Anyone who shops at Trader Joe's knows that they have a good variety of organic items. I avoid them because their produce isn't great and it all comes wrapped in plastic. As it turns out, there is another reason to avoid TJ's... The World Society for the Protection of Animals wants them to start selling more humane food.
In WSPA's recent report, Trader Joe's was tied with Safeway for 9th place. Whole Foods was first. Go to their website: eathumane.org to sign the petition.
Two twenty-something organic farmers have been driving around in a school-bus-cum-organic farm trying to drum up support for an organic farm on the White House lawn (thus The WHOFarm Project). Their hope is that whomever is elected President of the United States will dedicate a portion of the lawn to growing organic, non-GMO produce, many with heirloom seeds. These guys are ambitious!
There is hope (maybe) if Obama is president that he would consider. I have a feeling Sarah Palin and Co. would rather have some moose grazing on the lawn. She can shoot them from her office window.
I've been a vegetarian for about a week now. The hardest part is not the cravings, but remembering that i'm not eating meat. That may sound weird since this was a conscious decision that I made. Yesterday at work, a PA walked in with a box of In-N-Out Double Doubles. I almost reached for one before remembering that I am 1) on a diet and 2) now a vegetarian. Luckily for both, I didn't slip.
That said, being a vegetarian is a lot better than being on a diet.
The Corn Refiner's Association has this new ad promoting High Fructose Corn Syrup (HGCS).
Don't believe the hype. HFCS, a highly refined sweetener is blamed for rising diabetes and obesity rates in the U.S. It's also grown from GMO corn and uses high amounts of pesticides and petro-chemical fertilizers. In other words, it's terrible for the environment...This is just one more example of the industrial food machine spinning facts for their own benefit.
This is a big issue and there are some great resources out there:
Did you know that you need 23 gallons of water to produce 1 pound of lettuce. 23 gallons. That seems like a lot.
It takes over 200 times that amount of water to produce a pound of beef. To be precise, you need 5,214 gallons of water for just 1 pound of beef. The number goes down a bit for pork (1,630 gallons) and chicken (815).
California is in a drought. If skipping that (delicious) ham sandwich will conserve water, than I'll give it a try.
The Garden School Foundation is a great organization that works with LA Public schools to bring gardens, green space and kitchens to elementary schools.
Why they do it: "Because schools should be like parks not prisons; the best way to learn
about good food is to grow it; and children have to know nature to love
it."
Today's ham sandwich was my last... I've decided to try being a vegetarian for a while. My motivations are purely environmental. I'm heeding the advice of Nobel Peace Price Winner and head of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Dr. Rajendra Pachauri. In September Dr. Pachauri recommended that people limit their meat intake in order to reduce their carbon footprint. The IPCC reports that "meat
production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas
emissions." Read an article here.
So I thank you, ham sandwich, for making my last meat so tasty.