Modern production and distribution methods mean that even fruit and vegetables grown locally here in Jersey sometimes travel to the UK to be stored in a warehouse before being transported back to one of the island's supermarkets.
A lot of the fresh food you buy will have travelled much, much further and it is now common to find apples from South America or New Zealand and beans from Africa on the supermarket shelf. According to the Guardian's George Monbiot, the area of apple orchards in the UK has halved since 1994 and only 20 per cent of apples sold in UK supermarkets today are home grown.
Because so much food is now grown using intensive methods and transported long distances it is estimated that it currently takes ten tonnes of energy to produce each tonne of food that is consumed. This position is clearly unsustainable and action must be taken to reduce the amount of energy used in food production and distribution.
Buying locally produced fruit and vegetables in season is the best way to ensure that what you are eating has been produced sustainably. The Genuine Jersey website has a guide to seasonal produce that will help you decide what to buy.