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I feel for Tampa diners. I'm sure this is also happening elsewhere, but I'm also dubious that it's everywhere.
I've spent a decent amount of time in the foodservice industry in Pittsburgh and I'd say most, if not all, of our F2T restaurants are indeed locally sourcing most all their ingredients, especially proteins and veggies. Fruit can be tough up here.
I feel for Tampa diners. I'm sure this is also happening elsewhere, but I'm also dubious that it's everywhere.
I've spent a decent amount of time in the foodservice industry in Pittsburgh and I'd say most, if not all, of our F2T restaurants are indeed locally sourcing most all their ingredients, especially proteins and veggies. Fruit can be tough up here.
Actually, I found this article on a thread produced by a group of CHICAGO foodies that started ELEVEN years ago:
Resellers at farmer's markets is old news. When you see cantaloupes at a Cincinnati farmer's market in June, you know something's up.
As for me, I have no issues with resellers as long as 1) they disclose it and 2) their produce is priced appropriately.
At Cleveland's West Side Market, nearly all their vendors are resellers. When you head down there, you can get some great deals and quickly, you learn which vendors sell good stuff and which sell the worst stuff.
At Detroit's Eastern Market, they have a mix of resellers and farmers in the mix. However, they require disclosure and you get whatever you are willing to pay for. I consider that set up to be the best.
Mislabeling is not limited to farmers' markets. The Whole Foods in Evanston, IL (Chicago) is notorious for labeling Washington apples as "local" even when Michigan apples are in season.
I think that it is particularly ballsy for a newspaper reporter to go and investigate claims from the menus of many local restaurants.
Personally, I think that you could probably do a similar investigation in most cities - including Pittsburgh - and come up with similar results.
The reason I made that claim about Pittsburgh is because I personally know most of the F2T chefs and the local producers they buy from. So I'm pretty confident most of the F2T restos around here are as advertised.
We live in St Pete, and this great series really got my attention, as we shop in many of those markets. Or rather, we USED to shop in them, LOL! Now I buy organic produce only from Trader Joe's, Publix, and a local place called Rollin Oats that carries only organic produce. It's great to have such a good selection of produce stores nearby, since I won't buy it in the Saturday markets any more. I think this sort of thing goes on everywhere, but it was still shocking to hear how easily the vendors will lie right to your face when you ask them questions about their food. They might as well be selling real estate.
I agree, it was ballsy of the paper to do that series on our local vendors and restaurants. Normally they have a lot of fluff pieces in that paper, mostly "articles" that are just de facto advertisements for real estate or restaurants, but every now and then they pull out the Pulitzer prize caliber stuff. Then they go back to the fluff :[
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