What’s Local and Seasonal, and Who the Hell Grows It? 

A look at some of the local farms in the Bay Area and what they’ve got available during these weird winter months. 

Tender perpetual spinach. Lucky Daisy and Kishu mandarins. Fractal Roman cauliflower. All of them grown in the same fog that you can see from your kitchen window. We live in one of the most bountiful places on Earth. Here’s how to access the local, seasonal produce that the Bay Area is known for.

Who Really Grows It?

Before we dive into it, here’s a special shoutout to the migrant workers who grow our food. Without that skilled, often difficult work performed in less-than-ideal conditions, we would not have the bounty available at our stores. Fuck ICE forever. Check out and amplify United Farm Workers to support the people growing our food in this hellish era.

Why It Matters

Local and seasonal food matter for your wallet, the environment, and mental health.

The produce you buy in the grocery store costs money. The sticker tag represents major international trade deals, an increasingly volatile climate, ICE raids… Not to mention things we’ve suffered from since the Agricultural Revolution, like pests and spouts of bad weather. 

Remember when various canals or routes have been impacted in the last few years, and the supply chain gets blamed for unavailable or extremely expensive items? It’s hit everything from avocados to eggs to Dungeness Crabs. The more local you can get, the more control you have over transportation challenges. And if you add seasonality to it, you are choosing things that are in higher supply and thereby cheaper.

But shopping for local & seasonal produce also helps reduce your carbon footprint for many of the same reasons. And supporting the local farmers in your area often goes hand in hand with supporting sustainable business practices and reducing food waste.

And all of that is better for your mental health. Plus if you are the kind of person who claims there are no seasons here (there are! They’re subtle!), seasonality can help you stay in touch with nature. 

What Grows in the Bay Area

We are so very lucky to live in one of the world’s most fertile and abundant places, California. The Bay Area is close enough to 500,000 acres of farmable land in the Imperial Valley that we can access excellent produce with ease. And did you know Silicon Valley used to be largely orchards and farming land? It’s a lush place, that much is true.

To find out more about what grows in the Bay Area, you can check the SF Environment Department’s lists. Foodwise also has a fun, interactive tool that lets you zoom in on varieties and history, access recipes, and even see which farms are growing any given product.

Where to Find Produce

It’s not realistic to go to farms and do all your shopping straight from the people in overalls. That’s why we have farmer’s markets, which give ordinary home shoppers the chance to buy straight from a farmer at their stand. But another cool option if you can’t squeeze a farmer’s market into your schedule is to visit one of the local grocers that carry a given farm’s produce. Bi-Rite even labels which farm their items come from… If you can afford it!

Some of the farms, like Dirty Girl, even list out which restaurants source their ingredients. 

No Pressure

Ultimately there’s no pressure to eat seasonally or locally. Nobody is going to look over your shoulder in the checkout line at Trader Joe’s or FoodsCo. If you’re using an app to deliver your food, the shopper might judge a little but more than likely they’ve seen it all. You’re an adult in charge of feeding yourself. But there are some good reasons to think about incorporating local fresh produce into your standard dinner rotation if you have the time, money, and energy. 

To support United Farm Workers, visit their website or Instagram.