Living Food: Think local first

If there's one thing that would make customers of neighborhood farmers markets happy in the cooler months, it would be a steady growth in the supply of locally produced foods. Enter -- or not -- the chum salmon.

As the Seattle P-I reported last week, some local fishermen, who run small gillnetting operations, are finding it hard to keep up with the demand from weekend farmers markets. Part of the problem is that the state Department of Fish and Wildlife has restricted the number of days for catching the fish in Puget Sound waters closest to Seattle. Rather stunningly, no fishing is allowed on Thursdays and Fridays, the best days for putting fresh foods before the market shoppers.

State officials obviously have to manage catch levels responsibly. And officials told the P-I's Jennifer Langston that they are caught between different fishing groups' conflicting wishes, trying to balance for the overall good of an industry that includes some larger commercial operations aimed at more distant markets.

But it ought to be clear that the state's biggest interest, both economically and environmentally, lies with emphasizing local foods from local businesses for local residents. That creates a cycle of jobs. And it perfectly fits the growing awareness of the advantages of reducing the energy costs involved in shipping foods for long distances.

A group of small fishing operators has gone to court. The bigger hope is that state policymakers will join the public in thinking locally about food.