I’ve loved garlic ever since my best buddy in college, Linda, introduced me to the fresh stuff in the late 1970s. She came from a well-to-do family of Italian heritage. She loved lots of fresh garlic and would double or triple any recipe’s allotment. My family was lower-middle class blue-collar from the mining communities of Arizona. The only garlic we ever had was in the form of garlic salt, and occasionally, garlic powder. My father didn’t care for any herb or spice he could actually taste beyond (non-herb or spice) peppers and chilies so that my mother, faithful homemaker she was, kept the cooking on our table bland. I wanted to emulate Linda and her family and move as far away from my family’s cookbook as I had from my hometown. From that humble introduction to garlic and subsequent reading of all the cookbooks I could get my hands on, I eventually became something of a foodie, although nowadays I try to eat as much locally or organically produced foods – preferably both – as I can manage.
Michael Pollan influenced my thinking most recently – and impacted my buying, cooking and eating habits – as has Bill McKibben, Eric Schlosser and Morgan Spurlock. I’m trying to eat more sustainably. So imagine my chagrin a couple of months ago when I saw the “country of origin” sign at my local cool and hip food store said the fresh garlic was from Argentina. Argentina? I thought I had cast aside Argentinean products when I quit buying imported hot-house flowers. Not that I don’t like Argentina, but it’s a lot of travel miles away from Oregon – and Western Oregon is a fertile place, especially the Willamette Valley, where I live. So why can’t I have local garlic?
Turns out there are a few reasons why and that my question isn’t fresh. And the answers are invariably complicated.
Most fresh garlic comes from China — it’s a huge continent with a varied and regional growing season as well as the cheap labor we all know about. Some of the garlic is organic; my local market – New Seasons – would rather buy organic from Argentina than China for reasons of quality control. They rotate organic garlic suppliers according to season and move from southern countries and states to northern – Argentina, Mexico, California and Oregon – to follow the season cycle. Nearly all processed garlic comes from China – that includes dehydrated, jarred, powdered, etc. Even the garlic center of America – Gilroy, California – can now only claim to be the largest garlic processor in the USA.
Things changed on the scene about 10-15 years ago when California garlic and growers suffered blights caused by large-field monoculture and China came on the scene with cheap garlic. A very recent ruling (May 2009) turned around the illegal-dumping charge that had been placed on China a few years ago, so consumers can expect more, not less, cheaper Chinese garlic on their tables in the coming months and years. If you want organic USA garlic you’ll have to wait for seasonal farmers markets, or grow your own.
Garlic is a slow-growing plant. The Nootka Rose variety my husband planted a few months ago takes 98 days or thereabouts to mature. That is not instant gratification. He planted five plants. We use about a head of garlic every week or two. I haven’t done the math but expect that our meager harvest will last about a month or two, especially if the garlic is cured by the time our home grown tomatoes peak and fresh salsa is on the table most every night. The fall planting, which might be a lot larger, will happen in September.
It’s a conundrum. Garlic has become such an important cooking ingredient it seems impossible to eliminate it from my diet. How can I limit my consumption to summer only like the fresh Oregon strawberries I’ve come to adore?
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Sources and resources
Kim O’Donnel in the Washington Post, July 10, 2006; “The Irony of Organic Garlic From China.”
Harry Cline in the Western Farm Press, June 7, 2007; “Quality, flavor keeping California garlic competitive.”
New Seasons Market
Garlic, growing, history and more
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Cross-posted to The Clade
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interesting post, must say I’m not sure where my garlic comes from, though like you I do try to buy local food as much as possible.
There’s something nice about seasonal foods, but I guess it would be difficult to have no garlic at all over half the year….
Yes, I try to buy organic and local too……my garlic, though, comes from Spain. I have an amazing salsa recipe…….rough chopped tomatoes (about six smallish), rough chopped avocado (one), half a diced red onion, one biggish green chilli, thinly sliced, fresh coriander (good handful) diced, big slug of olive oil (so everything is coated) and the juice of one lemon. Leave out at room temp for 20 mins before serving. We have this with fish two or so times a week and I adore it. You can substitute lime for the lemon.
@ Crafty green poet:
Exactly!
@ jo:
Oooh. Keeper recipe, Jo. It sounds delicious.
Garlic keeps pretty well for 4-5 months. A Gilroy farm (whose name is escaping me) would sell garlic at the Concord farmers’ market for quite a while. Check with folks at your favorite markets for advice.
One info source: http://cecalaveras.ucdavis.edu/garlic.htm
And there is something to be said for balance. There’s nothing wrong with supporting farmers far away in addition to those close to you. Transportation and middle-men may throw it out of whack a bit, but if even 50% of everyone’s consumption were local, that would be a huge change. Kinda important to show people that you don’t have to give up things you hold dear but rather choose wisely.
@ Jason Riedy:
I imagine it was Christopher Farms. He’s one of the sources in the Farmer link & seems like the largest Gilroy producer left. (I commented with a link to him on The Clade posting.)
Yes on balance. (And the reminder!) And thanks for the link — I’ll check it out.
@ Jason Riedy:
Excellent link! Thank you.