Because we at GreenGuideNH.com never cease working to bring you more information, readers, this weekend we made a special trip to The Farmers Diner in Quechee, Vt., purely for research purposes. If you haven't been there, we very seriously recommend it.

You see, this really is a farmer's diner -- the restaurant's goal is to serve food from local farmers and small-scale producers. Its menu is a local who's who, including Cabot Creamery, Vermont Butter and Cheese, Harpoon Sodas and even New Hampshire's own Boggy Meadow Farm cheese company.

According to New Hampshire Made, the statewide organization whose mission is to promote New Hampshire-made products and services:
1. Going local supports the local economy and family farms.
2. You can enjoy foods that are in season, at their freshest and most nutritious.
3. Transporting food products over long distances is harder on the environment.
4. It brings you closer to the people who grow and produce your food.
5. It contributes to the preservation of open space and farmland in your region.

Organic foods are grown according to certain production standards, which include prohibiting the use of pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, sewage sludge, genetically modified organisms or ionizing radiation. Livestock and animals that produce dairy and eggs are raised without the routine use of growth hormones and antibiotics.

Organic production is federally regulated in the United States, and converting land to organic status is a three-year process.