Why local?

Last night I had the opportunity to attend a meeting of Think Local First, an alliance of local businesses trying to get the word out there that supporting local business is good for the whole community. http://www.thinklocalsantacruz.org
For example
Supporting Local Business, Keeping an Independent Community

Did You Know...
For every $100 spent at a locally owned business, $45 continues to circulate within the community vs. $13 from a non-local business. And if the business is selling locally produced items even more money, if not all, stays right here!

This is from their web site.....
New Study Shows 10% Shift to Indies Makes Significant Economic Impact
Sep 25, 2008
On September 23, Local First of Grand Rapids, Michigan, unveiled the results of the new economic study "Local Works: Examining the Impact of Local Business on the West Michigan Economy." The study revealed that a modest change in consumer behavior -- a mere 10 percent shift in market share to independent businesses from chain stores -- would result in 1,600 new jobs, $53 million in wages, and a $137 million economic impact to the area. "Local Works" was funded by the Steelcase Foundation and conducted by Civic Economics.
"We are looking forward to sharing the results with local policy makers and our local community," said Elissa Sangalli Hillary, Local First executive director. "So often, individuals feel overwhelmed and unable to make a difference. The study shows that by choosing to support locally owned businesses, individuals can help to create and retain jobs in [their] community."
For the study, Civic Economics analyzed the performance and economic impact of independent businesses in Kent County, Michigan, and identified opportunities for economic enhancement based on that analysis. Data was collected and analyzed for businesses in four lines of goods: pharmacies, grocery stores, full-service restaurants, and banks.
Hillary noted that "Local Works" confirmed the results of similar studies across the country, including Civic Economics studies conducted in Chicago, San Francisco, and Austin, Texas. She added, however, that, while these earlier studies generated great momentum for independent businesses, some policymakers have dismissed them unfairly based on the theory that Austin, Chicago, and San Francisco are somehow atypical communities. No one will be able to dismiss "Local Works" on that premise, she said.
According to the study, "the 1,600 additional jobs created by a 10 percent shift in market share from chains to locals "would have been enough to increase employment by one-half of one percent in 2007. Output for the county could be increased by $137 million as well, and this benefit would be spread among many industries, not only the retail sector."
Additionally, "Local Works" concludes: "The magnitude of these impacts is such that, under ordinary circumstances, economic development organizations and public agencies would rally to the cause, actively recruiting and incentivizing any firm promising such an impact. As it happens, consumers can themselves create these impacts with only a modest shift in their habits and behavior." --David Grogan
More news from Bookselling This Week: http://news.bookweb.org/

Rainbow Rice!

This one worked moderately well at getting my picky eater to consume a bit of food at dinner. The green beans, yellow, orange, and red peppers, purple and blue (used a drop of plant based blue food dye) eggplants are from our CSA and the brown basmati rice is organic, though I don't know where from. I also added cut up leftover chicken from a previous meal, though sadly it is only a free range organic chicken and not a local pasture raised one*. The prep wasn't too hard, I blanched the green beans before dicing, diced up everything else and, in order of yellow to blue, stir fried everything with a bit of garlic, ginger, sesame oil, and salt. The rice was steamed with homemade stock, which I make using any left over vegetable pieces, meat bones, and herbs. (Whenever we have meat I freeze any bones or pieces that we don't give the dog and every other week or so I get out my huge pot, chuck in everything and let it simmer all day. Viola! Oh, and I add a tablespoon or so of apple cider vinegar to get more minerals out of the bones.) I'd say she ate about 1 1/2 cups of the stuff, and I felt elated!

*I'll go into the pastured chicken vs. free range organic chickens in another post soon. I want to do a bit more research first to give solutions instead of frustration.

What is it about refined flour?

Why does a croissant hit the crave button so much louder than my sourdough flax bread from the CSA? Why does cake make me grab and bran muffins make me think twice? Why are my ethics and need for healthy foods so easily subverted by sugar? Why doesn't knowing better make more of a difference?

Questions I'm working on...

And while I'm at it...Why do people think that because I've got chef in my repertoire that I know how to get kids to eat? My 3 1/2 year old can pass for not yet 2, she is so little. She loves ladybugs and likes pasta and cheese, so I made her ravioli that I used marinara and shitake mushrooms (both of which she likes) to decorate to look like ladybugs. She refused to eat, and not for sympathy to the "bugs". She wouldn't even take a bite of her brother's ravioli that was dry. Of which there was plenty 'cause he wouldn't eat more than 1/2 of one ravioli! Arggghhhh! I wish I knew the trick, other than mac n cheese or fish sticks! It seems if it's from a box and not really food, they'll eat it all. What kind of survival of the species instinct is this! They are begining to refuse anything I offer them on a spoon. My daugter had to be coerced this morning with bribes of blueberry smoothie to taste the honey on my tea spoon. What, do they think I'd make them taste something awful? "Here Emerald, try this liverwurst and marzipan frosting I made..." What to do....?

Kinda important too

please follow the link 'cause I haven't figured out how download the video directly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4FrsZv3hS8

its a fun little commercial for americans.

Got S.O.L.E.?

I've created this blog as a means to discuss, rant, consider, and express my concerns about what and how we eat. To me as a mom, wife, human, and chef, food is one of the most essential things I do that I direct control over. Though the more I'm aware of eating, the more I realize how much of my ability to decide what I'm going to eat has been stolen from me without my knowledge. I'm finding the need to be hyper vigilant when I get food. I can never make assumptions, but must do research and often extensive detective work just to find the answers to the basic questions I want to, and should, know about my meal. These questions are:
What is this?
Where did it come from?
Is it healthy?
What is it made/grown with/from?
What is the cost?

In terms of "What is this?" too often I grab a box of something that has a picture of food on it, but upon further examination I find that it is many other things as well, many of them things I have no idea what they are. A simple thing like rice has other things like maltodextrin, lecithin, modified food starch, soybean oil with TBHQ added, monosodium glutamate, disodium guanylate, & disodium insoinate (which are labeled as flavor enhancers). I can take the time and look these up, but I'm pretty sure most of these aren't that healthy and some may be downright scary. The fact is that I don't know, and shouldn't I? If I'm going to put this into my body, and my breast milk?
"Where did it come from?" In the case of this rice, the package says "Distributed from New Orleans". But where did the rice come from? Or the disodium quanylate? I don't know and doubt even with calling the company or even going to the distributing warehouse that I would not be able or allowed to find out specifics. In this age of global intermixing of products, and all the news about the milk from China, I'd like to know where my food lived out its days. Not to mention the possibility that eating food from my own eco-system helps my body to deal with and adjust to the elements of that eco-system.
"Is it healthy?" Probably the most loaded question of all. With scientists, nutritionists, doctors, herbalists, and folk wisdom all having their own say, I have come to the conclusion that nothing is "safe" to eat and everything could possibly cause some kind of harm. Water can be contaminated from toxic runoff from the beef ranch upstream, therefore just about everything else can be contaminated as well, not to mention the unhappy hormone, antibiotic, and chemical laden cows themselves. And not overlooking the toxic chemical and BPA filled containers that the food comes in. Just makes me freaked out to think of the depths this question can take me.
"What is it made from or grown with?" Though this harkens back to the first question I feel it should be asked also. Lets go back to the rice, what container was used to cook the parboiled rice? Was it aluminum? I have concerns about cooking with aluminum. Was the water fluoridated? Did the person who put it into its container have the flu? A cut on the hand? Will I only find the answer to that question too late? Was it grown in a field next to an over concentrated feedlot? Was it grown in a field next to a busy freeway? Did the seeds occur in a natural process of evolution or a laboratory? Was it watered from a stagnant pond, a fresh spring, or snow melt from two states away?
"What is the cost?" By this question I do not only mean the price on the label. Cost involves how and who brought it to this point. The toll on the eco systems, environment, farmers, workers, producers, packagers, shippers, fuel ( and oh how we are learning about the huge depths that simple word goes. Think polar bears, soldiers, families, politics, financial institutions, etc...), suppliers, vendors, grocers, advertisers, my time, my kids time, and last but by far not least, our health after consuming the product. Is this food food worth the cost?

So getting back to the point, I'm striving(and struggling)to keep what we consume good for us. Sustainable for our health, our community, our environment, our future, our planet. Organic and not riddled with chemicals, enhancers, laboratory science, and/or politics. Local support for local support. We couldn't thrive without keeping our community together. I love our village and want to keep it. And ever being mindful of my place in ecology. Ecology is the scientific study of the distribution and abundance of life and the interactions between organisms and their natural environment. I think we play a very central role in our ecology and cannot fully know the impact we will make over the course of time. Not only to our surroundings, but to ourselves. We must take the interactions of all things we do very seriously. To quote a t-shirt "Karma is as Karma does".

So keep checking in with me and maybe together we can find a way to eat and be merry!