Welcome to the Sunday News
Welcome to the first edition of “The Sunday News.” This weekly post at Growers and Grocers will keep you informed of the latest developments in food policy and marketing, sustainable agriculture and organic food, and other issues related to how food gets to your table. Look forward to a link-filled view of what’s happening in the world of food production — to be enjoyed, perhaps, while sipping a cup of fair trade coffee.
Starting stateside, the USDA has announced a new BSE (Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, or Mad Cow Disease) “surveillance program” which amounts to a reduction in testing for the pathology.
The development of this disease serves as a good argument for eating organic, but some farmers are eschewing current trends in labeling which make it difficult for small farms to compete with huge food conglomerates. Matt Pacenza of the Albany Times Union reports on how certain local food producers are moving away from official organic labels as they see big business moving in. Definite food for thought the next time you mechanically pick up an organic product at a big supermarket.
If you are going the organic route, though, you may be interested in the San Francisco Chronicle’s taste test of organic butter. Former Growers and Grocers editor Derrick Schneider will cringe, but the winner was the Whole Foods 365 store brand.
Artisan and organic farming may represent a last hope for small agriculture, but a heart-breaking article from the Toronto Star tells Canadians that it’s time to let go of the family farm. Read it and weep.
Finally, if you ponder the reasons for the American fat phenomenon, click by Slate for some alternative explanations of obesity. It apparently isn’t all about super-sizing, unhealthy foods and lack of exercise. Air conditioning, insufficient sleep, and chemical contamination figure among the other culprits identified in the article.
I hope to hear your comments on these news items, and feel free to send newsworthy links my way!
The article from the Times-Union resonated with me, as a Central New Yorker myself (currently living in Ithaca, but having lived previously near Utica, in Troy, and in Syracuse). I definitely tend to look for local products over the organic choices, in hopes of supporting the local economy. If it’s organic, that’s a good side benefit, but local trumps organic in my mind at the moment.
Upstate New York needs all the help it can get. I hope that the trend toward more awareness of local options will allow the producers to be able to explore more environmentally friendly production (although quite a few do already).