On July 1, Whole Foods Market Highlands Ranch hosted their inaugural Farmers and Food Artisans Road Tour.

This was the second stop on the Road Tour, a summer-long series of events where food producers from communities in Colorado, New Mexico and Kansas are hitting the road to showcase their products at lively food fairs in Whole Foods Market store parking lots to demonstrate the local flare, community togetherness, diversity and quality of seasonal and local foods.

Whole Foods Market hosted more than 25 local farmers and food artisans including local farmers such as Full Circle Farms and High Country Orchards, and local food artisans Grumpy's BBQ and MouCo Cheese Company. Live jazz music was provided by Jason Emory and band, and there were kid's activities, included carnivals games and face painting.

Eating locally grown foods has never been more important. On average, produce currently travels 1,500 miles before it reaches a dinner table. In contrast, "local" at Whole Foods Market means products that have traveled less than seven hours to reach the store.

Buying local also provides numerous benefits to the community including reducing the distance from farm to plate and thereby reducing the negative environmental impact of transportation, supporting local jobs and keeping money in the community, and supporting responsible land development and preserves open spaces.

Stay tuned for future events at Whole Foods Market Highlands Ranch which showcase the local farmers and food artisans from our community. And keep an eye out for the next stops on the road tour throughout the summer - next stop, Boulder on Sunday, July 8.

For more information, visit http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com.