Monthly Archives: December 2009

Famine Awareness in a Time of Holiday Plenty

December 10, 2009 By in Food Tags: Leave a comment

At this time of year, when food seems to be everywhere and on everyone’s mind, hunger can be such an abstract concept.

We talk about the importance of giving to worthy food organizations; we contribute to holiday food drives and we share food with friends and coworkers. We work hard to limit our waste, so that we will not be tossing away food while so many others are hungry.

These are all good things.

We’re thankful for all that we have.

This 2007 video about the Niger and Sudan famines is a hard video to watch. We are so protected from this kind of suffering. These images are unlike any we are used to seeing. And yet, they are just the images that communicate so clearly that real people need help.

Please watch this video and consider making a donation to a charity of your choice this holiday season to provide food to somebody, somewhere.

This video may be upsetting to some people. For that, I am sorry. I can only hope that out of that kind of discomfort comes a desire to work toward change.

Famine Awareness Video

My Snowblower’s Stinky Fumes: Another Piece of the Footprint Problem

December 9, 2009 By in Healing and Wellness, Sustainability Tags: , 4 Comments

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, my snowblower expels a pound of carbon monoxide for every hour that it runs. That’s the equivalent of CO expelled while driving in an average car for 70 miles.

My carbon footprint calculator that I wrote about a few days ago didn’t ask me about snowblowers, but I thought about this problem today as the snow began to fall. Having just given in last year to the idea of owning a snowblower, I’m not ready to give it up. It’s a lifesaver, at times.

But, how does using it fit into my goal of decreasing my own carbon footprint?

A calorie calculator at www.healthstatus.com tells me that shoveling snow for 90 minutes, which is about how long it takes me to shovel what I can clear with the snowblower in an hour, will burn 662 calories. That’s a decent workout, and certainly an incentive to leave the snowblower behind as often as I can.

Today’s snow was initially light and fluffy, and shoveling the first time around was easy–even pleasant. By later in the day, it had become heavy and wet. Shoveling it again would have been a long, hard, back-straining couple of hours. I was grateful for my snowblower’s help.

Reserving the snowblower for storms that are just too hard to manage on my own with a shovel might be an appropriate compromise. It could be nice to take a break from its stinky fumes for the lighter, fluffier snows, and get some exercise benefit as well. After all, it will always be parked right there if I need it.

As for the carbon footprint challenge: if I can at least stay neutral, by doing something to cancel out the emissions of using the snowblower once, I could justify using it.

An obvious option would be to cancel a couple of car trips each time I use it. Or, I could dry my laundry that week on the wooden drying rack, saving 4.4 pounds of CO2 per load. I don’t understand how much CO2 savings might offset one pound of CO but, for now, I’m comfortable with a very squishy guess.

Let’s hope the next storm brings some dry, fluffy snow. I’m looking forward to fresh air and a little exercise that doesn’t leave me heading off to physical therapy.

Climate Change: My Problem or Someone Else’s?

December 7, 2009 By in Sustainability Tags: , , , , , Leave a comment

President Obama is going to propose in Copenhagen next week that the United States cut its carbon emissions 17 percent by 2020.

I got to wondering what my personal role in our country’s achieving that goal might be. Many online carbon footprint calculators are available; this one calculates your carbon footprint and allows you to store the information for later reference. A perfect option for measuring personal progress.

The calculation has two components: the primary footprint (house, fuel, plane trips, overall energy usage, etc.) and the secondary footprint (food choices, clothing, furniture, other purchases, etc.). We have direct control over our primary footprint and indirect control over our secondary footprint.

My carbon footprint is 8.60 tons of CO2 per year. The average carbon footprint in this country is 20.40 tons per year. The average for other industrial nations is 11 tons. That seemed like an accomplishment to be proud of until I read that the average carbon footprint worldwide is 4 tons.

According to this website, my personal goal should be to decrease my carbon footprint to two tons per year! That’s a decrease of  about 75 percent. That’s what needs to happen if we’re really going to address global climate change.

Based on my answers to the questions, I guessed I should take fewer flights, buy less new clothing and consider tucking my money under my mattress, rather than using banking institutions.

In an effort to be more scientific, I returned to the calculator to see what goals I might realistically set for myself. The site also offers plenty of specific data about what contributes to a hefty carbon footprint, with information about appliances, light bulbs, water usage and more. Recalculating my footprint for my new, theoretical self was more fun.

I added a person to my now theoretical household, creating a household of two, rather than one. I then projected modest savings in monthly electric and gas bills–enough that I could expect to be routinely drying clothes on the drying rack and probably keeping the thermostat at about 60 degrees in the winter. Those two cuts reduced my overall footprint by nearly two tons.

The first time around, I’d called myself a vegetarian, since I’m closer to being one than to being either a fish eater or a meat eater. In the second round, I opted not to overreach to become a vegan, though I’m sure it would have helped a lot.

Flying is a big contributor (huge!) to the problem. Although I’d heard and read this many times, taking the test and then retaking it with fictitious data drove home the point. Decreasing my number of cross-country trips from three to one per year, and adding one train trip per year to New York City (to meet my sister there, rather than flying to Montana) decreased my carbon footprint by another 1.35 tons.

I saved a little more here and there by projecting changes like buying no food with any packaging at all and by imagining my household with zero waste production. So much for my flexibility around the “no packaging rule”? And, could I really never throw anything out? Never?

Tucking my money under my mattress would save me another .40 tons!

Even with these changes–most of which seem pretty tough to me–I only managed to decrease my carbon footprint to 4.54 tons per year.

Leaving my 2009 data stored in my account, I decided to chip away at making some further changes in 2010. I can do a better job with this. I’m sure we’ll hear in the next couple of weeks more detail about how the country as a whole will meet its goal of 17 percent in 10 years. Certainly, setting and meeting a goal of decreasing my own carbon footprint even 10 percent in the coming year would help a tiny bit.

What’s your carbon footprint? Is it a number we each should get to know? I think so. Knowing it, and what comprises it, demysticizes it and makes changing it seem possible.

Knowing it makes part of the problem of global climate change mine to address.

Take the test.

Wendell Berry Proposes ‘Leadership from the Bottom’ to Save Land, Towns

December 6, 2009 By in Local Food, Sustainability Tags: , , , , , 2 Comments

An article posted at  www.commomdreams.org, recaps a speech given this week at the University of Virginia by author/poet/farmer Wendell Berry on the destruction of land and small towns by large-scale farming. He talked about the need to engage small landowners in forestry and agriculture in order to stop the outflow of farm and forest products to be processed elsewhere, a process that drains communities of both resources and jobs.

Wendell Berry advocates for building a local forestry movement in parallel to the local food movement. Instead of cutting and shipping logs far away to be processed into wood products to be used elsewhere, the entire process would take place locally. A saw mill in every county? Could a shift make economic sense in this Walmart era?

According to Berry, the problems in both agriculture and forestry have been caused by a passive populace, obsessed with easy answers. “Simple solutions will always lead to complex problems, surprising simple minds,” he said.

He proposes “leadership from the bottom,” with landowners engaging in small-scale farming and forestry, while keeping their products close to home–a shift back to older agrarian ideals. The local food movement is realizing that shift; whether there is a parallel forestry movement, or the beginnings of one, is hard to say.

He is right. The power is with the consumers, the landowners, the voters. I believe that we can begin to shift toward a food system that protects our land, soils, forests and water, at the same time that it supplies us with healthy, delicious food. We can seek out wood and paper products that are produced locally, when possible.

We can make that shift begin to happen. I haven’t read Wendell Berry’s most recent book, Bringing It to the Table: On Farming and Food, but it’s next on my list.

In the mean time, snow fell overnight in New Hampshire. Winter is on its way.

Holly in Snow

Local Food Forum Gets Things Moving in Concord

December 5, 2009 By in Farmers Markets & CSAs, Local Food, Sustainability Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

Earlier this week, I participated in a Local Food Forum here in Concord, New Hampshire, hosted by the Merrimack County Conservation District with funding from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation. It was part of a series around Concord that was created with the goal of understanding what the community wants to see happen on local food issues. Food activist and educator Ruth Smith is heading up the initiative.

The forum opened with Ruth moderating a panel discussion with two farmers and the executive chef from the Marriott Courtyard in Concord, New Hampshire, where the forum was held. I naively expected farmers and consumers alike to be interested in organic and sustainable agriculture, but it was a diverse group. One farmer on the panel said, referring to her use of pesticides and herbicides, “I want the option to save my crop.” I appreciated her candidness, but I appreciate more the diligence of the committed organic farmers participating in my CSA. There’s so much at stake.

A happy surprise was that the Marriott Courtyard recently formed a “green team” and has put quite a bit of effort into sourcing produce locally, in season, rather than buying exclusively through Sysco, the giant restaurant and hotel food distributor. Kudos to Executive Chef Trish Taylor for her efforts. She commented that it’s easiest to incorporate the fluctuating supply of locally-grown vegetables and fruit into the hotel’s conference food services menu, because she has day-to-day flexibility with menu options. And, she said the difference in taste and quality is well worth the extra time spent on food prep. Even the risk of an occasional insect in the lettuce–that is, after it’s been washed twice–is worth it. She said the customers applaud the hotel’s effort.

I picked up some interesting tidbits that I’ll follow up on for sure. I didn’t know that Apple Hill Farm sends some of their cider off to be made into vodka at the Flag Hill Winery in Lee, New Hampshire. How exciting to find out about a New Hampshire vodka!

A good number of local farmers showed up, and many were surprised and frustrated that consumers were unaware of the existing publications and websites where they’re already marketing their offerings. Check out the New Hampshire Virtual Farmers Marketplace, a website that I’d never heard about until this forum (and I’d searched several times for just such a site).

Farmers also seemed to be saying they can’t grow more because they have no more land; demand for local produce has exceeded supply, or just about. The need for protecting land in our area from development and keeping it in agricultural use is clear and urgent.

I came away from the evening with my head full, and a little frustrated. I realized my expectations of the forum had more to do with the politics of food than simple access to local food, although it’s all part of one big issue, I guess. I look forward to being a part of an active local network of people who are ready to work for change by:

  • growing food differently, in ways that are healthy for us and for the environment;
  • choosing more thoughtfully where we buy our food;
  • working together to decrease food waste;
  • facing the challenges of getting good, local food to school children and low-income people;
  • sharing resources and ideas to enable us to produce more products locally; and
  • actively getting information out about what’s available and why it’s so great.

I’m in awe of the local food networks up and running around New England, especially in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom. More on that, later! There’s so much going on up there, it’s easy to dream of moving there someday.

For now, I live in Concord, New Hampshire. There’s a lot happening here that’s good, and there’s more good yet to make happen.

I’m Turning Into A Vegetable

December 3, 2009 By in Food, Healing and Wellness, Local Food, Sustainability Tags: , , , , , , 1 Comment

My recent adventure on www.realage.com gave me some interesting feedback, not all of which was uplifting. I’d been scrupulously honest in my responses to endless questions about my health and lifestyle, including many questions about my diet and, overall, the test seemed to be quite credible.

One of the most curious bits of feedback was the instruction to eat more vegetables.

Let’s be clear about one thing. I eat a lot of vegetables. I’m not sure I could count the number of daily servings easily. Most nights, vegetables comprise my entire dinner. I often eat only vegetables for lunch and for snacks between meals as well.

Friends worry that I don’t get enough protein, so I try to include nuts, seeds, legumes, grains and, sometimes, eggs or a little goat cheese. Very infrequently, I’ll eat fish or shellfish. On most days, vegetables easily make up at least 85 percent of my diet.

Tonight, I roasted up a beautiful assortment of fall vegetables: beets (yellow and red), carrots, parsnips, celeriac, blue potatoes, garlic and butternut squash.

Unroasted Vegetables

Roasted vegetables have become one of my favorite cold weather dinners. I cooked enough to have some on hand tomorrow for leftovers, or to puree with stock into a delicious roasted vegetable soup. The subtle caramelized flavor and little crunchy bits of garlic really make a soup special. Served with a dollop of goat cheese, it’s perfect.

For tonight, though, the simple goodness of the freshly roasted vegetables, hot from the oven, is just right.

I’ve decided not to take that particular piece of RealAge advice too seriously. Perhaps it’s a glitch in the application or some (really) crazy nutritionist’s bias. I feel great and I love my vegetables–that’s what counts.

Maybe the more serious concern is that voiced by concerned onlookers: that if I keep eating vegetables at this current rate, I could actually turn into a vegetable.

I’ll take the risk.

Ms. Potato Head

The Perfect Food Coop

December 2, 2009 By in Farmers Markets & CSAs, Food, Local Food Tags: , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

I’ve visited several food coops in the past few months in northern New England, enjoying each for its unique character and offerings. I realize now that I’ve been on somewhat of a quest for the perfect food coop.

When I need something that my CSA, the farmers market or my little garden don’t provide, I head to one of a few different stores: the local Hannaford’s, the Concord Cooperative Market, A Market in Manchester or, sometimes, Trader Joe’s. I do my best to stay focused on my list and get in and get out. At Hannaford’s, I practice the “perimeter only” rule, only going into the aisles for specific items. Although I support the Concord Cooperative Market, it doesn’t quite meet my needs, but it’s hard to say just why not.

My favorite coop of all, so far, is Montpelier, Vermont’s Hunger Mountain Coop. It’s beautiful in every way. It offers baked goods from at least a dozen local bakeries (including gluten-free), countless Vermont cheeses, meats and other local products. The produce section goes on forever and everything is picture perfect–and mostly local and organic (at least it was in September). I know there was packaged food available, but it was not featured prominently in the center of the store. In fact, I don’t remember the packaged food at all. The store made me want to buy fresh food.

I think I also loved it because it feels so much like Montpelier, and so much like it belongs to a community of people who really care about their food. It does not feel like a grocery store in any traditional sense of the word. I left the store wanting to live in Montpelier.

Here’s a thought-provoking article by Bob St.Peter at Grassroots Economic Organizing about what’s wrong with food coops these days: The Fall of Natural Foods Cooperatives and What We Can Do About It.

Last night’s Local Food Forum here in Concord left me thinking even more about this area’s local food options. I feel best about spending my food dollars at the Coop, but I think I need to do a better job communicating my vision for the perfect Concord Cooperative Market, since shopping 122 miles away isn’t really the practical local food option I’m looking for. I will, however, be sure to visit the Hunger Mountain Coop any chance I get.

A Vegetarian Diet and the Environment

December 1, 2009 By in Healing and Wellness, Sustainability Tags: , , Leave a comment

“Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances of survival of life on earth as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.” – Albert Einstein

The reasons to move even more toward a plant-based diet, or even a completely vegan diet, are compelling. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately.

It takes up to 12,000 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef. It takes between 2 and 50 pounds of grain to produce one pound of animal protein, in general.

Raising animals for our eating pleasure is the primary reason for deforestation.

The pesticides, fertilizers and antibiotics required to support the whole system end up in our bodies, our food and our water.

Try the The Meatrix Interactive at the Daily Table for a look at the environmental impacts of a factory farm.

In the mean time, remembering my own words about black and white thinking, I’m going to continue on a path of moving toward a plant-based diet, without proclaiming myself a 100 percent vegetarian quite yet.