One would think that being in Florida, I would be swimming in fresh local produce. Not quite. It has been difficult for me to find local products to use in my recipes. There are a few farms that sell at Farmers Markets, but even then they are selling their produce next to people selling mangoes from Ecuador and berries from Chile.

I was hoping that Whole Foods would have a variety of local produce to sell, considering their commitment to providing organic and natural products, and support of local farmers. However, I can barely tell the difference between buying at Whole Foods or buying at the local Publix or Epicure markets. There are a few oranges and grapefruits from a farm in northern Florida, but everything else is from countries like Ecuador, Mexico, and Argentina. The most startling item that I saw was Thai Coconuts. I pass by coconut sellers on the streets and beaches around here all the time, so why in Whole Foods are they importing them from Thailand?

The fish department is even more disappointing. I know that local restaurants have plenty of local fish on their menus, but at Whole Foods I have not seen any of it. One day I asked the fish monger for something local, and out of a full case of fish, there was only pompano that was local. There was plenty of farmed Atlantic salmon, but no local grouper, snapper, tuna, cobia-NOTHING. Another time I asked for some local fish and the woman told me that the halibut was local, from Massachusetts. Really?

I am lucky that I can work from home and go out of my way to find fisherman to sell me some of their fresh catches, but I want to know what options the other customers have in supporting their communities.