I am generally quite conscious of making choices at the grocery store based on food miles. I live in Michigan, and I want my food to travel as short a distance as possible before reaching my table. So salmon steaks from Canada win over filets from Costa Rica. Michigan apples over Washington. Broccoli from the US over asparagus from Argentina. So you can imagine my dismay when I was cutting up the oranges yesterday and saw the label: South Africa. With all the Florida orange commercials out there, I never considered that we were importing navel oranges from South Africa.

These were literally the last item on my list. I was ready for lunch, my phone had started ringing, and I needed to get home in time to pick up Luke from Kindergarten. I didn’t check the label. Lesson learned.

For the record, the oranges were delicious. But how much did the jet fuel cost to fly them here? Surely the price I paid - 8 for $2.00 - was not enough.

Stephanie is a work-at-home mom living in West Michigan with her husband Dan and 2 boys. While she doesn't spend her days hiking the backcountry she has found navigating suburban-life can be just as tiring. Call her a soccer-mom and she'll kick your ass.
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