As if We Needed Further Proof...

...that corporations and their money mean more to elected representatives than the health and safety of their constituents, Food Democracy Now reports that the Monsanto Protection Act has been passed by the Senate. Anthony Gucciardi from InfoWars breaks it down for us:

"Monsanto would have complete immunity from federal courts when it comes to their ability to act against any new Monsanto GMO crops that are suspected to be endangering the public or the environment (or considered to be planted illegally by the USDA). "

No, this is NOT a joke. And, sadly enough, this is not the first time that corporate interests have won out over individual interests in Congress. Basically, this act is going to make Monsanto exempt from prosecution in the very-likely case that one of their GMOs causes public and/or environmental damage. 

It's up to the President at this point to do the right thing and veto this ludicrous example of government corruption. 

UPDATE 3/28/13: Well, the President let us down, and no one is happy about it. 

If you're still confused about the whole GMO thing, check out Shad Enkilterra's GMO article in the Winter 2013 issue of Ingredients Magazine.

School Lunches

It's no secret that the food options in school cafeterias are often lacking nutritional substance. When I was a kid, school lunches were most often something fried, pizza, pasta or some other type of starch. In the 20 years since I was in elementary school, I gather that there has been little improvement in the selection. So, I am both glad and sad that steps are being taken to make school lunches more healthy. I'm glad because it's about time, and sad because it hasn't happened sooner. There is no bigger killer in this country than obesity, and it gets our kids while they are still too young to know better. It's up to us parents to make sure our kids are putting good stuff into their bodies, but we cannot do it by ourselves. We need our community's support, and that starts with schools. It's good to see that we are, at least, making progress.

GIANT Pumpkins

The results of this year's Giant Pumpkin weigh-in are in, and the winner is:

Tyler Quiqley and his 1,500 pound pumpkin.

That is one big gourd. Interestingly enough, Tyler's neighbor, Matt McConkie, hold's the current state record for giant pumpkins, which is 1,600 pounds. Want gourds this big? The contest is held every year, and you can find details at the Utah Giant Pumpkin Grower's web site, and you can learn about growing your own giant pumpkin in Issue 5.

CSA Bounty

After a couple of weeks of being a slacker after vacation, I made it back to the garden to put in a few hours and pick up some of the most recent harvest. There was a selection:

I helped myself to one of these

I didn't take that huge one, but the one I ended up with is a lot bigger than what you generally find at the store. I also took one of these:

Zuccini (yes, I took the big one). And this too:

Giant Cucumber, which I did take. And check out those curly ones. You certainly don't see that at the store!

So, the CSA program to which I belong is obviously awesome. For $50 per year and with at least 25 hours worth of work, I'll be receiving fresh produce until well into November. And with summer veggies the likes of these, my grocery bill is already benefiting! If you haven't already, check out CSA Utah and find a CSA program in your area. Get out there and support local agriculture!

Buying Local on a Budget

Okay, so let's just go ahead and say it: eating healthy is not always the most financially viable option. It's no coincidence that the foods that are slowly killing us are the cheapest ones. Guess what. It's possible to get healthy, fresh, local food inexpensively. Example: I just got a whole growing season's share of food for $50 and 25 hours of work in any of 13 local gardens per year. Can't beat that deal with a stick. And that's the beauty of CSA. Consult this list from Serious Eats for more ideas about fitting local products into your budget.

Get involved, get healthy. That's what we're talking about.

Finely Textured Lean Beef aka Pink Slime

Finely Textured Lean Beef (FTLB) is the proper term, but consumers today know the ammonia treated beef by its more sickening name, pink slime. This rather unappealing term first came to my attention by way of a coworker who stumbled on Jamie Oliver’s video on it a few months ago. In the video Jamie actually demonstrated how the product is made by way of a washing machine, using low heat to separate bits of “beef” left clinging to the trimmings that remain after all the butchering is done. The resulting scraps are then sprayed with ammonia to kill of any bacteria, and the end product looks a lot like lean ground beef.

Since the release of Jamie's clip it seems that I can't go an entire day without coming across the term at least once; people are up in arms over it, and I along with them. The fact that we have been consuming this stuff for years without being aware of it is just the tip of the ice burg when it comes to the problems that I have with pink slime. Shockingly (or maybe not that shockingly), the FDA and the USDA do not require the presence of pink slime to be disclosed on food labels. The chemical used to treat FTLB is ammonium hydroxide, and it is, apparently, widely used as an antimicrobial in food. What else is it found in? Window cleaner, and many other household cleaning products.

I thought that the FDA was supposed to be looking out for consumers. I thought that’s why they mandated ingredients labeling. And yet, the presence of FTLB in beef products does not have to be listed on the label. That, to me, sounds fishy. The companies that make it and the USDA insist that it is safe to eat, and in all likelihood we have been eating it for years without knowing, but it’s a chemically-treated product. Even sunscreens and hair products, which aren’t directly ingested, have to list their chemicals on the label. Why isn’t this chemical labeled? It doesn’t make sense.

Thankfully, now that we know it is out there, it is easy to avoid pink slime. Fast food giants McDonalds and Taco Bell were the first to stopped using it, and in Utah most major grocery stores responded to the public outcry by ridding their shelves of the sneaky, chemical-laced "beef" by the end of March 2012. Still, ask the meat department in your grocery store if they sell anything containing pink slime so that you can be sure to avoid it If all else fails, know that anything labeled 100% Certified Organic does not contain any FTLB.

Even better, why not get your beef from a local source that you can really trust? Like from our friends at UtahNaturalMeat.

Going Green!

I don't know about y'all, but every January I start in on the usual new year's resolutions: exercise more, eat less and healthier, etc. In previous years such "resolutions" have been quickly forgotten in the hullabaloo of daily life, but 2012 is going to be different. I've realized over the years that big changes are daunting and scary, but small changes are easier to accept and incorporate.

In my search for healthier diet choices, I came across this article on KSL about making smoothies. This is such an awesome idea! My neighbor actually introduced me to incorporating spinach into my smoothies some time ago, but using other leafy greens never occurred to me. So smart, so healthy and so easy, there's pretty much no reason why spinach and other iron-rich greens can't be blended into any fruit smoothie. Think of it as homemade V8 Splash, only more delicious and less expensive.

So, cheers to the new year with health-packed, delicious smoothies!

Issue 7: Free Range Eggs

The term “free range” is such a trendy buzz word these days that its presence in advertisement and labeling cannot always be trusted. Some “free range” producers are really the same old industrial producers who believe that the American public is willing to buy anything labeled with  it and similar trendy buzz words like “all natural” and “hormone free.” But when the product comes from China or India or anywhere outside of Utah for that matter, how can one be sure that it is legitimately all natural? 

Read the rest of the article in Issue Seven.

Welcome to Ingredients Magazine!

Hello! Welcome to Ingredients Magazine's Blog. Here's what you need to know about us:

Ingredients Magazine is an online publication that gives voice to local farmers and ranchers, independent grocery stores and the local food scene in Salt Lake City, Utah. We launched our first issue in June 2011, and just published Issue Number 7 at the beginning of January 2012 after a major overhaul of the magazine's design. Check it out at IngredientsMagazineSLC.com.

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