Big Business and organics often don't mix.....

The subject of food concerns all of us. Every human eats. What best nourishes the body and soul is food you feel good about eating. How good do you feel about that next bite??

After watching the documentary Food Inc. I am filled with mixed emotions. I have had some experiences with anorexia in my life. Not the kind that leads to a shell of a body, but rather and unwillingness to put anything in my mouth that had a single unpronounceable ingredient on it's label. Not having much money, this can lead to near starvation. The worst was the point in my life when I was homeless and hungry. Even then, I reluctantly ate whatever the shelter prepared and put in my little brown lunch sack. Bologna and ketchup on white bread. I would rather die. Literally. After a month of not having anything real to eat I gave in. I ate the bread and discarded the "meat". It was always a beautiful day when our donated evening meal came from the Hindu family that volunteered at the shelter. I could really feel good about eating the cuisine rich in flavor and nutrition. This happened once a month. I am still grateful for that nourishment!!
I can't blame the shelter for packing such foods in our "beggar bags". They worked with donations and needed cheap food. This is exactly where our society is with it's current food dilemma. How do we offer high quality at a cheap price? Really, there will always be a higher cost. Sacrificing natural, nutritional qualities of foods to squeeze them into a packaged product on the supermarket shelf. We then chemically replace what was lost. It's a mess. I see some companies pushing forward and offering "organic" alternatives. I applaud the effort.
Regardless, mass production of food has it's limitations. Period. I don't care if your label says "organic". If this food is mass produced, we are still going to see a bending and stretching of the rules and guidelines that are ethically and ecologically sound. We have seen this trend for ongoing years. "All natural" no longer means squat to me. I appreciate the acceptance and the push forward, but it is still Big Money....Big Business...Big Mistakes....
http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_42/b4005001.htm

I would like to give an honorable mention to the farmers that stay small and feed a community. These are my heroes. I find the mistreatment and exploitation of these farmers criminal. I suppose one of my lifetime goals is to become part of a community that is fairly self-sustaining. Grow here, eat here, thrive here. There will always be some dependence on outside resources, but it seems much more reasonable to me to focus on a community approach rather than trying to feed millions where the question of quality is concerned. Each would have to do their part, obviously, and barter and trade systems would need to be in place within the region but it is possible. I suppose somewhere......MANY MANY moons ago this was the way we lived. Now we have no idea what it would be like to live this way. I mean, think of everything you eat and use daily that comes from an unknown location!!! Read your labels....where did your products come from?? Even then it is more likely packaged in that location. You may really never know the origination of the ingredients. That scares me. As much as I would likely cry like a baby at having to give up exotic foods, fish,veggies and fruits I would be frightened knowing their history by the time they reached my plate. Truly frightened.


What happened to Gramma's pantry?? (I might just have to open a co-op with this name lol) Grampa had his bees....the bees made heavenly varieties of honey. The honey was eaten on bread served with tons of Gramma's canned veggies, fresh veggies and fruit from THEIR GARDEN!!!! The honey was sold which bought the supplies for these endeavors while Grampa worked in a factory for living expenses. Is this too difficult these days??? I guess so. That's sad.

Far More Than Produce....

When does shopping become more than just purchasing food??? WHEN YOU SPEAK TO OTHER CUSTOMERS!!! I encourage everyone to try this next time they shop!!! You never know what you might learn.

I entered the small grocery store in Oregon, Illinois yesterday with a smile and a warm heart and got far more than groceries. When you first enter this store you find yourself in the produce section. I LOVE fresh produce!! This is not just because I love the colors. This is not just because I love fresh produce. This is because I love to watch as people pick their produce. So much goes on when a person can sift through large sections of fruit and vegetables and fondle every last piece until they find just the right one. Yesterday was no different. I found a sale on cherry tomatoes and a woman in her late 70's. We began to discuss apples. She said she had a problem with the pink ladies. "They tasted like I was eating an unripe green apple from the tree" I had to giggle. I wonder if this is something most of my generation can even remember doing? I can remember. I also remember when a red delicious was delicious. I commented on how grainy they have become. This was the spark of a whole discussion of holistic nutrition, new foods, and the quality of the produce in local markets. By the time we had discussed the quality of local produce, using star fruit as a substitution for pineapple in an upside down cake, and the absence of a grocery store in my town, another woman chimed in. She told us of the larger farmer's market in Rockford. (Illinois' second largest city just 45 minutes north of us) We continued on through the produce section discussing family size and the troubles a mom can have with serving healthful foods to please the whole family. Eventually we all went our separate ways and continued our shopping.
With a full cart I found found my self on the other side of the store in the dairy section completing my shopping. I heard a small voice. " I finally caught up with you." I looked to see the first woman extending a bag of apricots in my direction. "I don't know if your family will eat these, but they have a super deal on them." I was shifted back to childhood again. Apricots were another fruit I ate straight from the tree as a child. "Look" she said "They are good looking apricots." "Yes, they are." I replied, filled with the joy that I had somehow bonded with this woman. "Thank you so much."

Starting Class

Missing in this photo....the extra large coffee pot that is kept full for the entire crew(the pistachios are propped against the top), , my head is covering the tortillas and the cottage cheese, I have a GIANT zit on my cheek that you can hardly see due to the angle, and last but not least...MY ALMONDS!! (this is a crisis...they are a staple). I don't seem to be talented enough to get a full body shot by myself. Hahaha I do, however, have several photos from this time period to observe changes.