Photo by Kiersten Watkins
Over Easy is one of the few places that is providing healthier options for the community. One way they are becoming a healthier restaurant is getting food from a local source. Food from Over Easy comes from multiple different farms in Nebraska.

Farm-to-table is what most people think of when a restaurant gets food from a local farm.  For some people eating at farm-to-table restaurants, is just a healthier alternative, but to others it is a change in lifestyle. Farm-to-table is a term used to refer to different processes in the food chain from the farm to the consumer. It also refers to food that is produced at local farms.

“To me farm-to-table means that we give more back to the community, and not just because of the food we make,” owner of Over Easy Nick Bartholomew said. “The money we paid to buy our food goes straight to the local farmer who harvested it and then he could use it to get new equipment to make more food which he could sell to another local restaurant or to a market or store. The people who buy the food will then eat the food, of course. When we buy from local farms, everyone could potentially get what they needed.”

Restaurants that use locally produced food are beneficial for both the environment and the farm that the food comes from. When food comes from local farms, it doesn’t have to travel long distances in a truck. The farmer also gets a profit when the food is sold directly to a restaurant instead of in a market or store. Many farmers also like to know what happens to their produce after it’s sold. Not only does buying from local farms benefit just the farm, but it also benefits the restaurant buying the food. They get what they need and are helping others make healthier life choices.

“For me, farm-to-table means getting organic foods from local farms,” sophomore Michelle Miller said. “I think that farm-to-table foods are more enjoyable and they provide more nutrients. Working at Over Easy has made me want to eat healthier and I choose to eat more organic foods instead of fast food. I’ve even gotten some of my friends to eat fresh produce instead of snack foods.”

Photo by Kiersten Watkins

There are many different reasons for people to change their diet or decide to eat healthier, a few reasons would be to get in shape or to eat organic foods avoid health problems. Lots of people have switched to healthier diets to fit their lifestyle. Everyone thinks that people choose to change their diet because it helps them shed those extra pounds but an article called 60% of People Change Their Eating Habits for This Reason by Angela Horn at Care2, a social networking website, says otherwise.

“Aside from those on the keto diet—who were after a number on a scale— the top motivator for going on diet was in fact health-related,” Horn said. “Men and women practiced these diets at roughly equal rates, albeit for slightly different reasons. Women were more inclined to make changes to feel healthier overall, while guys were only prompted into action when faced with a specific health concern.”

Farm-to-table restaurants are trying to encourage healthier eating habits in order to help the people in the community. Over Easy is one of the many places trying to inspire more people to start eating organic foods.