On February 18, 2009, Lori Martin began a new and innovative diet – the 100-mile diet. For 100 days, Martin and a small group of friends consumed food grown and prepared within a 100-mile radius of her home just north of Elmira, ON – ingredients included.
The idea began at a potluck dinner of the St. Jacobs Mennonite Food & Faith group, a young adult group Martin participates in. One member had just finished reading The 100-Mile Diet, written by Alisa Smith and J.B. MacKinnon, and the rest of the group decided to take on the challenge. The group scouted their grocery stores and farmer’s market for local food, and Martin hosted events such as a canning bee and Food & Faith Sausage-Making Party to fill up the freezer. She learned to make her own pasta, bread, crackers and granola bars, and even after 100 days, continues to enjoy this simple, wholesome cooking. Martin admits the 100-mile diet is a test in self-discipline, but the rewards – both physical and spiritual – are why she and her husband are making this diet a lifestyle. Read more in an article she wrote for the St. Jacobs Mennonite Church newsletter.