Over a life time, measured decisions about what you eat can and does influence how you feel. Speaking from experience, a move to the country has changed how I shop and how much of that delicious, convenient fast food I now miss out on, and honestly, it's taken me about two years to get over thinking I want to eat McDonalds, and I was never a big fan of them, but for some reason, moving into the country, and then visiting local towns which had the good old Mcdonalds stores made me want to eat it.
So I'd indulge, having a cheeseburger, chippies and sometimes a soft serve. I'd call it my 'city treat' until one day, when travelling to the big smoke for a visit to the local wholesale markets, I had a McDonalds breakfast meal, in a hurry because I'd left at 3am in the morning. I can't remember my thoughts that day, or why in particular, but I couldn't eat the meal and felt I'd lost all desire to have that 'city treat'.
How do you feel after you've eaten food that you know, without a doubt is not going to go nourish you?
Do you ever stop and think why you make the food buying decisions you do? For me, the past, it's been convenience. I've been too busy, too distracted, to thoughtless in getting what really is often 'empty calories' thinking I'd have something better later.
Now, after becoming a farmer, being in a position where I must learn how to grow food organically, because that's the journey I've chosen, it's made me look at food in a totally different light and before eating something these days, I'm full of suspicion and analytical over what's actually going into something packaged.
I've learnt now that the importance of good soil is the ultimate secret of good quality produce. It sounds too simple to be true, but getting that soil to that perfect point of balance is an artform ,and although you can achieve it one year, maybe too, great respect is needed in keeping the soil integrity, so I can produce quality produce, which in turn creates healthy human beings.