Comments barthanderson has made

higher wages = more crap-food?

Maybe I'm cynical, but don't higher wages simply encourage higher prices at the manufacturing level due to increased demand of what we already have? In other words, higher wages lead to more expensive crap-food?

That said, I think you're right, Tom. Higher wages are definitely part of the equation, but without another viable food system in which to make money, factory farmers and industrial "food" manufacturers won't see fit to jump ship from the old one. They'll just keep turning the garbage-mill.

I do think we're getting closer to real change. The interlocked network of local foodsheds (that is, a decentralized, national-local food system) is the best model that I can imagine -- increased food safety, an enriched rural economy, better nutrition and healthful ingredients, etc -- but the feds and/or big bidness needs to invest in it dramatically to make it more viable.  

As you said, it's a chicken-and-the-egg proposition. I just think we need to address supply and demand simultaneously or real change won't take effect. On Until real middle-class wages start rising, we can't end agricultural subsidies posted 9 months, 2 weeks ago 4 Responses

"nutritional" research, please

Thanks for the pubmed links, SaraJane!

But I guess that sort of proves my point. There's lots of info about raw milk's apparent microbilogical danger, but very little modern research on its nutritional or "beneficial" properties (if any).

I'll bring up organics again. Back in the eighties, no one knew about phytochemicals, but it turns out, organic frutis and veggies are particulalry rich in this cancer-fighter.

What I would like is research that doesn't rely on conventional wisdom, which scientific communities are just as susceptible to as any other. Is there research addressing probiotic qualities, nutrients that may or may not be destroyed by pasteurization/homogenization, or alleged immune system support provided by raw milk? If there is such research, and raw milk is really no different than processed, great, I'd like to read those peer-reviewed papers.On Umbra on raw milk posted 10 months, 1 week ago 20 Responses

Farm to Hospital and Nursing Home Programs

Along the lines of Farm to School programs, we need Farm to Hospital/Nursing Home programs. But that would mean getting insurance companies to stop restricting hospitals from buying locally, which many do. Deeply ironic, of course, since the national food system is far more dangerous than a local one. More here:

http://www.fairfoodfight.com/blog/el-drag%C3%B3n/kirk-smi ...

A Farm to Hospital initiative also might mean providing grants and tax cuts to hospitals and nursing homes that re-outfit their buying systems and kitchens to actually, you know, cook real food, rather than just opening industrial tubs of peanut butter and pre-processed food from vegetable chop shops.

I might be jumping the gun. This ALL might necessitate federal funds for research showing that hospital kitchens serving nutritious and lower-risk food are better clients for insurance companies to insure.On Think locally, act infrastructurally posted 10 months, 2 weeks ago 15 Responses

Can we call you "Papa Bear," Mr. Sec?

Big Organic is down with Vilsack because he'll bring an industrial, agribusiness mindset to the organic industry. The defense of Vilsack (on supportvilsack.com's OCA page) contains this sentence: "He led trade missions to specifically market organic products to other countries in an attempt to open up the organics market to Iowa producers," with a link to a Corn & Soybean magazine article, where Vilsack is promoting, yup, organic soybeans.

Supply is a key vulnerability for Big Organics and Vilsack is a big daddy ag-corporatist, compared to the likes of smaller corporate players like those behind supportvilsack.com. He knows the game much better than they do. Consequently, Vilsack can help make sure organic soybeans, corn, and livestock feed flow.

Big Organic is about to get a whole lot bigger under President Obama.

And that's fine. But it underscores the pressing need for someone overseeing the USDA National Organic Program who prizes strong standards and integrity in the organic industry:

http://www.fairfoodfight.com/fight/petition-draft-jim-rid ...On Big Organic execs and some activists rally behind Obama's USDA pick posted 10 months, 3 weeks ago 4 Responses

Su$tainability

I realize that these attacks on local are being made against the eco argument, so maybe I'm sidestepping, but let's not forget the economic impact of eating local.

To me, the eco argument is important, but not the strongest reason for eating local. While I'm concerned about calories burned and carbon footprints, I'm even more concerned that we even HAVE farmers sustaining themselves financially, especially farmers who know how to grow for their regions. If local communities are going to survive a major disruption of the global food chain (Peak Oil, war, more levees and federal bridges crumbling), then we need to build networks of local food systems now. Quickly.

That means establishing local markets by turning dollars over locally and breaking nationwide consumer reliance on the great state of CaliforniaTexasFlorida for food. This starts with campaigns like the Local Food Challenge of eating 80% local for a month.

And it'll work. Here in Minnesota, if Twin Cities consumers shifted even 10% of their spending from chains to locals for one day, the local economy would gain some $2 million. (*Source:  Andersonville Study of Retail Economics, by Civic Economics, October 2004 and MN Dept. of Revenue, Gross Retail Sales for 2003 via http://www.metroiba.org/about).

If that retained money flows toward food, in particular, then we start building the kind of food system that can actually sustain itself. ANd ourselves.On If buying locally isn't the answer, then what is? posted 2 years, 3 months ago 28 Responses

If the NOP requires this of ag co-ops, then...

Sam,

I'm curious if the NOP's ruling also requires  multi-site corporate operations to get each, individual store/farm inspected in order to be certified organic, too. This is not currently the case. When Whole Foods trumpeted that they were now the first national chain to be certified organic, I called the local WF to say congrats, but the person who answered the phone argued with me. She was all, "No, retailers can't even be certified organic..."

Mmimika, there's nothing in the National Organic Program requiring Fair Trade premiums to growers. Fair Trade and organic standards are completely separate entities - and, at times, they're even at odds. In fact, in order to get the national organic standards passed, the organic movement had to jettison social justice standards (living wage, health insurance, working conditions, etc) in order to keep the coalition together. An organic migrant worker isn't required to make more than a conventional one.

For more on this you may want to read about the burgeoning Domestic Fair Trade movement:

http://www.equalexchange.com/what-is-domestic-fair-trade

http://www.cooperativegrocer.coop/articles/index.php?id=6 ...On Organic coffee deep-sixed posted 2 years, 7 months ago 40 Responses