Did you know that many farmers markets take food stamps?
Many of the markets here in the Atlanta area have been taking food stamps for years, and it looks like markets other cities are doing the same. The photo above is from the West Seattle Farmers Market, which also accepts food stamps.
Organic Nation produced a quickie video highlighting a Chicago farmers market that’s now accepting food stamps:
We’ve seen that less access to fresh food contributes to higher obesity rates, and it’s poorer consumers that tend to lack this access. Not only do farmers markets add an option for fresh, often organic local produce, the prices are often very competitive. Folks can stretch those food dollars while stocking up on healthy eats for themselves and their families.
Times are tough, and farmers markets aren’t immune to the effects of the economic downturn. By taking food stamps, they’re able to broaden their customer base, which hopefully translates to better sales for the farmers.
This trend feels like a win for everyone!
Do any local farmers markets by you accept food stamps? I’d love to get a list going in the comments!
h/t: Organic Nation
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by chasbot
Although I’d been planning on working a normal day at the farm yesterday, at the last minute I got the day off for the holiday.
Honestly, I didn’t quite know what to do with myself. A Monday without harvesting sunflower shoots and cherry tomatoes? A Monday spent doing something other than shoveling 400 pounds of soil for planting microgreens?
Eventually the reality of a day off set in, and my husband and I decided to make a Labor Day dinner. One of the vegan side dishes we whipped up was so easy and delicious that I needed to share it: Grilled Corn with Chipotle Coconut Butter.
Here’s the recipe:
Heat a charcoal or gas grill to medium-high heat and put the rack about four inches from the heat source. Grill the corn, turning occasionally, for 10-20 minutes, or until some of the kernels char a bit.
Remove the corn from the grill and smear with coconut butter. Sprinkle with ground chipotle and sea salt. Serve hot.
If you don’t feel like grilling, you can also boil the corn in a large pot of water until crisp-tender (about 2 minutes) or roast it for 10-20 minutes in a 500 degree F oven. Then proceed to add coconut butter, chipotle, and salt.
Image courtesy roboppy of via a Creative Commons license.
Black beans, as with other dark foods, contain minerals important for our blood, such as iron. Chromium is also said to be rich in dark foods. And we all know legumes have a good amount of protein in them. As a result of these factors, one can get most of the nutrients one needs to grow strong bones and teeth from black beans (as well as some other dark beans). This is especially important for children, of course.
I imagine this is one reason why one of our Facebook fans recently suggested black bean soup as a good mid-week dinner.
If you’ve just arrived home from an ice skating, or a cold soccer game, or simply walking home from a wet and cold night, there is nothing like a hot pot of beans to come home to. It is already getting cold again here in Poland, and we are thinking about cooking some bean soups again soon.
Garlic is a good way to fight of parasites and keep healthy, but garlic can be overused. And in cold places, there are few parasites, so the need to fight them off is less important. Luckily, there are other options to jazz up your black bean soup if you have been using a little too much garlic.
Try some leeks or scallions or both. They are not as intense as garlic and a bit easier for the body to handle.
Black Bean SoupOne good way to cook black beans is to pressure cook them. However, if you do not have a pressure cooker, it is best to soak black beans overnight and then, early in the morning, rinse and drain and prepare the beans to cook. You can also sprout them for a day after soaking them in order to break down the proteins for better assimilation. This is what I always do.
Ideally, it is wonderful to start any soup with fresh, spicy herbs of the season. Leeks, onions, or bright orange turmeric sautéed in some organic butter or oil are nice options. Adding in fresh herbs, if possible, at the beginning and later, at the very end of the cooking, adds some nice, fresh, green aromatics. Poblano peppers are also really good, as they add spice and flavor without the extreme heat of other peppers. I add some salt to the pot prior to cooking as well.
Pressure cook or cook in a revere ware pot or similar style pot to preserve integrity of the food and avoid unwanted leaching.
After cooking, serve in another dish with salt or Spike to taste and green garnishes, and perhaps with chopped peppers. Also, I add the oil after the food has cooled down a bit so as not to disturb the omegas too much.
Serve with a crisp green salad. Add walnuts and a squirt of lime on both the salad and the beans for a nice last touch.
For some other black bean recipes, Rachel Fox wrote about black bean quesadillas and black bean breakfast burritos not long ago, and I’ve written about vegan black bean burgers and black beans with millet in the past. I actually like them plain and simple with just a bit of olive oil and salt from time to time as well. You can also grab some organic refried black beans in a can for a quick meal if you don’t have time to make something up.
Any other tips for this black bean soup recipe above or any other favorite ways to eat black beans?
Photo Credit: Kaptain Kobold via flickr
Seattle-based Choice Organic Teas was the first exclusively organic tea crafter in the United States and the first in the country to introduce Fair Trade Certified teas. Now, they’re introducing a new line of teas: Jane Goodall “Good for All.” They’re one of a few companies selected to carry these teas after the Jane Goodall Institute determined that their philosophy blended with the Institute’s.
To celebrate the launch of the new line, Choice Organic Teas is giving a prize pack away!
The wonderful folks at Choice Organic Teas are generously offering one box of each new Choice Organic Teas variety including: Oothu Garden Green, Wild Forest Black, Decaffeinated English Breakfast, Rooibos Superfruit and Yerba Maté Mint to one lucky Eat Drink Better reader!
There are a few different ways that you can enter:
You can do one of these things, a few, or all of them! Each one gets your “name in the hat” for an additional entry. Just remember to let us know in the comments, so we can be sure to count all of your entries! We’re closing comments on this entry on September 12th and will announce the winner on the 13th, so hurry and get your entries in!
A brand of Granum, Inc. of Seattle, CHOICE ORGANIC TEAS is the leading purveyor of exclusively organic teas, the first company to introduce certified organic and Fair Trade Certified™ teas in the U.S. and the first tea company to earn Non-GMO Project Verification. As North America’s #1 selling exclusively certified organic tea line, CHOICE ORGANIC TEAS has promoted the growth and development of organic agriculture in tea estates worldwide and offers more than 75 varieties of teas and herbal infusions available in teabags, tea pyramids, and loose leaf. Visit www.choiceorganicteas.com for more information.
Last week I started to notice some peculiar eating behaviors. One of my girlfriends told me that she’d picked up an acorn squash from the supermarket. A neighbor told me he was making an apple pie for Labor Day. And then my husband told me he was craving pumpkin bread pudding.
Normally I could chalk up this desire for quintessential fall produce to the unseasonably crisp weather we’re having in Missouri right now. But even before the cold front moved in, a few local chefs started asking the farm whether we had any winter squash for sale.
With the kids back in school, Halloween candy on display at the supermarket, and the first official day of fall just a little more than two weeks away, it’s easy to get confused about seasonal eating.
And it turns out that even farm-to-table restaurants are not immune to seasonal eating confusion. September has arrived and chefs are ready to display their fall menus.
Meanwhile, at the farm, we just planted a whole new crop of summer squash.
Extreme heat and humidity makes for difficult growing conditions in July and August here in Missouri. Milder temperatures in September and October makes this an optimal time to grow, well, just about everything. We’ll be selling heirloom tomatoes, pattypan squash, and cucumbers through October.
Don’t get me wrong – we’re growing typical fall produce like Brussels sprouts, Swiss chard, kale, and beets now too. All I’m saying is that we still have weeks of summer produce ahead of us.
So why start eating winter foods now, in early September, when you’ll be practically living off the stuff November through March? Trust me, there will be plenty of time to broaden your repertoire of winter squash and root vegetable recipes.
The best way to eat seasonably is to rely on your local farmers market, community garden, or CSA (community supported agriculture coalition) for produce – not the grocery store.
Image courtesy of NancyCoop via a Creative Commons license.
We do our very best to touch on as much of the health- and environment-related news that we can from across the web, but there are always stories we don’t get to. Here’s a quick roundup of food news from the last week or so that we didn’t hit on:
What were your favorite food-related stories from this week?
The federal government is giving out $1 million in grants for school gardens. As part of The People’s Garden School Pilot Program, schools or other public and not-for-profit organizations which meet certain criteria will receive money to plan and develop a garden and to create lesson plans and assess the learning outcomes associated with the garden.
Why Have a School Garden?A school garden can be used to teach nutrition, ecology, biology, math, and economics. Many kids don’t know where their food comes from. We learned on Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution that a lot of first-graders can’t even identify various fruits and vegetables. A garden also gets kids out in the fresh air.
The produce from one of The People’s Gardens may be used for school food, student households, local food banks, or senior center nutrition programs.
One of the purposes of the program is to identify successful school gardens and then build a curriculum which can be sent to interested schools for starting their own gardens.
Qualifying for The People’s Garden grantsIn order for a school to qualify for The People’s Garden grants, at least 50% of the students must be eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program.
The school garden can be run by any of a number of non-profit groups, including but not limited to the school itself, another school (for instance, a group of high school students run a garden at a local elementary school), a church group, or the local garden club. The deadline for application is 08 Nov 2010.
More information and resourcesThe People’s Garden grant applications.
The People’s Garden press release.
Resources for setting up and running a school garden (also in PDF format).
A teaching toolkit for setting up and running a school garden (only in PDF).
Image by Pink Sherbet Photography, used with a Creative Commons license.
We’re in the midst of the 60 day comment period now, which means now is the time to get heard.
I received an email alert this week urging us to sign a petition which the folks behind Fresh: The Movie will be hand delivering to the FDA on September 19th.
Here’s the gist of the email:
The health impact of eating genetically modified fish are entirely unknown. Do you want to be the guinea pig?
Even if you personally choose not to risk your health by eating GE salmon, you still have a huge problem. Each year millions of farmed salmon escape from open-water net pens, throwing off entire ecosystems and economies as they dominate already fragile wild salmon habitats. Research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences notes that a release of just 60 GE salmon into a wild population of 60,000 could lead to the extinction of the wild population in less than 40 fish generations.
Proponents of the new GM fish argue that it grows faster and will help feed more people.
We’ve already seen strong evidence of GM crops growing in the wild. If this frankenfish is approved, how long before wild salmon species are breeding with this new GM variety?
Want to get heard? You can sign the petition urging the FDA not to approve AquAdvantage salmon.
So, what do you guys think? Is AquAdvantage salmon a threat to health and biodiversity? Or do you think the potential benefits to food production outweigh these risks?
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by josephwuorigami
Another food recall has struck our grocery store shelves. The USDA has recalled “Marketside Grab and Go” sandwiches produced by Zemco Industries. According to the USDA approximately 380,000 pounds of the deli products is being recalled due to possible contamination with Listeria Monocytogenes.
On August 23, 2010 the USDA recalled the following Marketside Grab and Go sandwiches:
The use by dates of these foods range from August 20-September 10, 2010. Walmart was the only recipient of these deli sandwiches. For more information on the specifics of the recalled products visit the USDA website. CNN reports the Listeria was discovered during an inspection in Georgia. Walmart has encouraged those who purchased the sandwiches to return them for a refund.
About Listeria ContaminationListeria monocytogenes originates in the intestines of humans and animals, milk, soil and leaf vegetables. Common foods it grows on are deli meats, sausages, soft cheeses, and unpasteurized milk products. The alarming fact about listeria is it thrives at refrigerator temperatures. The danger zone for all other bacteria is between 40-140 degrees Fahrenheit. Listeria can survive at colder temperatures.
Symptoms of listeria contamination are similar to other food borne illnesses: fever, chill, headache, stomach cramps, nausea and diarrhea. Symptoms could take up to three weeks to surface. By the time three weeks has passed, it is easy to forget what you’ve eaten for lunch!
Those most at risk for this type of contamination are people with weakened immune systems (ill, elderly, infant) and pregnant women. Contracting listeria during a pregnancy could lead to complications with pregnancy and miscarriage.
Recalls and the Food SystemThis recall makes me think about a few things. Many lower income individuals shop at Walmart for food. Typically people who are lower income have unforgiving work schedules or multiple children or unfortunate living situations. What if a low income pregnant mother, busy with two jobs supporting her family, buys the convenience sandwich? Working as a community dietitian I know this is happening.
Sometimes I feel like our society is designed for situations like this. I, the dietitian from small town suburbia, know enough about food and nutrition to purchase (more expensive) local, fresh, whole food. I create time in my day to cook full meals and pack lunches. My living circumstances allow this. Why can’t we all have enough time to care about the food we eat? It doesn’t seem fair that we all don’t have equal access to (and education about) healthy food.
Your thoughts?
Image credit: Flickr Creative Commons user accidental hedonist
She knew this was going to be difficult going into it, but just how difficult didn’t become clear until she was a couple of days into her experiment.
When she revealed the big stumbling block that she encountered, I was pretty shocked. According to Dávila:
For the past 10 years Monsanto has bought up seed companies around the globe. They now own a majority of the seed lines in America, including a large percentage of organic seeds. For everyday purposes, a Monsanto seed that is grown organically is still organic, but in my attempt to avoid Monsanto, I was left without any easy way of knowing what foods fit my experiment.
Dávila recommends buying produce from local farmers that you know and lists a few organic brands that don’t use Monsanto’s seeds. She’s also got some great steps to start minimizing our reliance on Monsanto’s crops in our day to day.
Wand to learn more about how she fared in her Monsanto-free month and what she learned? Check out the article in Yes Magazine.
What do you guys think about her experiment? Do you think you could go a month without Monsanto?
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by ciordia
In the midst of your busy world – getting the kids to school, keeping the house organized, making sure your job and finances are secure – wouldn’t you like to take a Mediterranean vacation? Well, financially speaking most of us probably could not afford a luxury like that.
Maybe we could look at this from a different viewpoint. How about a Mediterranean vacation for your body? Medical researchers have long been intrigued by the continuing good health and longevity of people living in the Mediterranean coastal region. These people exude such continuing good health and durability that the medical and nutritional communities were very intrigued. They wondered just why there could be such a disparity health wise between those living in that region and those living in other parts of the world.
They found these people live basically on diets consisting of whole foods and monosaturated fats such as olive oils. This type of eating together with regular physical activity adds up to a potently powerful way of living that almost insures a long life lived with vim, vigor, and vitality. Due to this combination, they observed that many of these people lived well into their 90’s all the while taking part in everyday life alongside those of their younger friends and relatives.
The monosaturated fats such as the olive and coconut oils as well as avocados, olives, nuts and seeds provide an anti-inflammatory condition for the body. The fresh fruits and vegetables that are so prevalent in this type of diet contain the thousands of micronutrients, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that protect our systems from the insidious diseases such as cancer, heart disease, Alzheimers’, etc. that are so prevalent in today’s society. The fatty fish, which contain the heart healthy Omega 3’s, the low fat diary including yogurt, and the whole grains balance out this tremendously healthy potpourri of foods.
Alcohol, particularly a glass of red wine is traditionally served with every lunch and dinner since that type of wine has very heart healthy benefits. Drinking six glass of water daily adds to their continued good health, energy, and longevity.
However the major influence in the way these people live their lives is their reliance on nature’s nourishing and beneficial fruits and vegetables. Some eat as much as a pound daily with the emphasis on those dark green leafy vegetables. What makes them such an important factor is that they are low in calories and extremely high in antioxidants.
And, as referred to earlier, they noted the inclusion of physical activity as part of their everyday life – many they found even mowing their lawns and gardening well into their 90’s!
Researchers have agreed that it is never too late to turn your health and consequently your life around by switching to this very beneficial and positive way of life. Since it’s not just confined to certain regions of the world, you can start this vacation anytime and anyplace. So make those reservations today and begin a new journey of good health and wellness!
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by kelvin255
A lot of gardeners shy away from mint because of its invasive reputation. This recipe is my favorite revenge. My kind, old, brassy neighbor was the first person to share the joy of passing along plants with me along with the recipe for Risi E Bisi.
Awesome any time, use your own easy to grow mint instead of shelling out money for the packets of herbs you’ll find at your grocery store.
Risi E BisiCombine carrots and peas in a colander. Pour 4 cups boiling water over both. Drain and toss together with rice, green onion, and mint. Stir in salt, rice vinegar and olive oil. Yields 4 servings.
About the author: Lisa Ueda offers home gardening tips at The Frugal Garden. Her aim is to inspire, awaken and motivate new gardeners into discovering their inner green thumbs.
Urban farming and rooftop gardening in a city is not a new idea, but for whatever reason, it hasn’t really caught on. Brooklyn Grange is an urban farming company started a few years ago by Ben Flanner.
When he quit his job in finance, he started rooftop farming in New York City. He rented a 6000 square foot rooftop in Brooklyn. After a bit of success, he searched for something larger and found it in a 40,000 square foot rooftop in Queens.
From this rooftop, Brooklyn Grange sells organic produce directly to local consumers and area restaurants. They use no fertilizers or pesticides, only organic matter.
Reuters stopped by the farm recently and made this short video. Perhaps, with continued successes like this one, we’ll see more of these.
A dear friend, who not only creates and prepares some of the most delicious meals on the planet, but also writes exquisitely about food, wrote an enticing and slightly sexy piece about figs. I was inspired. Although when it comes to figs, I’m easy.
This ancient fruit may indeed be the first cultivated fruit in the Middle East, but for those of us living in the US, we can be grateful that California has risen to become the third largest producer of figs in the world, just behind Greece and Turkey. For some riveting facts about figs and their rich history, the California Fig Advisory Board supplies a healthy dose of interesting tidbits.
This unlikely sexy food only makes a brief appearance and sadly does not last very long nor refrigerate well – I suppose this is why dried figs are so popular!
Figs are attributed with mighty powers and without going into serious research as to the veracity of these claims, I will only say that there are some wild claims as to this fruit’s ability to cure or heal everything from ‘sexual weakness’ (?) and venereal disease to bowel health, diabetes, earaches, abscesses and asthma.
All I know from experience is that experiencing fresh, ripe figs is a sensual experience – with their plump, round shape and multi-textured sweet meat and fun tiny seeds, figs are a riot of taste and sensation.
What is slightly more documented is the Fig’s potent mineral and fiber content. Figs are high in vitamins A, B1 and B2 and minerals such as potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron, copper and manganese. According to one Suite 101 writer, dried figs have 250 mg of calcium / 100 g, which is more than 100 g of whole milk, which only contains 118mg!
I was really turned on to the magic of figs a couple of years ago when attending a Suppers Program, which is a program about getting back to basics in whole food nutrition. It was held at a woman’s home in Princeton and we all went out to raid her garden and each of us came up with a recipe (she had obviously purchased some of the main course/protein stuff). I was immediately attracted to her fig tree, which was full and ready for my greedy hands. I created a simple and delicious Fig & Tomato salad (the recipe is at the end of this old post) using fruit from her garden. Yum.
I’ve got fig tree envy, but know without any doubt that the vigorous and tenacious critters would never let one grow in my back yard. I’ll have to rely on my local producers (or my grocery store if desperate) during the short growing season.
My advice is to RUN don’t walk to find some of these sensual treats!
The middle of the week is typically pretty low energy. We’re in the thick of the work week without that little boost from knowing that the weekend is almost here. When energy is low, cooking tends to go out the window. How do you handle that slump?
It always helps to have a little cooking inspiration, so last week we asked our Facebook fans what they had cooking for mid-week dinners. Here’s what they had to say:
Amy Barker cooks up “veggie fajitas with black beans and rice.”
Crystal Miron had a bunch of quickie meal ideas:
Black bean soup.
Cheddar, Black Bean, & Veggie Quesadillas.
Cubed pork chops (they cook really fast) with steamed butternut squash and steamed asparagus.
Spring Greens with Pear and Gorgonzola salad, deviled egg and sour dough toast.
Those… are the “good” dinners. Once in awhile we resort to tacos and pizza like everyone else.
I love that she admits to picking up dinner to go from time to time. Giving yourself permission to blow off cooking some nights really helps keep it fun the rest of the time.
Kera Mchugh responded with a more elaborate meal idea:
locally made lamb & oregano sausage with sauteed bc mushrooms, garlic… slow cooked in tomato juice til the juice reduces to a nice sauce… add in slices of local sourdough to soak up the sauce… serve pipin’ hot… (oh, and ok, add some local organic greens if you gotta have salad… today wasn’t a salad day for me )
For a vegan version, try a tempeh sausage or store bought vegan sausage in place of the lamb.
Over in my kitchen, tostadas and salads have been the simple meal go-to. Lots of beans, greens, sprouted organic corn tortillas, and guacamole!
What’s your favorite mid-week meal? I’d love to continue the discussion in the comments!
One reoccurring question at the farmers market over the past few weeks has been whether or not our cherry tomatoes are “heirlooms.”
“No,” I answer. “They’re a hybrid.”
I’ve been surprised by how often this response makes people turn away. The farm‘s cherry tomatoes are gorgeous. So why are people so enamored with heirlooms and so scared of hybrids?
The term “heirloom” is used to describe varieties of produce that have been cultivated for over 50 years. The most well-known heirlooms are tomatoes such as Cherokee Purple and Brandywine.
Heirloom fruits and vegetables are also open-pollinated, which means that they’re pollinated by wind or bees. Open-pollinated plants reliably produce seeds that have the same traits as the parent plant.
Open-pollination is what allows heirloom seeds to be passed down generation to generation. Heirloom varieties arise from humans saving seeds from plants with the most desirable features, such as tastiness of fruit, and selecting for those traits year after year.
Hybrids, on the other hand, are created by plant breeders crossing compatible cultivars in an effort to create plants with the best features of both parents. Many of our modern plants are the results of these crosses.
Hybrid plants do not reliably produce seeds that have the features of the parent plant, and thus their seeds can’t be saved. But hybrids are useful to farmers because they are bred for traits like disease resistance, earlier maturity, vigor, and flavor.
I work on a small, organic farm where we plant many hybrid vegetables because they consistently produce the best pattypan squash or the best Chinese broccoli or the best cherry tomato. We plant heirlooms too, including slicing tomatoes, but only the varieties that outperform their hybrid counterparts.
The downside of hybrids is that they raise concerns over food sovereignty. When farmers can’t save seeds, they become dependent on seed companies. However, seed saving is an extremely labor-intensive task, so many farmers find the trade-off worthwhile.
I think some customers at the farmers market might have a negative reaction to our hybrid tomatoes because they’re confusing hybrids with GMOs, or genetically modified organisms. The term “hybrid” is not synonymous with “GMO.” Most hybrids don’t contain foreign DNA, they just have a fancy pedigree.
Image courtesy of Satrina0 via a Creative Commons license.
Maybe the ancient Chinese nobles were onto something when the forbade commoners from eating black rice. It’s not because black rice is harmful – it’s because it’s delicious and healthful, and the nobles wanted it all to themselves. Hence its moniker, Forbidden Rice.
Black rice is no longer forbidden and will likely become more common in the US as its nutritional properties are uncovered – it’s loaded with antioxidants and has other benefits as well.
Cheaper replacement for the “superfood” blueberriesBlueberries have recently been touted a “superfood,” as their high antioxidant content can help ward off aging, cancer and disease. The deep purple hue that blueberries and black rice share is a product of the antioxidants they contain, as black rice has the same properties.
Antioxidants help neutralize free radical damage. Recall that free radicals are compounds that are highly reactive, meaning that they want to combine with other compounds quickly. If free radicals combine with material in your cells, this can be damaging or deadly. Free radicals are necessary in our bodies for digestion or other processes, but our bodies have developed ways to repair damage by using antioxidants. Pollutants and excess UV rays cause even more free radicals in our bodies, and if there is a lack of antioxidants, our bodies cannot fight back. This is why antioxidants are so important.
For most people, blueberries are not much more than an occasional treat because of their price. Black rice has the same superfood properties as blueberries, but it is much cheaper. It also has more fiber and less sugar than blueberries.
Black rice vs. Brown rice vs. White riceIt is pretty well known that brown rice is healthier than white rice. This is because brown rice contains more fiber and lipid-soluble antioxidants (the really good ones) than white rice. White rice is simply brown rice with the outer shell removed. When the shell is removed, so are some nutrients.
Black rice is not directly related to brown rice or white rice, but it contains even more of these healthy compounds than brown rice.
While it’s very healthy, the taste of black rice may not be for everyone. It plays much less of a supporting role in dinner compared to white or brown rice. Black rice is said to have a complex taste – a deep, nutty flavor, with a hint of floral. It is also even chewier than brown rice – a possible turn off for people.
More healthful alternative to food coloringAs an added bonus, black rice bran may be a new alternative to food coloring. Current food coloring additives have been rumored to cause anything from cancer to hyperactivity to low sperm counts. Not all food coloring is vegan, either.
Since black rice has such a deep purple hue, it could possibly be used to color things anywhere from pink to black.
Sources: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-08/acs-brr080610.php
http://edition.cnn.com/2010/HEALTH/08/26/black.rice.new.brown/index.html#fbid=9UYyVEfIwCh&wom=false
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_coloring#Criticism_and_health_implications
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
Imagine turning on the tap and having nothing come out. Now, imagine having no tap at all. For so many families, clean water is a luxury. Women walk miles every day to gather water for their families to drink and use for cooking.
We’re so fortunate to have ready access to water that it’s easy to forget that so many live with water scarcity. How would your life be different if you had to expend so much of your energy walking to a far off water source and lugging full containers home for yourself and your family?
Oxfam America is working hard to help increase access to clean drinking water, and they’ve produced a video talking about how this access would benefit families and communities:
Right now, Oxfam is fortunate enough to have a Matching Gift fund. Supporters are matching up to $25,000 in donations to help bring clean water to communities in need. If you’ve got some spare cash, you might consider making a donation.
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by rachelfordjames
Lots of attention is being paid to improving our children’s diets, both in and out of school. We have control (mostly) over how our children eat at home, but what is being done in the schools? A new documentary is coming out, “A Recipe for Change”, that examines the Baltimore school system’s plan for improving school nutrition.
New Orleans chef Tony Geraci was hired to remake the Baltimore school lunches. He says in the trailer that he wants to concentrate on local, fresh foods in the menu. Some of the food shown looks exactly what I remember eating in school – the “mystery meat”, beef meatloaf patties, even the vegetables look the same.
It sounds like it will be a big job. In the trailer, one of the kids says the milk is sour and the bread is moldy. If that’s true (and I realize that kids exaggerate sometimes to make their point), then food storage and refrigeration will also need to be overhauled, along with the quality of food.
“A Recipe for Change” will be released later this year on the web.
School lunch photo by Jamie Buscemi, used with a Creative Commons license.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the FDA and the USDA participated in a raid on Rawsome, a raw, organic food club in Venice, California.
Here’s a video with security camera footage of the raid. The voiceover is from the store owner:
Unpasteurized milk is regulated in many areas because of safety concerns, and places like Rawsome go to great lengths to skirt these regulations. As the owner describes in the video, they are not a store but a private club. If you want to buy raw dairy, you have to become a member and put in writing that you’re “taking your health into your own hands.”
While dairy (raw or otherwise) is not my thing, I think that a guns-drawn raid is a bit over the top when it comes to enforcing restrictions on food policy.
Retail sale of raw milk is still legal in California, but the health department is insisting that Rawsome needs a retail food business license. The owner sent a written letter contesting that they are not a retail store, but he never heard a response until agents barged into Rawsome with guns years later.
Raw dairy is pretty controversial. Advocates are looking for pure, unadulterated food while regulators and large farming groups say its safety concerns outweigh any benefits.
What are your thoughts on this raid? How do you feel about raw dairy in general?
Source: L.A. Times
Image Credit: Creative Commons photo by chiotsrun
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