to become a farmer?

I was born and raised on the south side of Madison. My grandmother always had gardens, and I grew up spending time with my family planting, weeding, and harvesting produce. After I served in the Vietnam War, I developed food allergies. I only trusted myself to grow and prepare my food!

Describe Half the 40 Acres Farm.

In 1982, I decided to become an organic farmer. I leased 20 acres of land off of Fish Hatchery Road in order to be able to help provide healthy produce to people in low-income areas. I grow a variety of produce free from nonorganic pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides.

How did you become involved in farmer’s markets?

For the first ten years, our farm participated in the downtown farmer’s market. Then in 2002, I became a vendor at the South Madison Farmer’s Market and began managing it the next year. We now have five markets at four locations, including the Labor Temple, Villagers Mall, Rimrock Road, and Gilbert Road. I’m committed to serving diverse neighborhoods, which can often be food deserts. These people need to have access to safe, affordable food just like everyone else. Many of them grew up with their parents and grandparents having gardens, and they know the taste of real food.

Describe your partnership with Growing Power, founded by Will Allen in Milwaukee to promote urban agriculture.

We have the Market Basket Program, a CSA-style food distribution program that features a weekly delivery of ten to fifteen various vegetables from our Rainbow Farmer’s Cooperative. In cooperation with Growing Power and the Center for Resilient Cities, we’re trying to turn the former Badger School into a green charter school. Our vision includes having it run on solar and wind power, establishing green houses, focusing on agriculture, and even having an onsite Boys and Girls Club.

How else are you involved in the Madison community?

I’m really committed to community education. For instance, on July 2-3, 2010, I’ll be offering a workshop on aquaproducts and greenhouses. I also established the Program for Entrepreneurial Agricultural Training (PEAT) as a way to teach today’s youth how to grow and market healthy food. Not only does PEAT show kids the importance of eating fresh produce and whole foods, but it gives them a chance to run their own business and take pride in their work. Kathleen Falk has endorsed this program, too. It’s incredible to see their enthusiasm – these kids really blossom through PEAT.

How has Local Dirt helped you?

I want to support Local Dirt – it’s a great resource for farmers and customers. I hope to use it more for the farmer’s markets and to get word out about the Rainbow Cooperative and the workshops.

Full disclosure, I live in Wisconsin.  Look at photos of the recent blizzard in New York, drop the temperature about 20 degrees and you will get a feel for what it is like in Wisconsin right now.

Another fact, I’m a locavore. If you are wondering how these two facts could both possibly be true you aren’t alone. A recent NYT article (found in the business section, why?) claimed that it simply isn’t possible to eat local in the wintertime.  What?  Did he attend US history classes?

I would love to throw stones but, hey, I was in his shoes once myself.  It was three years ago when I decided to join the only 100 Mile Eat Local Challenge, which just happened to be going on in California during the first week of March.  Can you guess what is growing in Wisconsin during March?  My lawn.  And even that isn’t growing much.

That week taught some valuable lessons about how to eat local.  They were learned the hard way, through a lot of desperation and a little hunger. Hopefully the five tips below will help you avoid the same weight loss and caffeine withdrawal headaches.

Eating Local 101

1. When in Rome…

Find out what is local to your area. Look at state food & beverage reports, go to a farmers’ market, and look at cookbooks from 60+ years ago.

The NYT article pointed out that wine is a common break in philosophy for locavores, who will ship wine from overseas to eat with their local salad.  Through research I realized that 100 years ago every small town in Wisconsin had its own creamery (for cheese) and its own brewery.  Prohibition shut down all the breweries but the past 20 years have seen a comeback in microbrews.  Just like wine, there are so many varieties of beer it is hard not to find one that appeals.

2. See past the produce section

Go beyond fresh produce.  Beef, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs, wheat, beans, nuts, and many other items can be found year round.  That said, many farmers around here have storage facilities able to keep products such as potatoes and squash fresh all the way into February.

3. Preserve the summer

A hard lesson for myself and the first pioneers to learn was “think ahead”.  Freezing, canning, drying, and processing are all ways to preserve local food.  Some of these can be found at farmers’ markets and grocery stores.

Planning is a rule not just for the year but for the week.  If meals are planned and thawed, ready to cook, there is less temptation to order out or pop in a sodium-licious microwave meal.

4. It’s not all or nothing

Start small.  So, maybe your morning coffee isn’t local.  That doesn’t mean you can’t still have a big impact on the environment and local economy by substituting a few items in your meals, or asking your favorite restaurant to make a few changes.

Just being aware of where your food comes from is a big step in the right direction.  Someday all food will have to identify its farm of origin, eliminating dangerous national food recalls.  Ah, yes, there I go dreaming again…

5. Adjust expectations

Find recipes for the local foods you have instead of the other way around.

Recently we tried to source local food for a Wisconsin school cafeteria.  When asked for a short list of products to search for, the cook listed kiwi, oranges and bananas. No joke.

Why do we expect a variety of produce to be inexpensive and available year-round? Perhaps if the true cost of growing strawberries and tomatoes in the winter time and trucking them thousands of miles were reflected in the cost, people would adjust by eating locally.

By focusing on the span of the growing season and on local consumption, you can make sure that you’re eating smart and supporting your local farmer. Want to know what’s in season right now? That’s easy – just visit the homepage of the National Resources Defense Council. With a quick search, I found a long list of produce available now in Wisconsin or in bordering states including: beets, bunching greens, cabbage, carrots, garlic, horseradish, Jerusalem artichokes, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, lettuce mix, mushrooms, onions, parsnips, potatoes, rutabagas, shallots, spinach, sweet potatoes, turnips, and winter squash.

Sure, I can go to my nearby grocery store and purchase tomatoes for a reasonable price. But those tomatoes were likely shipped from across the country – shouldn’t those food miles be (perhaps substantially) reflected in the cost? And if they were, wouldn’t I be more inclined to make squash soup rather than bruschetta for tonight’s appetizer?

The NRDC notes that, “In the space of a generation, we’ve become accustomed to eating food that’s never grown roots in local soil. In fact, most produce grown in the United States travels an average of 1,500 miles before it gets sold.” Those food miles quickly add up, and they contribute to global warming and air pollution. But what if we noticed those food miles more readily, like in an increase in our grocery bill?

The issue of food prices also ties into an earlier blog post on California’s irrigation problems. If eating local depends on the sustainability of local farms, and if the sustainability of local farms depends on irrigation, perhaps we need to take a hard look at our priorities and our practices.

According to the World Water Forum, farming accounts for 70 percent of the world’s water consumption – and most of its wasteful use. By designing and implementing more efficient irrigation systems, we can address problems related to water shortages and we can continue to support local food consumption. Of course, new irrigation systems cost money. What if the government implemented a tax on non-local food? Such an idea has already been proposed for soda, which could result in hundreds of millions of increased state revenue. Would American taxpayers support it?