Foodierotica

“Those who would reform the U.S. food system need to address the question of values that Limbaugh, Palin and others criticize as elitist. They need to consider the role that socioeconomics plays in determining those values and how to begin to change them. They have to make the case for why eating well matters at the local level, and that case will vary by community. In the Huntington area, residents spend $1.25 billion annually on food, but little of it stays in the region. Local food as economic development is a more persuasive argument in places where good jobs are scarce than is the do-the-right-thing mantra that echoes from both coasts. Good food is also at least part of the solution to the region’s health crisis: high rates of obesity, heart disease and diabetes.”

I think finding the right argument for your audience can be one of the hardest parts of building a movement.  Pointing to economic benefits seems to work for everyone: the rich who want to keep their money, the poor who want to get more money, and even the elitist moralists who just want to have those facts in figures in their back pockets.

Sweet Water Organics has been getting a lot of attention lately.  Even my very pragmatic and hardly idealist uncle told me he thought it was a great business idea for the future of farming.

Aquaponics certainly does help to remedy the dialectical tension that exists between the health benefits and environmental costs of eating fish.  Michael Pollan notes fish as the only physically beneficial food that is not also more environmentally beneficial (In Defense of Food). However, it is important to consider the energy input necessary to run a large aquaponics operation.  Perhaps open brownfields with plenty of sunlight, rather than abandoned warehouses with artificial lighting, would be a better option for this “farming of the future.”

Get a tour of Sweet Water Organics on the CBS TV Show, Wisconsin Foodie.

This clip makes reference to Will Allen’s operation, which is featured in the documentary, FRESH.  I highly recommend the film for those wondering what the possible alternatives to our flawed food system are. 

See the FRESH promotion of Will Allen’s organization, Growing Power.

This article does a really good job to highlight the contradictions that plague farm subsidies in this country.  It is not only the Republican or Tea Party candidates who have promised to reduce spending, but come from districts that benefit majorly from farm subsidies.  What the article does not talk about are the ultra conservative agribusiness and monoculture farmers who argue for the “free market” while they are benefitting majorly from farm subsidies.  They want the government out, but as the Freedom to Farm Act showed us, that would only negatively impact them.  Furthermore, the most liberal farmers who are using organic practices to grow the healthiest food get nothing in terms of subsidies.  At least the Farm Bill includes funds for environmental conservation programs… Unless Vicky Hartzler gets her way:

“Crop insurance – it costs taxpayers billions of dollars a year – is an effective way to give farmers the security they need when weather ruins a harvest, Hartzler said. She suggests the Conservation Reserve Program, which pays farmers to idle environmentally sensitive land, may have to go.”

I saw the documentarian for this movie present and talk about scenes from the movie last night at GW.  I can’t really say that it made me want to see the whole movie, but it defiinitely did spark my interest in a raw food diet.  I had fruit salad for breakfast and a raw vegan wrap for lunch today. 

I would definitely check out her website.  She has some pretty cool resources up there.

However, for a raw food chef, she does not have many recipes. For recipes check out “Living and Raw Foods.”

If you are wondering what the heck a raw food diet is and why anyone would do it, visit howtogoraw.com and ignore all the parts where they are marketing their services. Scroll down to “Amazing Benefits of the Optimal Raw Food Diet” to see some of the potential benefits of going raw.

An interesting way to go about things… I never really notice that designating days or months for issues has a huge effect on forwarding the agenda of those issues.  I suppose there are a couple of exceptions.

Would anyone like to offer evidence to the contrary?

I’d be happy to hear it.

And I liked it a lot.

Queens County Farm Museum

by Maeve Kelly

At the heart of Queens, nestled between a schoolyard and a row of modest stone houses, carved out of its urban landscape, lives a forgotten piece of history.

It’s no wonder that the Queens County Farm Museum, New York City’s largest remaining tract of farmland, has been a well kept secret from most urbanites for decades; the trip to Queens lasts more than two hours, with three forms of transportation (subway, bus, three block walk) required. The country oasis that awaits each weary traveler, however, is well worth the half-day journey.

Beyond the tarnished gate lies a rustic, New England-esque world. A colonial farmhouse stands proudly at the farm entrance, marking the visitor’s passage into a forgotten time. An apple orchard wraps gently around the perimeter of the yard, while a steel windmill creaks and whirs with each gust of wind. The tree-lined center path meanders its way through fields of corn and the sky opens to reveal a vast expanse of fresh earth. Row after row of herbs and vegetables make up the lush planting fields. The farm is complete with a vineyard and the essential cow, horse and sheep pastures.

The Queens County Farm Museum has a history as abundant as its pumpkin patches, yet has maintained a relatively quiet existence since its conception in 1697. The original property measured 101 acres but a portion was eventually sold to New York State and the farm was cut down to its current size of 47 acres. It was one of the many family-owned farms that dominated Queens County until the late 1920’s and was owned by a variety of private individuals for over two hundred years.

Its history is incomplete, however, without acknowledging one major road bump. In 1973, the farm found itself in the midst of a fiscal crisis. New York State labeled the acreage surplus land and marked it for development. A community group led by the museum’s founder, James A. Trent and New York State Senator Frank Padavan, came together to save the historic farm from city-wide expansion. Two years later, on the heels of a well-earned victory against the state, Trent’s group established the Colonial Farmhouse Restoration Society of Bellerose to preserve the farm’s historic buildings. New York City eventually claimed ownership of the farmhouse, outbuildings and surrounding acres. In 1979, the farm was declared a National and City Landmark.

The striking juxtaposition of corn stalks and city skyline reminds each visitor that the farm is a world apart from Manhattan, yet lies right at its doorstep. Despite the rural landscape, you don’t have to be from the rolling hills of the Midwest to crave a little rustic charm. Even the most hardcore city-dwellers will be intrigued by this month’s calendar of events.

The museum hosts an annual Amazing Maize Maze, which takes place during the month of October and lasts through early November. Each year, a series of intricate patterns is carved into the 3 acre corn field; visitors are encouraged to explore, and of course, lose themselves in the sea of corn. For even more of a challenge, the farm offers Maze By Moonlight, on October 9th and 16th, for those brave enough to make their way through the maze in the dark. Admission for both day and night visits is $8.

Stop by the farm each weekend in October for Pick-Your-Own-Pumpkin days from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A Full Moon Harvest Celebration will be held on October 23rd from 12 to 4 p.m. and includes storytelling, soup and candle making and soup sampling. Space is limited and reservations can be made on the farm website.
Perhaps the most exciting event of all is the Halloween Haunted House on October 30th and 31st from 4 to 7 p.m. Along with the spooky house tour, visitors can sink their teeth into Halloween treats, including cider, pumpkins and apples. Admission is $4. Also held on October 31st is the Children’s Fall Festival from 11 to 4 p.m. Guests are invited to wear costumes, join in sack races and pony rides and peruse craft and food vendor booths while enjoying some good ole country western music. Admission is $5. In addition, hayrides are offered each weekend through November.

If not to attend one of the many farm events, visitors should set aside a glorious Saturday afternoon to take a stroll around the perimeter of the farm, chat with the friendly farmers in the herb gardens and pumpkin patch, and stop by the horse barn to pet the ponies. The North Lawn is an ideal spot to gaze out onto the rural landscape and relish in one of the hidden pleasures of the city. Guests can stock up on fresh fruits and veggies, homemade jams or miniature pumpkins and gourds at the museum’s gift and wine shop.

At long last, visitors will make their way out the front gate, past the row of stone houses, across the bustling highway and over to the bus stop, quickly losing sight of the charming enclave mere blocks away. Back to reality.

Check out Queens County Farm Museum online at http://www.queensfarm.org/. Visiting hours run from Monday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In response to the inundation, the Food and Drug Administration released a revised food pyramid Tuesday consisting entirely of soybeans and soybean-based products, as well as nutritional guidelines urging every American to eat eight servings of soybeans per hour.

The Onion: so ridiculous, yet so accurate.

This is why we have obesity in the heart of farm country.  Ironic, isn’t it?

Oh, Economist, why must you always be so fascinating but so time consuming?

Like many issues of the Economist, this debate will have to go into my when-i-have-a-lot-of-free-time pile.  Really interesting stuff though.

“Never mind the government regulators. When it comes to influencing the way farmers grow their crops, the real power someday may be Walmart, the nation’s largest food retailer.”

Woahoho! Talk about your free market!

And this:

“Walmart’s environmental standards are being developed through a consortium that includes several agribusiness companies, such as Monsanto and Syngenta, both biotech seed companies, as well as meatpacker Tyson Foods and organic yogurt maker Stonyfield Farm.”

Wow Walmart, good choices.  Way to pick a bunch of companies that also have terrible environmental reputations.  I would never suspect that you are just guilty of greenwashing…