Featured Articles: Food Politics
Food politics featured articles that may or may not include one of our recipes
Food Revolution Day! Do a Little Bit Today
As you may have seen on our Twitter and Facebook, today is Food Revolution Day. Started by Jamie Oliver, he urges people to do their little bit to stand up for real food and bring food education to children. He’s got over 600 cities in over 50 countries pledged to do something today, and you [...]
Selling Less
I’m befuddled by a nagging question, so I put the conundrum to you: how do you sell less and survive? That is, how does one market the philosophy of “less.” Or, can small stay small without being subsumed by something bigger? Can the corner store compete with the big box? In my time away from [...]
Earth Day: World Loves Science
Happy Earth Day! On Friday, I had the most unique opportunity to be in a parade to celebrate the grand opening of the magnificent Nature Research Center at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. A 24-hour party, the rich diversity of North Carolina was on full display as people representing different nations behind the [...]
Earth Day: Speak for the Trees, Go Play, & Baked Brie with Candied Pecans and Cranberries
Dr. Seuss cuts to the chase of what’s at stake, as he does in the Lorax, which has become even more popular with the movie. I have a soft spot for Dr. Seuss (go Big Green!). Like his gabillion and one fans, I never cease to be amazed by his ability to strike at the [...]
Calling (Meat) Eaters: Vegan Ma Po Tofu
Have you heard of the New York Times contest? This contest challenges people to submit essays arguing why it is ethical to eat meat – and the winner gets published. What I find fascinating are the discussions surrounding this – I admit, I am one that loves to read comments. I like reading what people [...]
Why “Organic” isn’t Necessarily “Sustainable,” and Vice Versa
The European Union and US governments recently made an important announcement for those of us who are interested in organic food and farming: As of June 1, 2012, organic certification between the United States and European Union will be considered equivalent. This means that “if it’s organic [in the US], it’s also organic in Europe, [...]
Excess and Balance: Sweet Potato Naan
I am so un-sexy. I went to Vegas this weekend for the first time. I’ve never really been the “Vegas”-type, so figured a mini-reunion with two dear college friends would be the perfect excuse to get there. I had to first ask, what do people in Vegas wear? Well, it quickly became evident that the [...]
Farmwashing Fast Food
We live in interesting times when one of the most popular commercials of the awards season addresses agriculture. Along with my parents (who are farmers), I think that my grandparents (who were/are farmers), my great grandparents (also farmers), and so on (still farmers), would be surprised to know that Chipotle’s Fisher-Price-esque pastoral “Back to the [...]
Stone Age No More: Cookstoves are Cleaning Up
In the hall of a NASA mission briefing room, an older man tells a poignant story of a lady named Adelina Erazo who wakes up every morning at dawn to climb 12 miles to collect wood and return home in time to take care of her girls. The speaker is Salvadorian René Núñez Suárez, and [...]
Eating Animals: A Choice
Until recently, I’ve considered myself to be an omnivore by biological default. In other words, I’ve hardly considered my omnivore status as a choice. My eating meat (and everything else) began as a seemingly natural custom of my farming childhood. We bought cattle, we raised cattle, we sold cattle, and they were returned to us [...]
