There is currently no legal definition of the term "local" in food labelling legislation. But the Food Law Practice Guidance states local and localised should mean: "Sales within the supplying establishment's own county plus the greater of either the neighbouring county or counties or 30 miles/50km from the boundary of the supplying establishment's county." A survey by Local Government Regulation Inspectors in 2011 found that nearly 1/5 of all claims for being 'local' on the label were false and a further 14% unverifiable. More..

Local sourcing contributes to the regeneration of rural economies - the maintenance of high and stable levels of economic growth and employment being a key objective of sustainable development. Public sector bodies should therefore consider the potential for local sourcing by ensuring that their contracts do not contain provisions, which stand in the way of local and UK suppliers. Guide to Procuring Local Produce

Travelling all these miles costs a lot in terms of energy, particularly fossil fuels. EU figures calculate that road transport of food is about 400 billion tonne-kilometres.The use of energy for the transport and handling of food is estimated to account for 16-21% of the UK's total energy bill. Food miles are only part of the fossil fuel costs of food production in the world food chain. On-farm production represents 17%, while processing accounts for 26%, distribution for 9%, transportation for 11%, restaurants for 15% and home preparation about 23%.

Oil is the most important energy source, being crucial in just about every stage of food production, from nitrogen (and phosphate) fertilsers, fuels, machinery, pesticides, drying, seeds (inputs required to produce them), before being put on the road or into the air to travel those great distances. This dependence on oil is not sustainable. Oil is a finite resource. Oil supplies will peak around 2010 and could be exhausted by 2040. For more see Energy Efficiency.

Wholesome Food Association is local symbol scheme that is a low-cost,  grassroots alternative to organic certification for  people in the UK who are  growing or producing food for sale in  their local region.