tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9617455300775476482012-02-16T00:35:37.648-08:00Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.comBlogger261100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-12414383704287386842009-08-06T09:02:00.000-07:002009-08-06T09:26:06.059-07:00

It has long puzzled me why things got to be the way they are when I go into the grocery store: organic fruit often has about 3 stickers on it, while "regular" fruit has only one. Why don't we call organics "regular", and non-organics what they are... non-organic, or potentially, chemical-laden dietary hazards? The labeling debates have long been hashed out, and are probably not worth

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-88064296573801921262008-09-04T08:13:00.000-07:002008-09-04T08:29:51.206-07:00

This post, courtesy of Rhonda:"I've been back to school a couple days now. Imagine my surprise when I saw plots of corn on the main student quad...they had sent out an email about it a couple days before students got back to school but I thought it was a little thing...with little corn but no...my school went ALL OUT! Different corn varieties grown under different circumstances. This for First

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-91218541377878483352008-09-04T08:08:00.001-07:002008-09-04T08:12:50.989-07:00

The Permaculture Guy (named Fynn, right?) we met in New Zealand recommended this film highly. It isn't accessible in Netflix, but here's the great news: it's available online! "In Grave Danger of Falling Food," with Bill Mollison. 52:00, well worth watching.

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-11268911944130020342008-08-26T16:44:00.001-07:002008-08-26T17:01:39.006-07:00

The Community Food Security Coalition is up to all the right stuff. Check them out. Their list of publications is especially impressive.And as long as I'm at it, I also caught this article on urban food deserts, involving a study of London, Ontario Canada. Ok ok, so I'm not the most timely blogger (the study came out in mid-April). But it is fascinating stuff, and, I'm sure, still highly

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-48889609972823412792008-08-15T12:40:00.000-07:002008-08-15T13:31:41.525-07:00

My kitchen is almost never caught without mushrooms in the fridge. I love all sorts of ugly mushrooms, with all their goofy-looking gills and super juicy, earthy flavors. But recently I've discovered some things about fungi that make me even more of a fan: Oyster mushrooms (which retail for about $12-18/lb) are being applied in phytoremediation - or should I say, mycoremediation. That is,

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-71784377789056501222008-08-15T12:32:00.000-07:002008-08-15T12:37:39.736-07:00

An old community organizing mantra goes something like this:Give them food, and they will come.This worked in social-work pioneer Jane Addams' time, as she promoted women's rights, children's well-being, and mediated labor disputes in Chicago at one of the nations first settlement houses. And now it's back in vogue, and again thriving at the Hull House:Hull-House Kitchen: Rethinking SoupEvery

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-52785047611482459772008-08-10T18:36:00.000-07:002008-08-10T18:38:43.472-07:00

Frostyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06495571048403767274noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-59455380816419943032008-07-27T15:31:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:25.824-08:00

This Sunday morning I awoke at 6:00 am. Yes, it was early. But not that bad, considering that by 9:00 I'd done a good deed for the week and already felt like I'd made something of my day. I hopped on my bike, rode about a mile south of my house to Uptown, and cooked breakfast for the homeless.We're not talking soup-kitchen style volunteering, though. Oh no. Far better! This was at the

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-26195434012524363992008-07-27T15:23:00.000-07:002008-07-27T15:31:25.590-07:00

I just discovered a pretty fantastic little online resource for issues relating to urban greening, intentional living, all-things-sustainable... In Context (a quarterly journal of humane, sustainable culture) - they have a whole issue (from 1995, but still totally relevant) which includes an interview with David Orr, writings of Wes Jackson, a piece on worms treating sewage, CSA's, food systems,

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-86211887531365599882008-07-18T11:35:00.000-07:002008-07-18T11:43:57.597-07:00

There is an interesting piece out that makes me think a lot about our food case study in Langa, Cape Town that I just ran across. Bushmeat should be included in how we think about food security issues, it argues. Check it out.The point is made that bushmeat stocks are running low, and are directly related to biodiversity questions. And it calls on us to consider how meat consumption in cities

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-1339511209988907922008-07-11T12:53:00.000-07:002008-07-11T13:45:03.271-07:00

This past week the New York Times featured a story on buying shares of local farms, highlighting Erewon farm and mentioning Angelic Organics right here in Chicagoland (the latter of which is owned by my pal, Farmer John). To many of us, supporting local farmers is nothing new - we call it CSA's (community supported agriculture). Here in the midwest, CSA's are a good and growing business, the

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-71529211509269608022008-06-30T09:06:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:26.049-08:00

Hoarding by several nations is a major cause of the current food shortage (and no doubt increased prices), a recent NYT article shows. The article points out that "The current export restrictions, which mainly help urban consumers in poor countries, are the latest blow to farmers in the developing world." Also, it notes that subsidies from the developed world to their farmers, while the IMF

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-23975157339997789902008-06-30T08:38:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:26.311-08:00

This month I've been in two exceptional garden-performance settings, both of which have blown me away .Yesterday, at Ginko Community Garden, located a couple neighborhoods south of me, an experimental theater troupe called Walkabout Theater, in co-sponsorship with NeighborSpace, performed a piece called War Garden. The piece is about the origins of the community gardening in Chicago. According to

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-74898225519806005182008-06-21T09:45:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:26.838-08:00

Summertime is here.My mom served seedless watermelon, orange honeydew melon, and some gorgeous large strawberries for dessert last night. Yummy. The fruit was delicious.It occurred to me that probably all of them were GMO's of some sort. And that this is increasingly the trend which we'll stick with, given the food crisis and all the attention to boosting food production that we're seeming to

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-59992785885255773862008-06-09T09:24:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:27.050-08:00

Lamb’s QuartersI know a secret about you. You’re not such a scourge after all. Scorned by others as a weed It’s not for nothing you sow your seed. You’re called Pigweed. You might be dirty but you’re smart. Vitamin A and nothing tart I don’t think it lewd To call you food. You’re a gem, especially because you’re scorned. Even City Farm aimed to deny you a space, But your worth in

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-24808181420365836452008-05-27T04:40:00.000-07:002008-05-28T14:43:07.797-07:00

For my urban politics class, Amy F.'s final speech surprised me. She talked about vertical farming as the wave of the future, and how we ought to start re-thinking our cities to make them more environmentally and socially more responsible. I had no idea where she had come up with this business about vertical farming, but it was an innovative idea, and her argument was coherent and articulate.

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-41939928573343613322008-05-27T03:57:00.000-07:002008-05-27T04:38:22.789-07:00

Last weekend I was back home. In a city that purports, according to our mayor, to become the nation's "greenest" city.Indeed, Chicago has done a bit to become green - but there is still a long way to go. The city's "Green Festival" - put on by a range of organizers, both governmental and non-, and organized by Global Exchange and Co-op America, showcased thousands of new eco-friendly businesses,

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-59586445356134523762008-05-27T03:46:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:27.316-08:00

If a picture is worth a thousand words, a good map like this one must be worth at least 10,000.Fertilizer prices are up by 3 - 5 times; fertilizer use has also skyrocketed; meanwhile runoff from the fertilizer kills our oceans and rivers, forming "dead zones."  The food crisis ends up not being about food shortage - it's about the high prices of food, and the drivers behind those prices.  Isn't

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-63535378011753752902008-04-08T01:09:00.001-07:002008-04-08T01:23:18.166-07:00

Paul Krugman writes in the New York Times about the global food crisis.... it is good that it's finally being brought to attention in the U.S. This stuff is all over the news right now too in Southern Africa, and there was a 5-page special issue about food insecurity in the Singapore paper I picked up on my way here to New Zealand. More on this issue yet to come, once I have a bit more time to

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-59183778796315949192008-03-25T14:52:00.000-07:002008-12-10T07:42:27.489-08:00

Yep, you heard me, Foraging. Restaurants be damned; foraging is really where food security takes on some interesting dimensions, especially in urban contexts.Michael MacDonald has taught me an immense amount in the past week. A self-proclaimed "survival gardener," 67-year old Michael lives on less than $100/year (more than 3 times below a basic poverty line!) in South Africa, but he far from

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-86285455429445677802008-03-23T14:34:00.001-07:002008-12-10T07:42:27.643-08:00

The market demand for a certain menu that exotifies African food have largely come about in the past 10-15 years; namely, since Apartheid fell and tourists took an interest in South Africa. With this demand, increasingly game meats are being imported to South Africa from Nambia. With increased tourism, game parks are also becoming popular here – areas that were former lamb farms are being

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-68540245706264554732008-02-20T18:24:00.000-08:002008-03-23T14:34:31.869-07:00

I never wanted the blog to sink into restaurant reviews, but one restaurant is still in my mind since mid-January... It was such a good dining experience that it is worthy of note.First:El China de Puebla, located at 3143 Broadway in New York City, forever will be ingrained in my heart, and tastebuds. Run by Ian Nal, the place is simply decorated but stylish, with a big banana tree in the middle

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-90932693343992527482008-02-17T17:09:00.000-08:002008-02-17T18:40:07.631-08:00

Breakfast 1.Itapeva, SP - MST settlement, Insituto da Agro-Ecologia Laudenor de Souza, 8:00 am, 16th February, 2008.To the background of chirping bird and insects, we start off a sunny Saturday morning eating at wooden picnic-style tables, on handmade wooden benches seating about 10 people at each table. Coffee and tea, both sugary-sweet, are set out on top of two crates, in gallon-size thermoses

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-24730645756208799642008-02-07T17:40:00.000-08:002008-02-10T05:55:52.734-08:00

Alice Waters on the Charlie Rose ShowCheck it out, if you've got a decent internet connection and 22 minutes to spare, you won't be disappointed. Alice Waters from Chez Panisse is great. Her bit on the "Delicious Revolution" is a nice way to start thinking about the relationship between food and education - engaging students in the process of growing, cooking, and eating food together. Plus,

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-90676830647235371172008-02-02T07:01:00.000-08:002008-12-10T07:42:28.111-08:00

This week, the EU decided to (again) ban beef imports from Brazil, on the basis that the nation's beef producers weren't doing enough in its hoof-and-mouth disease inspections to ensure beef safety. By most Brazilian accounts I've heard, the gesture is much more about European protectionism than about legitimate health and safety concerns about Brazilian meat.But the affects are more

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-961745530077547648.post-71259667180730615292008-01-31T09:50:00.000-08:002008-02-02T06:56:49.746-08:00

I'd much rather talk about food, eating, and our love of food than hunger and food insecurity. I am crazy about food, but I don't like this food craziness I'm seeing in the world. I decided I should teach and write about what's bugging me.The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization says 842 million people in the world are chronically malnourished. Meanwhile, the U.S. aims at reducing our whopping

Evehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04429410208155068836noreply@blogger.com0