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A new word has quietly slipped into the food system to nudge along the buying local movement. Locavores, coined by four San Francisco women in 2005, was the 2007 word of the year for the Oxford American Dictionary, and brings the concepts of eating and ecology to another level.

A locavore tries to only eat food grown or produced locally. What "local" means is up for interpretation, but a 100 mile radius around where you live has become the standard. With dozens of seasonal farmers markets opening in May, this is a good time to find and buy local produce.

"Many shoppers living within a 1 to 2 mile radius are walking to the Fremont Centerville market to save gas money," says market manager Bruce Young, "and in turn are knowingly or unknowingly sustaining the local family farms and the environment." They come looking for what's in season and have a thirst for good quality, he says.

Becoming a member of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is a convenient way to fulfill a locavore's needs to buy locally and seasonally. Gail Wadsworth, founder of Eat Outside the Box CSA, works with Knoll Farms and Frog Hollow Farm in Brentwood, and gathers local food items such as Brentwood Olive Oil and organic pistachios to fill boxes to deliver to customers in the Walnut Creek, Concord, Danville and Lafayette area (more info at www.localharvest.org).

"The publication of 'The Omnivore's

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Dilemma' by Michael Pollan was a huge motivator for people to get in touch with me," Wadsworth says, "and it caused a brief surge in the CSA." Many of those people have continued, and she receives another 5 to 10 e-mails a day with queries. It helps for members to meet the farmers, she says, and she sees fewer turnovers when people have that opportunity.

The locavore movement emerges as a compelling concept, but actually following all the guidelines presents its challenges. John Silveria, director of Pacific Coast Farmers' Market Association and its almost 50 farmers market in the San Francisco Bay Area, says he's absolutely aware of customers wanting to buy local produce. "We're positioning the farmers to be heroes," he says, "by recognizing them as our local food source."

Dilemmas arise when it's time to add a pinch of salt to the grass-fed beef from Highland Hills Farm near Vacaville or eggs from Eatwell Farm near Davis. How about the morning cup of coffee or tea and tropical fruits such as pineapple, bananas and mangoes that do not grow locally? Desert areas in California's Coachella and Imperial valleys produce 95 percent of the nation's dates, another commodity grown or produced far from the Bay Area locavores' 100-mile-radius limit.

Some locavores may give up that morning cup of coffee completely or opt to buy only from coffee shops that support fair trade. They may give up salt completely and use fresh herbs for seasoning. Here are some guidelines to consider, from www.locavores.com, a Bay Area site.

  • If not locally produced, then organic. This is one of the most readily available alternatives in the market, and making this choice protects the environment and your body from harsh chemicals and hormones.

  • If not organic, then family farm. Supporting family farms helps to keep food processing decisions out of the hands of corporate conglomeration.

  • If not family farm, then local business. Basics such as coffee and bread make buying local difficult. Try a local coffee shop or bakery to keep your food dollar close to home.

  • If not local business, then terroir. Terroir means "taste of the Earth." Purchase foods famous for the region they are grown in and support the agriculture that produces your favorite nonlocal foods, such as Brie from Brie, France, or Parmigiano-Reggiano from Parma, Italy.

  • Hit the farmers market before the supermarket. Plan your meal around local ingredients you find at the market.

  • Branch out. Maybe your usual food repertoire could use some fresh ideas. The farmers market provides a perfect chance to try a new ingredient when it's in season, and lets you talk to its grower to find out the best way to prepare your new food. Flirt with your food producer!

  • Feed the freezer. Can't cook every night? Worried about your fresh produce going bad? Make lasagna with local tomatoes or a soup packed with fresh veggies and freeze it!

  • Go out! Many Bay Area restaurants emphasize local foods in their dishes. Ask around; you might be surprised how many options you find that serve up local flavor.

    Jessica Prentice, one of the founding members of the locavore group and author of "Full Moon Feast: Food and the Hunger for Connection," guides the more inquisitive to www.wisefoodways.com for more links and information. Check it out!

    Barbara Kobsar works at farmers markets and lives in Walnut Creek. E-mail her at Cotkitchen@aol.com.

    BUY LOCAL GUIDE
    The Bay Area Local Food Guide's second edition will be rolled out at a release party 4:30-8:30 p.m. June 26 at Fort Mason. It's to celebrate the connection between farmers, vintners, restaurants, hospitals, universities, farmers markets and retailers with local food. CAFF (Community Alliance with Family Farmers) spearheaded the project, which covers the nine Bay Area counties. Check out CAFF and find locally available food sources at www.buylocalca.org. To buy tickets to the event, go to www.brownpapertickets.com/event/34995.

    Local meditations
    It seems relatively easy for me to be a "true" locavore living here in the Bay Area, choosing fresh produce arriving directly from the farm to the farmers markets and buying locally made products. I'm not ready to give up my coffee, chocolate or black pepper, but the short journey my fresh produce makes to market gives me some peace of mind.
    To tell you the truth, I'm happy to know the produce I buy is grown in California. The apples from Rainbow Orchard in Apple Hill (Camino) travel a few extra miles, and the avocados from Brokaw farm in Ventura County over three times the distance allowed by a true locavore, but still local enough for this "level-headed" locavore.
    Nicole Howard, an avid shopper I met at the Walnut Creek farmers market, became a locavore (or close to one) a few years ago after reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and learning more about food politics. No bananas or tropical fruits on Howard's menu, but black tea is still an indulgence. "I justify using black pepper because a little goes a long way," she says.
    Howard does not take kindly to the idea that locavores are conjuring up elitist status. "Everyone used to grow a garden," she says, "and we're just coming full circle."
    -- Barbara Kobsar