You’ve read about sustainable food; you’re ready to make a change, but what do you do? Below are different guides and resources to help you shop sustainably.

To begin with, you can find sustainable resources in your area right now by using Sustainable Table's Eat Well Guide...

If you shop in a large, chain supermarket and prefer not to change where you buy food, look to see if any of the fruits and vegetables sold in your store are organic or from local farms. If signs aren't posted, talk with the store manager and ask him or her to start labeling the produce section. Get your friends to ask the same questions. Print out our I Care Where notecard to give to store managers.

Ask the butcher or manager of the meat department if any of the meats sold are organic, sustainably raised and if they are from local farms. If the answer is “no”, ask them to start selling the kind of meat you are looking for.

If you feel your supermarket is not selling the type of food you want, and is unwilling to stock it, you can always search out other stores. Many areas have natural or health food stores that sell a variety of organic and sustainably-raised food. If you decide to switch to another store, let the manager of your former supermarket know. Stores work on very slim profit margins and will generally listen to what customers want.

Questions To Ask
Visit our Questions to Ask page to find out what questions you should be asking your local farmer, butcher, store manager and/or waiter.  We even provide the answers so you know what you should be listening for!  And to make it even easier, you can either print out the questions to take with you shopping, or you can download them onto your iPod.

Sustainable Dictionary
You might want to briefly look through our Sustainable Dictionary to get a general overview of terms used in the sustainable world. Here we list common terms and labels that you'll find on sustainable food packaging – find out what's worth looking for and what's simply a term used to market a product.

Shopping Guides
From the Eat Well Guide, an online national directory of sustainably-raised meat, to local, regional shopping directories, find out where you can buy the kind of food you want to eat.

Farmers Markets
Farmers markets have sprung up all over the country – from the heart of New York City to Main Street in small towns. Find out more about them and how to locate one close to you.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
With CSA, a member buys a portion of a farmer’s crop before it’s planted, and receives a share of the harvest all season long. CSA programs have become very popular, especially in larger cities. Learn more about them and how you can become part of this exciting new movement.

Food Cooperatives
Co-ops are volunteer organizations owned and controlled by members to provide low cost, healthy food primarily to members of the co-op, though some also sell to the public.

Other Sustainable Sources
Sustainable food is not just found in supermarkets – find out where else it is being sold.

Eat Seasonal
An important part of being sustainable is buying vegetables and fruits, and even meats, when they’re in season.  Visit our Eat Seasonal page to find out what foods are in season in your area.