Please pardon my tardy posting this week. I’m just waking up from the food coma induced by this past Sunday’s Farm to Fork picnic, the annual fundraiser for farmer apprentice programs hosted by NC State’s Center for Environmental Farming Systems and Slow Food Triangle. 

Sure I spend much of my time searching out prime food bargains in the Chapelboro, but I’m not a sucker for just any buffet. Stuffing my face with cheap eats just doesn’t satisfy. When we relocated to Chapel Hill from New York City in 2008, my husband and I chose this town largely because the people and snackie establishments here forced us to really think about the origins of our food. We’d sit down for a snack at a bar and see the name of the farm that provided the basil in our pesto. We’d pop into a store for a bottle of wine and see photos of a burly, mustachioed Frenchman standing in the vineyard that sourced the booze in our hands. 

Slowly, quietly, we really started to care about this stuff. The cool thing about this area is that we’ve been able to find lots of other people who care too. The really really cool thing about this area is that there are numerous nonprofits situated within about 30 miles that help people make informed decisions about their food choices. One of my faves just happens to be Animal Welfare Approved. 

Animal Welfare Approved “audits, certifies and supports farmers raising their animals with the highest welfare standards, outdoors on pasture or range. Called a ‘badge of honor for farmers’ and the ‘gold standard,’ AWA has come to be the most highly regarded food label when it comes to animal welfare, pasture-based farming, and sustainability.” 

More than two dozen restaurants in the Chapelboro receive the Animal Welfare Approved label including my crushes Neal’s Deli and The Pig. You can be old school and search for their sticker in the window.  Or you can plan ahead and check out this super cool online search tool to find restaurants, markets, and stores within a specific zip code that serve up Animal Welfare Approved products. Since you can search any zip code in the USA, I’ve found this tool especially handy when traveling. Oh the joys of being an informed tourist! 

Just a little tip as you prepare to eat and drink your way through another celebration of our nation’s independence. Happy 4th!  

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