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RESULTS		Results 1 – 25 of 70
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Headline	Author	Published	Section
The Sweet Lowdown On chocolate	Umbra Fisk	16 Oct 2006	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Although I buy most of my chocolate as fair trade or organic, I was wondering if you might enlighten me on the politics and economics of the chocolate (cocoa) industry. Where is most of it grown? What are the working conditions of those who are employed there? How effective is fair trade in getting to the growers? Just another ethical choco guy Whistler, B.C. Dearest JAECG, What with Halloween coming up, this is a frightfully ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Rattling the Food Chain A cornucopia of new books tells us where our food comes from	Tom Philpott	31 Aug 2006	Arts and Minds
One summer evening when I lived in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, I was snipping basil from the potted herb garden that I kept on the stoop in front of my brownstone apartment. Kids were playing on the sidewalk, their high-spirited shouts echoing through the dense, humid air. I absently popped a basil leaf in my mouth, savoring its flavor. You ate what? Photo: iStockphoto One kid took note. ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Words Fail Us Hummer propaganda aimed at kids through McDonald's Happy Meals		10 Aug 2006	Daily Grist
Words Fail Us Hummer propaganda aimed at kids through McDonald's Happy Meals Sometimes a story comes along that so perfectly captures a culture's pathologies that it should be put in a time capsule, so future generations ... oh, right, there won't be any future generations. It seems that, according to fast-food behemoth McDonald's, this is a "Hummer of a Summer." A new series of TV and radio ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living, news, placemaking (all these topics)

Pay Watch On farmers' markets and food stamps	Umbra Fisk	19 Jun 2006	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, Do organic grocers take food stamps? Do farmers' markets? If not, what do ecologically/health-minded people on fixed incomes do? David Burch South Bend, Ind. Dearest David, Did you know that in many states food stamps are no longer stamps? Plastic cards similar to ATM cards have replaced the paper coupons. Electronic Benefit Transfer, it's called, and it's not dissimilar to a bank card with a finite, monthly re ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

The Price Is Wrong On the cost of organics	Umbra Fisk	22 May 2006	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, How come it's so expensive to go organic? I could swing it by myself by eating a bare minimum of food, but I'm charged with feeding consume-mass-quantity types who favor the traditional American diet, and they eat meat. I would be in debt buying just half the monthly food consumption. One would have to be rich to go organic. MonikkaMarie Jackson Queen Village, N.Y. Dearest MonikkaMarie, The usual answer to your qu ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, organic food (all these topics)

In a Nutshell On organic cashews	Umbra Fisk	08 May 2006	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I work in a grocery store. Recently a customer refused to purchase our cashews because they weren't organic. Does it really matter if nuts are organic? Are they sprayed with chemicals during production? Did the customer have a point, or should she have sucked it up and bought our cashews? Brianna Farmington Hills, Mich. Dearest Brianna, I am shocked, shocked to find that the bland, chewy cashew is the most popular nut in th ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Buzz Alterin' On coffee	Umbra Fisk	09 Nov 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I am a seriously indulgent coffee drinker. Lately, there have been a ton of "green" coffee shops popping up. I like to support local coffee shops, and I want to believe that they are "shade-grown, fair-trade, organic," but I've wondered if they are being honest. How do I know if they are legit? Claudia Gutierrez San Diego, Calif. Dearest Claudia, Shade-grown, fair-trade, and organic are certifications, not just bu ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, organic food (all these topics)

The Meal World On getting local foods into college cafeterias	Umbra Fisk	19 Oct 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I am a student at Hartwick College running the Grassroots Environmental Club. The college's major cafeteria is run by a large food company that also serves prisons. In a meeting with the director, I was told they have the power to get any food. When I asked if we can get local, organic food, they responded that it would cost too much and be a hassle. How can I convince them that the quality of the ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Good Bite, and Good Luck On freezing local foods	Umbra Fisk	17 Oct 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I am lucky enough to live across the street from a farmers' market, and I shop there all summer. But when summer's done, the market closes and I am left to buy produce from California. Would it be better for me to buy a small freezer and freeze farmers' market veggies for winter, or to forgo the freezer and buy from the grocery store? Which is worse: long-distance transportation or the juice used by a freezer? ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, energy, farmers markets, food and agriculture, green living, local food (all these topics)

Soy You Want to Be a Vegetarian? On soy vs. meat	Umbra Fisk	12 Oct 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I finally went vegetarian several months ago, and one of my main reasons was the environmental impact of meat production. The other day, however, a friend pointed out that soy foods take a great deal of energy to produce too. So is there really that big of an environmental difference between TVP [textured vegetable protein] and free-range beef? And how does dairy compare? Should I just try to stick to nuts and ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, local food, vegetarianism and veganism (all these topics)

We Got No Beef With That Demand growing for naturally raised meats		20 Sep 2005	Daily Grist
We Got No Beef With That Demand growing for naturally raised meats Americans are increasingly willing to fork over a little extra for free range, organic, and natural meats. And although these still comprise a tiny percentage of the total U.S. market, the food industry is starting to notice. In just one sign of a shift, about 450 growers operating under the aegis of San Francisco-based natural meats supplier Niman ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living, news (all these topics)

Weeding, Writing, 'Rithmetic Locally grown foods catching on at college dining halls		22 Jul 2005	Daily Grist
Weeding, Writing, 'Rithmetic Locally grown foods catching on at college dining halls The local-and-seasonal food movement is going to college. About 200 schools around the country have joined programs that supply them with locally grown foods, like Brown University in Providence, R.I., where locally farmed Pippin and Macoun apples proved so much more popular than Granny Smiths and Red Delicious that food-service bu ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living, news (all these topics)

Jug or Not On the perennial packaging dilemma	Umbra Fisk	23 May 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I was recently elected the social chairperson of my subdivision's swim/tennis/social club. Now I'm in charge of party planning for a group of about 150 families. While shopping at Costco, I wondered which is better for the environment: several 128-ounce jugs of apple juice plus many plastic cups, or lots of 6.75-ounce juice boxes that would equal the same juice volume, or the equivalent in 10-ounce plastic bottle ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, local food, organic food, waste (all these topics)

Ask Your Dealer Today! Organic marijuana certification sought in California county		15 Feb 2005	Daily Grist
Ask Your Dealer Today! Organic marijuana certification sought in California county Need your pot, but worried about all the chemi ... dude, you gonna eat that? Wait, where were we? Oh, for all those who prefer their pot free of toxic chemicals (and have a user card allowing them to smoke it for medical purposes, of course), there's good news from Mendocino County, Calif. -- the very county that last ...
Topics: California, food and agriculture, green living, news (all these topics)

Unholy Cow On leather upholstery	Umbra Fisk	20 Jan 2005	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, It seems everyone is getting leather upholstery in their cars and on their couches these days. Where is it coming from -- the same cows that are being slaughtered for hamburgers, or special cows that are raised for their hides? What is the environmental impact of all this luxurious leather? Sharon Collegeville, Penn. Dearest Sharon, Hides are a byproduct of food-related animal processing. Cattle are large, expensive animals, ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green living, water pollution (all these topics)

Bringing Shapeless Hemp Sweaters to Yuppies, at Last Whole Foods ponders move into organic clothing		12 Nov 2004	Daily Grist
Bringing Shapeless Hemp Sweaters to Yuppies, at Last Whole Foods ponders move into organic clothing Have you ever felt chafed by the inconvenience of having to go one place for your bulk bulgur wheat and another for your Guatemalan organic cotton poncho? Well we've got good news: From here on in you can point your Lexus SUV in one direction only, to organic grocer Whole Foods. The retailer is ...
Topics: business, food and agriculture, green living, United States (all these topics)

I'd Like to Buy the Crops a Coke Indian farmers use Coca-Cola as a pesticide		02 Nov 2004	Daily Grist
I'd Like to Buy the Crops a Coke Indian farmers use Coca-Cola as a pesticide Urban legend has it that Coca-Cola works well to remove rust spots, clean corroded batteries, polish toilets, and -- we can confirm this one -- dissolve baby teeth that have fallen out of an innocent 5-year-old's mouth, thus yielding a lifelong terror of soft drinks. But Indian farmers have added another unexpected use to that list: The ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living, India (all these topics)

Thank Your Lucky Starbucks Starbucks chief pushes for fair-trade, eco-friendly coffee		01 Nov 2004	Daily Grist
Thank Your Lucky Starbucks Starbucks chief pushes for fair-trade, eco-friendly coffee Starbucks has served as a convenient target for the anti-globalization crowd, especially given that you can't throw a brick in some neighborhoods without breaking a Starbucks window. But CEO Orin Smith is fighting back against the company's bad reputation. He recently announced that, by 2007, Starbucks would attempt to procu ...
Topics: business, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

PLU Perfect On the mysteries of produce code numbers	Umbra Fisk	11 Oct 2004	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I recently learned that the UPC numbers on produce indicate whether the item is conventionally grown (beginning with a 4), organically grown (beginning with a 9), or genetically modified (beginning with an 8). I like to buy organic, locally grown produce at my local health food store whenever possible, but recently at a large grocery story I noticed some tomatoes with a UPC number that began with a 3. What ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food, food and agriculture, GMOs, green living, organic food (all these topics)

Everybody Must Get Hemp On hemp fabric	Umbra Fisk	04 Oct 2004	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, You didn't mention hemp as a fabric alternative. Jordan Marquette, Mich. Dearest Jordan, No, I didn't. Thank you for writing such a concise letter; it stood out among the 4 million other hemp letters and cut straight to the point. I apologize for the omission. Hemp is currently a narrowly available fabric with a prohibitively high cost and a limited fashion palette. That said, it holds a lot of promise as a high-yield ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, fashion, food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Leftovers Again? New environmental trend: eating other folks' leftovers		01 Oct 2004	Daily Grist
Leftovers Again? New environmental trend: eating other folks' leftovers Here at Grist we love reporting on new environmental trends, especially when there are gimmicky new terms coined to describe them. Herewith, we give you the "freegan," someone who subsists entirely on food other people -- usually restaurants or grocery stores -- have thrown out. Though freegans can often be found rooting through dumpsters ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Grill Bit Tips for earth-sensitive -- and tasty -- barbecuing	The Green Guide	24 Aug 2004	Earthly Possessions
You know the grill. It's hot out there: Time to empty the kitchen of cutlery and condiments and wander into the backyard to do what our ancient ancestors did: Barbecue something! Of course, people have been gleefully grilling, giving no thought to the environment, for centuries. Linguists tell us that the word barbecue likely stemmed from a coinage of the Taino Indians of Haiti, and was appropriated ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living (all these topics)

Go Ahead, Mr. Wendell At 70, Wendell Berry remains a champion of agrarian ideals	Mark Engler	05 Aug 2004	Main Dish
Wendell Berry, right at home. Wendell Berry, 70 years old today, has established himself as many things in his lifetime: a veteran sage of sustainable agriculture; a progressive defender of virtue and tradition; one of our most famous farmers to renounce the tractor; and one of our most acclaimed authors to shun the computer. To appreciate Berry, you must first understand that he has st ...
Topics: food and agriculture, green living, religion and spirituality (all these topics)

Icebox, Icebox, Baby On when to retire a fridge	Umbra Fisk	15 Jul 2004	Ask Umbra
Dear Umbra, I love to freeze fresh veggies at their peak of ripeness during the summer. Then, in the winter, I don't have to buy commercially frozen veggies or long-distance transported ones. In order to do more of this, I'd like to move my 1985 refrigerator to the basement and use its freezer entirely for this purpose. I would buy a new one designated Energy Star. Would this end up being environmentally a plus, a minus, o ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, energy, energy at home, energy efficiency, food and agriculture, green living, local food (all these topics)

Bake Your Cake and Eat It Too On getting a job in the 'eco-field'	Umbra Fisk	14 Jun 2004	Ask Umbra
On getting a job in the "eco-field" By Umbra Fisk 14 Jun 2004 Dear Umbra, I'm a conscientious baby boomer who would like to do things to help the planet. I'm simultaneously enjoying a midlife crisis. I have spent more than eight years in college, studying to be a psychologist/chef. Where in the eco-field is there a place for a reformed business owner/computer teacher/chef with years and years of experience in the psychology of women? Dr. Thom Jacksonvill ...
Topics: advice, Ask Umbra, food and agriculture, green jobs, green living, local food, organic food, sustainable ag (all these topics)

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