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| Headline |
Author |
Published |
Section |
Annals of regulatory malfeasance
GAO: EPA has seriously botched CAFO oversight |
Tom Philpott |
24 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Is the EPA leadership incompetent or malicious? The agency's steady stream of oversights, lapses, and rotten decisions -- which I tried to come to grips with here -- demands a reckoning. The answer appears to be a kind of toxic mix of the two: a malicious desire to please industry interests over public ones, leavened by a dose of sheer idiocy. The GAO has come out with a report confirming what everyone who has ever been near a factory animal farm (aka, a concentrate ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, food, livestock, regulation, toxics, US EPA, waste (all these topics) |
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Way to Grow!
Urban farmer awarded 'genius' grant |
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23 Sep 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 9:35 AM on 23 Sep 2008 Will Allen. Urban farmer Will Allen has been named one of this year's recipients of the prestigious "genius" grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The grant recognizes Allen's work bringing affordable fresh produce and quality grass-fed meats to the urban poor and educating communities about sustainable farming. Allen co-founded the group Growing Power in Milwaukee in the early '9 ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, brilliance, food, gardening, green living, local food, news, sustainable ag (all these topics) |
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Will Allen: urban farmer, 'genius'
Milwaukee's Growing Power founder snags a much-deserved MacArthur |
Tom Philpott |
23 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Fifteen years ago, a former professional basketball player named Will Allen made a most unlikely career move: he decided to launch a farm in a low-income neighborhood in Milwaukee. His farmhands would be un- or ill-employed neighborhood teens. Will Allen. At the time, brutal economic conditions were pushing the nation's few remaining African-American farmers into bankruptcy; and the concept of "urban farming" seemed more like an oxymoron than an a ... |
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| Topics: brilliance, loal food, food, agriculture (all these topics) |
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Put That in Your Water and Drink It
EPA not likely to set standard for perchlorate in drinking water |
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22 Sep 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 11:08 AM on 22 Sep 2008 The U.S. EPA is expected to decide as soon as Monday whether or not to set a standard restricting the amount of perchlorate allowed in the nation's drinking water, but so far, such a standard looks unlikely. Perchlorate is a chemical found mainly in rocket fuel and fireworks that has been associated with thyroid dysfunction in young kids and pregnant women. The E ... |
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| Topics: food, health, news, toxics, US EPA (all these topics) |
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Wheat and ethanol: They just don't mix
New research shows that ethanol will continue to increase the cost of wheat |
Meredith Niles |
19 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| I, like most Americans, love bread. Crusty, warm, and fresh-baked bread is a carb overload I am willing to indulge in even if it means a few extra minutes of running. But the American love affair with all things baked might be at jeopardy. We all know that oil and water don't mix, but it's becoming increasingly clear that wheat and ethanol are a bad combination as well. New research from the University of Illinois indicates that the high prices for wheat, as well as ... |
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| Topics: ethanol, biofuels, scientific research, food, agriculture (all these topics) |
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From Dog Bowl to Dinner Plate
An interview with author and nutritionist Marion Nestle |
Michelle Nijhuis |
19 Sep 2008 |
Grist Feature |
| The contents of your dog's bowl -- kibble, kibble, more kibble -- may not look that interesting, but to nutritionist Marion Nestle, they're nothing less than a microcosm of the global food system. In her new book Pet Food Politics: The Chihuahua in the Coal Mine, Nestle (pronounced NES-uhl, no relation to the multinational) investigates the 2007 pet-food contamination scandal, at ... |
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| Topics: books, China, food, interview (all these topics) |
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Bottled water, everywhere
Natural Hydration Council: drink more bottled water ... please? |
Tom Philpott |
18 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Bottled water sales growth may be "drying up," but the bottled-water industry is veritably gushing on the PR front. Here it is investing in a high-dollar sponsorship of the upcoming presidential campaigns, joining Anheuser-Busch, EDS (which specializes in "information technology outsourcing), BBH, a big U.K. advertising firm, and others. And over here, you've got water giants Nestle Waters, Danone, and Highland Spring rolling out the Natural Hydrati ... |
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| Topics: politics, food, water conflicts, business, agriculture (all these topics) |
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The Pesto Chronicles
When the basil plants get out of control, reach for the mortar and pestle |
Kurt Michael Friese |
18 Sep 2008 |
Chef's Diary |
| Mortarin' pesto. September in Iowa always brings the same delicious dilemma -- what to do with all that basil. Few herbs are as surrounded by mythology and folklore as basil. Its origins are debated, but most seem to think it came from India. There, the plant offered innumerable culinary uses: A devout Hindu has a leaf of basil placed on his breast when he dies, as ... |
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| Topics: advice, Chef's Diary, food, green living, recipes (all these topics) |
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Dispatches From the Fields: Playing chicken with local food
Small-scale slaughterhouses are vital to the health of local food economies |
Ariane Lotti |
18 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| In 'Dispatches From the Fields,' Ariane Lotti and Stephanie Ogburn, who are working on small farms in Iowa and Colorado this season, share their thoughts on producing real food in the midst of America's agro-industrial landscape. ----- A trailer load of chickens. Photos: Ariane Lotti In the cold and dark that is 5:30 a.m. in North Iowa these days, I go out with Jan and Tim of One Step at a Time Gardens to load 129 sleepy and reluctant chickens out ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, food, Iowa, livestock, local food (all these topics) |
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Gene Genie, Let Yourself Go
FDA releases guidelines for developing genetically modified animals |
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18 Sep 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 6:42 AM on 18 Sep 2008 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will today announce guidelines for the development of genetically modified animals, a step on the road to their broad commercialization. The agency is expected to ask companies developing genetically modified animals to report a range of information about how they were engineered and how the alterations could affect the animals' b ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, food, GMOs, news, United States (all these topics) |
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Slow Food Nation interview: Deborah Koons Garcia
Future of Food director on 'making soil sexy' |
Tom Philpott |
16 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Filmmaker Deborah Koons Garcia burst onto the sustainable-food scene with her 2004 documentary the Future of Food, a biting, well-researched indictment of Monsanto and genetically modified food. I caught up with her at Slow Food Nation to discuss her current project, a documentary about a topic dear to my heart: soil. You can watch Koons Garcia's documentary online for free after the jump...The film is courtesy Snagfilms.com: |
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| Topics: events, food, interview, slow food, sustainable ag, video (all these topics) |
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Slow Food Nation interview: Anna Lappé
Why climate change may have more to do with your shopping cart than your car |
Tom Philpott |
15 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Anna Lappé might be called a green-diaper baby. Her mother, Frances Moore Lappé, brought out the seminal Diet for a Small Planet back in 1971, and has been agitating forcefully for a just, sustainable food system ever since. Her father, the toxicologist Marc Lappé, was an early, important, and persistent critic of the agrichemical industry. Anna has emerged in her own right as a leading voice in the sustainable food movement. In her work, she focuses not only on ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, events, food, greenhouse-gas emissions, interview, slow food, video (all these topics) |
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We young farmers, all over the world, we are citizens
The key political, economic, and cultural needs of young farmers |
Zoe Bradbury |
15 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| This is a guest post by Severine von Tscharner Fleming, 27, director of The Greenhorns and farmer/activist in the Hudson Valley of New York, and Zoë Ida Bradbury, 29, Oregon farmer and Food & Society Policy Fellow. ----- Coast to coast, though there are thousands inspired to dig in and grow food, but it is currently only a dauntless few who manage to gain access to the land, capital, market-savvy, and technical skills that are essential to 'make it' as a farmer. ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, economy, food, local food, sustainable ag (all these topics) |
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Mad Flavor in San Francisco: Coffee done right
Finding nirvana in the coffee capital of the United States |
Tom Philpott |
12 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| In "Mad Flavor," the author describes his occasional forays from the farm in search of exceptional culinary experiences from small artisanal producers. ----- Champion of breakfasts: latte and brioche at Blue Bottle While covering Slow Food Nation recently, I stayed in an unremarkable hotel located in a relatively uninteresting part of San Francisco's Soma neighborhood. But I was as happy as a clam -- ecstatic even -- because my hotel stood a bl ... |
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| Topics: food, local food (all these topics) |
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Checkout Line: Meat of the matter
What's so eco about all those eco-meat labels? |
Lou Bendrick |
12 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| In Checkout Line, Lou Bendrick cooks up answers to reader questions about how to green their food choices, and other diet-related quandaries. Lettuce know what food worries keep you up at night. Free range: more sizzle than steak? Hi,Something I've been pondering a lot lately is the whole 'free-range' meat market. After reading The Omnivore's Dilemma, I have a lot of doubts as to whether meat labeled 'all natural' and 'free range' is actually those thing ... |
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| Topics: advice, Checkout Line, food, livestock (all these topics) |
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The organic times are a changin'
New data show that 2008 organic food sales will reach $32.9 billion |
Meredith Niles |
11 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| As people from Haiti to Ethiopia are tragically struggling to cope with rising food prices, many are piecing together the reasons behind our recent price spikes. The culprits lie in everything from the switch to growing crops for biofuels to market speculation. The situation is complex and involves multiple factors. But as economists tally up the numbers and politicians scramble for solutions, others are beginning to wonder if this is the end for organic food as we k ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, food, fossil fuels, organic food (all these topics) |
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Our daily bread
Two trends for bakeries, one encouraging and one dismal |
Tom Philpott |
11 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| It's hard to imagine a vibrant local-food economy without a vibrant bakery scene. The capacity to efficiently turn something as bland as flour into something delicious and substantial seems key. In energy terms, baking several hundred loaves of bread a day in a commercial operation makes more sense than every family cranking out a loaf a day in the home oven -- especially if the bakery is centrally located. (Not that I don't love home-baking.) I'm thinking about the & ... |
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| Topics: agriculture, food, local food (all these topics) |
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Confessions of a Professional Tomato Taster
Judging a tomato contest, and celebrating with a fresh, tomato-y gumbo |
Roz Cummins |
11 Sep 2008 |
'Tis the Season |
| You say tomato ... All my life, I have wanted to be a professional tomato taster. I am happy to report that on August 18, 2008, I had the chance to serve as a judge (unpaid, so, OK, not exactly professional, but still ...) in the 24th annual Massachusetts tomato contest, organized by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs an ... |
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| Topics: food, green living, recipes, Tis the Season (all these topics) |
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We're the real cowboys
We need some qualified public leaders |
Jim Goodman |
10 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| It strikes me that many of the problems we run into on a daily basis are caused by people doing a job for which they are not fully qualified. At the top of the list, I'm afraid we must place those we elect to office and those they appoint to government service positions. We have all run across the bad restaurant meal: a cook who wasn't so good; an owner who didn't get fresh ingredients; a wait person who ruined the meal with bad service. How about the salesper ... |
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| Topics: environmental justice, food, agriculture, politics, George Bush (all these topics) |
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Dispatches From the Fields: Back to the garden
On the transformative potential of community-scale food production |
Stephanie Paige Ogburn |
10 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| In 'Dispatches From the Fields,' Ariane Lotti and Stephanie Ogburn, who are working on small farms in Iowa and Colorado this season, share their thoughts on producing real food in the midst of America's agro-industrial landscape. ----- This spring, someone transformed the vacant lot across the street from my in-town apartment here in Cortez, a town of 8,000 in southwest Colorado. Until the transformation, I had never really noticed the parcel of land. ... |
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| Topics: Colorado, food, gardening, local food (all these topics) |
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Whole Foods signs deal to pay up for Florida tomatoes
Natural foods giant agrees to penny-per-pound raise for farmworkers |
Tom Philpott |
10 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| I reported a few days ago that a deal was imminent; now it's official: Whole Foods has signed an agreement with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers to pay an extra penny-per-pound for Florida tomatoes. The raise will go directly into the pockets of some of the lowest-paid workers in the United States. In addition, the press release states, Whole Foods is working with the CIW to create a "domestic purchasing program to help guarantee transparent, ethical and respons ... |
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| Topics: environmental justice, business, agriculture, food (all these topics) |
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Bottled water runs dry
BrandWeek: 'Sales drought' for big water bottlers |
Tom Philpott |
09 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Anyone who's read Elizabeth Royte's Bottlemania will be cheered by this news, from BrandWeek: The market for bottled water may be drying up. Despite massive discounting, brands like Aquafina and Poland Spring are experiencing a sales drought unlike any the category has ever seen. After almost a decade of triple and then double-digit growth, sales volume grew less than 1% for the first half of the year, per Beverage Digest, Bedford Hills, N.Y. The chief culpri ... |
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| Topics: food, water conflicts, economy, consumerism (all these topics) |
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Slow Food Nation interview: Eric Schlosser
Fast Food Nation author says the sustainable food movement should consider labor |
Tom Philpott |
09 Sep 2008 |
Gristmill |
| Few Grist readers need an introduction to Eric Schlosser. His 2001 book, Fast Food Nation, helped galvanize interest in the politics and ecology of food production. Since that time, he's used his increasingly high profile to illuminate one of the most shadowy crannies of the food system -- working conditions in the vast monocropped fields where most of our fruits and vegetables grow. In this short interview recorded last week at Slow Food Nation, Schlosser talks abou ... |
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| Topics: interview, events, food, slow food, agriculture, video (all these topics) |
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Cereal? Killer!
Eleven organic breakfast cereals get put to the spoon |
Tom Philpott |
09 Sep 2008 |
The Bottom Line |
| The scene was surreal ... I mean, cereal. I awoke from deadline-anxiety dreams one Sunday morning, and crept down to the kitchen at the farmhouse where I work. There I found a dozen people chomping breakfast cereal, scribbling down notes, and trading bon mots. Coincidentally, the farmhouse had been packed with guests that weekend, including a crew of cereal-loving Germans. We also had some visito ... |
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| Topics: food, green living, The Bottom Line (all these topics) |
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An Uphill Bottle
U.S. bottled-water guzzling is slowing |
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08 Sep 2008 |
News |
| Posted at 4:58 PM on 08 Sep 2008 Americans' seemingly insatiable thirst for bottled water seems to be slowing, according to new industry stats. Annual U.S. bottled-water consumption shot up nearly 46 percent between 2002 and 2007, to an average 29.3 gallons per person. But the Beverage Marketing Corporation predicts that bottled-water guzzling will grow only 6.7 percent in 2008, the smallest increase this decade. The editor of Beverage Dig ... |
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| Topics: business, food, news, water conflicts (all these topics) |
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