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Feb / March 2007
LOVE
by Barbara Davies, ND
Astrology and Alchemy
by Marlyna Los
GREEN CLIPPINGS
by Canadian Organic Growers
The Goji Berry
Editorial
Relaxation Yoga
by Sheri Kauhausen
Hidden Additives in Plain View
by Brian Cox
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GREEN CLIPPINGS
by Canadian Organic Growers
An new internet publication for organics in Alberta:
www.goingorganic.ca offers a column called Green Clippings, raked in by Pam Irving. These gems are reprinted from The Canadian Organic Grower Magazine published by the Canadian Organic Growers. Their site,
www.cog.ca, is the National Information Network for Farmers, Gardeners and Consumers and a cornucopia of information.
Eating local organic food may combat E. Coli
The recent E. coli outbreak sourced to spinach produced in the U.S. sickened people in at least 23 US states. The media used the outbreak to cast aspersions on organic production methods. However, Dr. David Acheson, chief medical officer with the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, acknowledges that buying spinach that is locally-grown may be a safe alternative and that the risk is significantly reduced if you know the farmer and the farm. Worldwatch researcher, Brian Halweil, agrees that food that spends a long time in transit, changes hands multiple times and which is processed in huge batches, provides opportunities for both accidental and malicious contamination. He notes that smaller, local processing plants, though not immune to errors, accidents, and sabotage, limits the effects of these problems simply by the scale of their operations.
- Worldwatch Institute
University of Toronto goes local and sustainable
The University of Toronto recently launched a new program to introduce local and sustainably produced food to cafeterias and eateries serving its 70,000 students. The U of T deal brings together eaters at the largest university on the continent with farmers in North America’s largest area (725,000 hectares) of protected prime farmland.
Local Flavour Plus (www.localflavourplus.ca) helped set the rules for U of T and its food service companies and farmers. Local Flavour Plus-certified farmers are local producers who ensure high conservation of energy and biodiversity and careful measures of animal and farm worker welfare. Wayne Roberts, Project Coordinator of the Toronto Food Policy Council, says that these standards go beyond organic certification and address factors such as the distance food travels and labour standards.
About 200 campuses across North America, including Yale and Vassar, already have some kind of farm-to-college program. Students on about 60 campuses around the continent enjoy food grown by fellow students on their learning grounds.
- New Farm newsletter
Illegal GE rice found in food from China
Greenpeace recently verified that illegal GE rice from China has contaminated food products in France, Germany and the UK. Greenpeace offices and Friends of the Earth in the UK tested samples of rice products such as vermicelli, rice sticks and other processed foods. Five positive samples were found containing an illegal GE organism not approved anywhere in the world.
This may only be the tip of the iceberg. Rice products are included in everything from baby food to yoghurt. Rice contamination in China began with field trials; the rice is not currently approved for commercial growing because of mounting concerns over its safety.
The illegal GE rice, genetically engineered to be resistant to insects, contains a protein or fused protein that induces allergic-like reactions in mice. Greenpeace International is calling for immediate worldwide recall, measures to ensure no further contaminated rice enters the EU and the urgent implementation of a preventative screening system for countries with high contamination risks. Demanding GE-free certification for food from countries that grow and produce GE crops is reasonable, cost effective and necessary to protect Europe’s consumers.
- Greenpeace News
Canada - world’s second largest producers of GE foods
Canada is second only to the U.S. in producing GE foods, with 30 GE foods, while the U.S. produces over 50. Other “leaders” in GE foods and products include Japan (22 varieties of six crops), European Union, especially Spain and France (nine foods), Argentina (three foods), Mexico (three foods), Australia (two crops + six field trials) and Brazil (one food).
- Organic Consumers Association
Schwarzenegger muscles out hemp bill
In September, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed AB 1147, The California Industrial Hemp Farming Act. The bill would have established guidelines for farming industrial hemp in California. Activists say he caved in to anti-drug lobbies convinced that industrial hemp is really marijuana.
Demand for hemp products has been growing rapidly in recent years with the U.S. hemp product market now exceeding an estimated $270 million in annual retail sales. The new law would have given farmers the ability to supply numerous California manufacturers that currently import hemp seed oil and fiber. Bad news for California, but possibly good news for Canadian hemp growers wishing to export.
- votehemp.com
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Cottoning on to organics
If you are in the market for new clothes, go for organic cotton. Conventional cotton production is responsible for a quarter of the world’s insecticide use. The Sustainable Cotton Project reports that nearly one-third of a pound of chemical fertilizers and pesticides is applied to every pound of cotton harvested in the U.S. Some of these chemicals are among the most toxic classified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In developing countries, where regulations are less stringent, the negative impacts are even more severe.
Many companies are switching to organic cotton, including a brand name famous for outdoor gear and named after a mountain range in the Andes. By making the switch to less harmful cotton, your conscience can be as clean as your shirts.
- News for Change David Suzuki Foundation
See the COABC for new upcoming regulations
Organic regulation news The COABC office has developed a listserv for discussions and information about the organic regulation. To subscribe go to
http://www.certifiedorganic.bc.ca/programs/coi.htm The list is open to anyone with an interest in organic regulations. The list may accept attachments, but please keep them to less than 500kb as many rural people do not have high-speed internet access.
- Paddy Doherty Canada Organic Initiative Co-ordinator
Sustainable Table
Sustainable Table is a consumer campaign created in 2003 by the GrassRoots Action Center for the Environment (GRACE) based in New York. The program was launched to fill in gaps in the sustainable food movement and to help direct consumers to leading organizations working on sustainable food and agriculture issues. Instead of becoming overwhelmed by all the problems surrounding the food supply, Sustainable Table celebrates the joy of food and eating. Sign up for this regular newsletter and updates at
www.sustainabletable.org.
Thank you Janet Wallace - www.cog.ca.
Good Food Ideas
Finding it hard to incorporate raw foods into your diet?
Here’s the lazy person’s approach. Make up a supply of fresh tantilizing salsas and dress up any and every dish that conceivably lends itself to this form of perking up.
Pineapple Salsa
good on/with any protein
First:
2 to 3 cups of fresh pineapple
1 jalapeno chili
1/2 yellow, orange or red bell pepper
1/2 red onion
1/4 cup of lime juice
1 Tbsp brown sugar
Then:
1 large bunch of fresh mint
Combine all the ingredients except the mint.This salsa can be made several days and hours ahead, but withhold the mint, which is best added a short while before using.
THJ’s Mango Salsa
with grilled fish and chicken – has a nice zip!
2 cups diced mango
2 cups diced cucumber
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (1 for a mild salsa, 2 for more heat)
1/2 cup fresh chopped mint leaves
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1 heaping tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
Put the mango, cucumber, jalapeno and mint in a bowl. In a second bowl, mix together the lime juice, brown sugar and ginger. Pour over the mango mixture and mix it all up. This can be made up in advance - the flavors meld together over time.
A tart lemon salsa (for a fishy dish)
2 lemons
1 red onion
a bunch of fresh mint
a bunch of fresh parsley
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Tibetan or sea salt to taste
a pinch of freshly ground pepper
Peel the lemons and remove the skin and pith so no white bits are left. Roughly chop the lemon fleshy parts. Then chop the red onion and herbs (by hand) and add to the lemon and then add the olive oil and sea salt and white pepper. (Best made in advance.)
A sharp fresh salsa
great with creamy guacamole and flat breads, potatoe skins or on any protein entre that needs livening up.
1/2 small can of organic tomato paste
1/2 cup of quality organic oil
Juice of 3 limes
3 cloves of garlic
3 large ripe flavourful tomatoes
1 small red onion
1/2 green pepper
a large bunch of fresh coriander or cilantro or parsley
1 chilli, chopped fine (seeds in or out, depending on bravery)
Mix the oil, tomato paste and 1/2 of the lime juice till you have a smooth, mixture; then crush and chop the garlic and add; dice the tomatoes and finely chop the onions and add; finely chop the deseeded green pepper and add and check for taste and heat as you go. Chop the cilantro or parsley and add some to the mixture and taste. Add the remainder and maybe even a well-chopped jalapeno gradually, until you get the right ‘fresh’ taste.
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