Food

I caught an interesting interview on The Diane Rehm Show on Boston's WGBH Radio yesterday.  The interview was with Dr. Dickson Despommier, author of The Vertical Farm: Feeding Ourselves and The World in the 21st Century and Bob Young, chief economist at the American Farm Bureau Federation.  

Dr. Despommier's book is coming out next week, and I can't wait to read it.  Last month I wrote about urban farming, and the concept of "vertical farming" takes urban farming to a much bigger and exciting level.  

Despommier's website says that by the year 2050, nearly 80% of the earth's population will reside in urban centers.  Meanwhile, much urban space is being underutilized and urban centers often don't have access to fresh, local food.  The solution?  Farm vertically.  Farm "up."  Build indoor farms on this land, such as tall greenhouses or using hydroponics.  Think of how green this is.  No shipping produce long distances, no tractors, and less water usage.  ... read more

Apparently I have imbibement on the brain, between my earlier post about wine and this one.  

If you're a beer lover trying to lower your carbon footprint, one way you can do so is by supporting your local breweries.  I know that Chimay is sooo good, but obviously beer brewed in your locale has a far lower carbon footprint than your favs shipped over from Belgium.

Here is a fantastic resource for finding breweries or learning which beers you see on menus and at the stores are actually brewed in your area:  The Brewer's Association National Directory.    Some breweries may also be pubs, others might give tours where you can taste beer.  (Yum!)... read more

Last year I wrote about food labels, All Natural vs. Organic.  To get an organic label, the USDA needs to certify it, but food labeled Natural or All Natural means very little.  

The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), a health advocacy group, contacted Ben & Jerry's saying, "At least 48 out of 53 flavors of Ben & Jerry’s 'All Natural' ice cream and frozen yogurt contain alkalized cocoa, corn syrup, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, or other ingredients that either don’t exist in nature or that have been chemically modified. Calling products with unnatural ingredients 'natural' is a false and misleading use of the term, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest."... read more

I'm a big fan of Annie's Homegrown.  (Gimme mac and cheese, please!)  Annie's recently started a program called Root 4 Kids.  Root 4 Kids hopes to inspire kids and their families to eat real food. 

The website has a virtual garden, games, coloring, and quizzes.  You can take a pledge to inspire kids to dig real food and check out some recipes and other food-related resources.  Schools also have the opportunity to get involved.  ... read more

You know you've got an unhealthy product if changing its name to something with "SUGAR" in it seems healthier.  

The Corn Refiners Association, the lobbying group and manufacturing association that represents the makers of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has petitioned the FDA asking to identify high-fructose corn syrup on food packaging as "corn sugar."  You've probably seen those ridiculous commercials by the Corn Refiners Association, which, apparently aren't doing their job because HFCS sales are currently at a 20-year low.  Meanwhile, more and more research is finding out about the dangers of HFCS.... read more