Repost: Fresh and far away

 

 

We are so far removed from our food and its sources. A lot of our food, so-called food is made from a slew of hard to pronounce ingredients, in far away factories, packaged, and then shipped to the grocery store.

Animals no longer graze their natural habitat. Instead, they are confined and slaughtered in giant factories, known as feedlots. It’s very rare to have seen or known the animal that we prepare and eat. Most of us would prefer not to see Emily the cow get electrocuted and then have her throat slit. We cringe at the thought. We don’t even want to be bothered with the skin or bones anymore. Hence, skinless, boneless chicken breast. Think about it…If you had to hunt, kill, and clean the animal…How much meat would you eat?

Fruits and vegetables are grown in massive fields and sprayed with gross amounts of pesticides. We’ve never touched the soil, or pulled up the roots. Some of our fruits and vegetables travel thousands of miles before they make it to the grocery store. That’s how we can enjoy strawberries in the dead of the winter. Such an oddity, we all know strawberries are the taste of summer. Or do we?

We are so very disconnected from our food. As we evolve, we try to do things more efficiently, but along the way we’ve created quite a mess with our industrialized food system. It’s all convenient. It’s all nicely packaged. It’s all wrong.

I’m just one gal on a mission to create a healthier lifestyle for myself.  Along the way, I’ve done a lot of reading, viewing of films, and realize that a healthy lifestyle begins with the food that I eat. I want to share what I learned with others. I hope I don’t come off as a pretentious, know-it-all. I'm not. I really just want to help you make better informed decisions.

Originally posted April 16, 2012.

Fresh and far away

We are so far removed from our food and its sources. A lot of our food, so-called food is made from a slew of hard to pronounce ingredients, in far away factories, packaged, and then shipped to the grocery store.

Animals no longer graze their natural habitat. Instead, they are confined and slaughtered in giant factories, known as feedlots. It’s very rare to have seen or known the animal that we prepare and eat. Most of us would prefer not to see Emily the cow get electrocuted and then have her throat slit. We cringe at the thought. We don’t even want to be bothered with the skin or bones anymore. Hence, skinless, boneless chicken breast. Think about it…If you had to hunt, kill, and clean the animal…How much meat would you eat?

Fruits and vegetables are grown in massive fields and sprayed with gross amounts of pesticides. We’ve never touched the soil, or pulled up the roots. Some of our fruits and vegetables travel thousands of miles before they make it to the grocery store. That’s how we can enjoy strawberries in the dead of the winter. Such an oddity, we all know strawberries are the taste of summer. Or do we?

We are so very disconnected from our food. As we evolve, we try to do things more efficiently, but along the way we’ve created quite a mess with our industrialized food system. It’s all convenient. It’s all nicely packaged. It’s all wrong.

I’m just one gal on a mission to create a healthier lifestyle for myself.  Along the way, I’ve done a lot of reading, viewing of films, and realize that a healthy lifestyle begins with the food that I eat. I want to share what I learned with others. I hope I don’t come off as a pretentious, know-it-all. I'm not. I really just want to help you make better informed decisions.

On Saturday, April 21 from 1-4 p.m at the Cascade Park Community Library there’ll be a showing of FRESH The Movie. The film explores the current food industry and honors the farmers, thinkers, and business people who are revolutionizing fresh food in America. 

I hope you’ll be able to join us. There’ll be a panel to lead a discussion and answer questions after the film. And, I’ll prepare healthy snacks for everyone to enjoy. Free. Open to the community.

To get your palette's whet this week, the blog posts, are dedicated to fresh, whole food. I may even provide a recipe or two.

Guilty indulgence

I couldn't help myself. Before I knew it I had put them in my cart. I was enticed by the low price of 99 cents. I kind of see why the .99 fast-food value menu works for some. As I put them in my cart I felt a little guilty. Without me checking the label I already knew the blueberries were not grown locally -- there's no way they could be. There's no where within a 200 mile radius that is warm enough to produce blueberries this time a year. That would mean the blueberries came from far, far away. Sure, enough the label read "Product of Chile." I rationalized: If I didn't buy them other customers would. Besides, they were already shipped over 5,000 miles -- why shouldn't I indulge in them? Hmm...That's a fully loaded question. One I'm afraid to even try to answer. Let's just say I enjoyed the blueberries with a little bit of Greek Yogurt and they were delicious. Shame on me for indulging in non-local blueberries.

A while ago I mentioned I wanted to write a series of blogs "Stewards of the Earth" that would explore:

• Sustainability
• Feedlots
• Food deserts
• Organic food 
• Local food
• Milk - The Truth
• Plant based diets 

Well, I think my guilty indulgence is the perfect way to get that series started.  Coming up soon a blog post about local produce.

"Stewards of Earth"

Will Allen - Growing Power

A journalist by trade, I've always had an inquisitive nature, combined with my Jesuit education -- watch out! I'm always seeking information, questioning everything, and advocating change. Throughout this amazing self-transformation and weight loss journey I've evolved and learned so much about health, fitness, food, and of course myself. I'm bursting at the seams with tons of information about the food industry. I have a nagging desire to share it -- it's my civic duty, the journalist in me. My goal over the next several weeks, months is to pass on what I've been learning, reading, researching to you. We've got a lot of ground to cover, but some of the bigger topics are:

• Sustainability
• Feedlots
• Food deserts
• Organic food 
• Local food
• Milk - The Truth
• Plant based diets

I am forever changed by what I've learned about the food industry, the abuse of animals, raping of the land, and the government's involvement or lack thereof. The food industry is in need of a huge overhaul. It's going to take some work on the part of the people and that's why I feel it's very important I share what I've learned. It's going to take all of us to stand up and say no more.

A few weeks ago, I added two new sections to the blog "Food and Your Health" and "Food and Your Health: Recommended Readings & Films" if you haven't checked these sections out I urge you to do so. Also, check out these farmers who are doing there part in keeping alive the traditional farming practices with the help of some modern technology:

Will Allen - Growing Power
Joel Salatin - Polyface Farms 

"We are stewards of Earth, we are to respect the design of nature." Joel Salatin