Meatless Monday: Counting Down…

…first to Food Day — this Wednesday, October 24. Last year I had the opportunity to hear Rene Redzepi, “the best chef in the world,” speak on foraging and how he transforms his local finds into unique offerings at Noma, his restaurant in Copenhagen. This year I plan to observe the day by attending Food Day - Food Action! at Yale’s Peabody Museum, celebrating “the strides being taken by the New Haven community to create better food for a better city.” Hon. Rosa DeLauro, U.S. Representative for Connecticut's 3rd District, and one of Food Day 2012’s honorary co-chairs, will be a featured guest! Next Monday, check back for a report on the day’s events.

Food Day organizers hope as many people as possible across the nation will participate in Food Day events — from thoughtful meals shared with friends, to rallies, community activities, and film screenings. Click here to find an already organized event near you. 

If there are no events in your area, or you decide you’d rather host one of your own, Food Day has a rich site with all the tools and graphics you need to promote your activity. Check out the special edition Food Day newspaper for ideas and more information on what this day is all about. 

and 

…second, to Election Day, a little over two weeks away. On November 6, besides helping to elect the next president of the U.S., voters in California will consider a proposition which has been denied to residents of other states. They will have the opportunity to vote on an initiative requiring labeling of all genetically engineered (GE) food sold in grocery stores in their state. If Proposition 37 passes, California will become the first state in the nation to require labels on GE food.

An intense battle is raging across the state, pitting grass roots activists and small companies against larger corporations and business associations. As of October 4, proponents of the bill had raised over $4 million dollars, compared to the nearly $34.5 million raised by the opponents, of whom Monsanto is the largest single contributor. Food Democracy Now is asking supporters to thank the small companies, the “Food Heroes,” who have come forward to support Prop 37. You can send them a note and also vote with your food dollars.

Just Label It! claims that 92% of Americans want the FDA to label genetically modified food. If consumers win this fight in California, manufacturers will likely begin to label food nationally for GE ingredients. Please vote “yes” to Prop. 37, California readers. The rest of the country is counting on you!

Happy Monday! Thanks for reading.

I often blog on food or food issues on Monday in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Saturday Short Subjects: GMO or Non-GMO? That is the Question.

On November 6, besides helping to elect the next president of the US, voters in California will consider a proposition which has been denied to residents of other states. They will have the opportunity to vote on an initiative requiring labeling of all genetically modified food sold in grocery stores in their state. 

If Proposition 37 passes, California will become the first state in the nation to require labels on genetically engineered food. The lobbying for and against the measure has heated up drastically over the last few weeks. The San Jose Mercury News reported that as of Thursday, August 23, proponents had raised $2.8 million, donated by individuals as well as organic businesses including Nature’s Path and Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps. Opponents had succeeded in raising nearly $25 million. 

It should be no surprise that Monsanto is the largest single contributor to the opposition,  with a donation of $4.2 million. It was Monsanto’s threat to sue the state of Connecticut that caused the portion of  CT-HB5117 requiring labeling of GMO foods to be withdrawn. 

Other large and well-known corporations have joined Monsanto in opposing Prop 37. This pie chart clearly shows who they are and how much they have contributed to the war chest.

But what may surprise you is some of the ‘organic’ brands owned by Prop 37 opponents. The Cornucopia Institute clearly spells out the opposition and the companies they own, and what companies support the measure. 

The Organic Consumers Association is asking consumers to boycott brands owned by the opposition, and to go to their Facebook pages and consumer response lines to call them out.

This is no small request. Many of my grocery cart items are on the left hand side of this chart. I haven’t yet decided whether or not I can forgo them all. But it’s food for thought, and I’ve started in on the comments already – first one just sent off to Honest Tea.

In 2008 California passed Proposition 2, which prohibited the close confinement of farm animals in crates, so there is hope that this measure, too, might pass. Passage of CA Prop 37 could pave the way for passage of similar measures in the 19 other states with proposed GMO labeling. 

If you believe in the consumer’s right to know, here’s a chance to “Vote with your fork [or spoon or straw or bowl]. 

Why Saturday Short Subjects? Some readers may recall  being dropped at the movie theater for the Saturday matinee — two action-packed feature films with a series of short subjects (cartoons or short movies, sometimes a serial cliffhanger) sandwiched in between. Often the short subjects were the most memorable, and enjoyable, part of the morning. That explains the name. The reason behind these particular posts is that we are all short on time. My Short Subject posts should not take me as long to write or you as long to read (or try).

Meatless Monday: Why I Joined CT NOFA

Today is not a typical Meatless Monday. It is Occupy Our Food Supply’s Blogger Day of Action, a day in which journalists and bloggers from around the nation are calling for the reclamation of our food systems from industrial agribusiness. It seems an appropriate day to tell you why I have recently become a member of CT NOFA, the Connecticut chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Association.

I am a city dweller. I will never farm on my tiny city lot. So why join a “farming association?” CT NOFA is far more than a membership organization for farmers. In short, “CT NOFA is a growing community of farmers, gardeners, land care professionals, and consumers that encourages a healthy relationship to the natural world,” a not-for-profit which “encourages the growth of a sustainable, regional food system that is ecologically sound, economically viable and socially just” as one of its missions  You can read more here. 

CT NOFA has been on my radar for some time now. Its executive director, Bill Duesing, is well-known in the Green scene in my area. He was founding president of CT NOFA as well as founding chair of the New Haven Ecology Project and its Common Ground High School.

Under his leadership, CT NOFA became one of over 80 plaintiffs in a preemptive suit by organic seed growers, farmers, and farmer organizations to prevent Monsanto from suing farmers or seed producers should their crops become contaminated by Monsanto’s patented seeds. The suit, filed in March of 2011, is titled organic Seed Growers & Trade Association (OSGATA), et al. v. Monsanto. You can read more about the suit here. 

On February 1, Bill Duesing represented CT NOFA and its members at a hearing in Southern District Court in lower Manhattan on Monsanto’s motion to dismiss the suit. You can read the details in Bill’s blog post on the day’s activities. 

More recently, CT NOFA rallied its members to lobby AGAINST a bill raised in the CT legislature which would modify the ban on the use of pesticides on school grounds, and FOR a bill which calls for labeling of foods that contain or might contain genetically-engineered ingredients and for instituting “best practices” for farmers who choose to grow genetically-engineered crops. CT NOFA is not trying to prevent farmers from choosing to use genetically-engineered seeds. It is seeking to preserve the rights of farmers and consumers who choose not to take that route.

I support CT NOFA’s efforts to provide a safe, secure food supply in my state. That’s why I intend to be a dues-paying member from now on. I hope you’ll consider joining me as a new member of the association. Check it out. There’s a new category — introductory membership of just $15 for your first year. 

Have a great week. “See” you next Monday.

I often blog on food or food issues on Monday in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal  health and the health of our planet.”