Comments on: Review -The Way We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/ From farm to table, and all the stops along the way. Thu, 20 Nov 2008 14:54:51 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.4 by: Sheryl Kirby http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-245 Sun, 23 Jul 2006 05:10:25 +0000 http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-245 Interesting. I'm just itching to try some of that fine Wisconsin-cultivated chocolate she uses in her desserts. ;)<br /> <br /> Eating completely locally isn't impossible (heck, the Inuit do it, unless they're filling up on Coke and potato chips), but it's definitely not easy, or fun. Wasn't there a couple in BC who tried to do local for a year and had to give up bread because no wheat was grown within 100 miles of where they lived? There's a point where it just becomes illogical. Interesting. I’m just itching to try some of that fine Wisconsin-cultivated chocolate she uses in her desserts. ;)

Eating completely locally isn’t impossible (heck, the Inuit do it, unless they’re filling up on Coke and potato chips), but it’s definitely not easy, or fun. Wasn’t there a couple in BC who tried to do local for a year and had to give up bread because no wheat was grown within 100 miles of where they lived? There’s a point where it just becomes illogical.

]]> by: Derrick Schneider http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-244 Sat, 22 Jul 2006 13:24:03 +0000 http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-244 L'Etoile in Madison, Wisconsin provides a counterargument to the "eating local in the winter is tough" side (as does, I guess, most of human history, when eating local was the only option). Though Odessa Piper (the owner until recently) wasn't able to do all-local menus in the winter, she was able to marshall a large array of local ingredients, and she was moving to local produce.<br /> <br /> In some ways, she's more of a poster child than Alice Waters, since as Sheryl notes, it's no big feat to eat locally in California. L’Etoile in Madison, Wisconsin provides a counterargument to the “eating local in the winter is tough” side (as does, I guess, most of human history, when eating local was the only option). Though Odessa Piper (the owner until recently) wasn’t able to do all-local menus in the winter, she was able to marshall a large array of local ingredients, and she was moving to local produce.

In some ways, she’s more of a poster child than Alice Waters, since as Sheryl notes, it’s no big feat to eat locally in California.

]]> by: Sheryl http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-243 Thu, 20 Jul 2006 05:14:44 +0000 http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-243 Hi Marc, thanks for the link. Interesting stuff.<br /> <br /> My main concern with the "eat local" movement is actually the fact that it's not particularly practical for a lot of people in colder climates. You're in California, so it's a piece of cake for you, but up here in Toronto, if we ate locally year round, we'd be stuck with nothing but pithy apples and root vegetables for most of the winter. And lots of ice wine. :)In Nova Scotia, where I grew up, it is even worse.<br /> <br /> I do local as much as I can during the summer, but come winter, I have no choice but to eat imported fruits and vegetables if I want to get my 5-a-day. Hi Marc, thanks for the link. Interesting stuff.

My main concern with the “eat local” movement is actually the fact that it’s not particularly practical for a lot of people in colder climates. You’re in California, so it’s a piece of cake for you, but up here in Toronto, if we ate locally year round, we’d be stuck with nothing but pithy apples and root vegetables for most of the winter. And lots of ice wine. :) In Nova Scotia, where I grew up, it is even worse.

I do local as much as I can during the summer, but come winter, I have no choice but to eat imported fruits and vegetables if I want to get my 5-a-day.

]]> by: Marc http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-242 Wed, 19 Jul 2006 22:53:04 +0000 http://growersandgrocers.net/2006/07/19/review_the_way_we_eat_why_our_food_choic/#comment-242 Your point about the difficulty of finding food information is well taken and quite important. <br /> <br /> Food industry flacks always love to talk about the "free market" has chosen fast food and factory farming, but how free is a market in which information is nearly impossible to find, or if the buyers are deliberately prevented from being informed about their food choices.<br /> <br /> With regard to food grown overseas, information is scarce. How can I anything about the conditions at a rice farm in Vietnam, Thailand or India? Do they use DDT? What are the labor laws? And even if they are strong, are they followed and enforced? Do Singer and Mason expect that the importer listed on my bag of rice would know? <br /> <br /> I somewhat agree with Singer's and Mason's argument about how every food has a most favorable origin (rice from Southeast Asia, for example, instead of Texas or California) and that the energy efficiency of ocean transport is relatively high. But the issue of pollution from transport needs to be considered. I wrote something about this over at Eat Local Challenge ( http://www.eatlocalchallenge.com/2006/06/an_hourglass_of.html ). <br /> <br /> <br /> Your point about the difficulty of finding food information is well taken and quite important.

Food industry flacks always love to talk about the “free market” has chosen fast food and factory farming, but how free is a market in which information is nearly impossible to find, or if the buyers are deliberately prevented from being informed about their food choices.

With regard to food grown overseas, information is scarce. How can I anything about the conditions at a rice farm in Vietnam, Thailand or India? Do they use DDT? What are the labor laws? And even if they are strong, are they followed and enforced? Do Singer and Mason expect that the importer listed on my bag of rice would know?

I somewhat agree with Singer’s and Mason’s argument about how every food has a most favorable origin (rice from Southeast Asia, for example, instead of Texas or California) and that the energy efficiency of ocean transport is relatively high. But the issue of pollution from transport needs to be considered. I wrote something about this over at Eat Local Challenge ( http://www.eatlocalchallenge.com/2006/06/an_hourglass_of.html ).

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