Food Conscious

It all started at a pumpkin patch. 

While trying to figure out what my project for my Agroecology class would be I went to a pumpkin patch to pick up a few festive vegetables to bring back home. But pumpkins are not all that came back with me. The idea of taking the common places and objects that many people think of when you ask them where they see "farm" in their everyday lives and digging a little deeper into the possibilities they have to revamp the way we think and eat food today, giving a new face to the farm that so many think they know. I want to have people asking questions about the food system we are in and not have so many people missing the facts and only seeing the package. 

I went to farmer's markets to see the frenzy of people who, some just wanting to be "hipster," are shopping for their kitchens. Farmer's markets are popping up across the country with most cities or areas having multiple markets a day throughout the week. Eating healthy and fresh is becoming the integral and accessible ingredient to a healthy and sustainable lifestyle. But I feel as though many people are doing it just because it is the "in" thing and not because their values on food have changed. Getting people to question their food and not just accept it is what I want because sometimes the farmer's market isn't the most sustainable source for your tomatoes or lettuce. Farmer's markets are a step closer to people rethinking farms and food and each post in this blog was a farm's step closer to the home. 

Heading to the farm in my home town I didn't know exactly what to expect. I always drove by it growing up and just saw a empty lot turn into a small nursery and then into a small farm. I never thought twice about it. But when I went to take a tour of the nursery and farm I was truly taken aback. The mission of the Ploughshares Nursery is to bring native, edible, drought tolerant plants to the community while also working with at risk teens and adults in a transition program to help them find jobs and learn key skills to be able to get out of the vicious homeless/poverty cycle. General manager Jeff Bridge has the brilliant goal to bring healthy and sustainable practices to the people in his community. If more people knew about the opportunities in their communities and volunteered or purchased products they would be able to educate themselves a little more about the possibilities of the food system that is right within their reach. Educating people about the opportunities that they have would bring us another step closer to a different mindset of food and what we eat. 

Now bringing it to the local grocery store is a bit more difficult with the hardest part being the price of healthy and sustainable. When walking through the nearest Safeway or Nob Hill it is not the easiest to pick out the best option of food, usually I find myself sticking to the perimeter with the produce, meats and dairy. To become conscious about where our food is coming from a little bit of research is necessary but sometimes just knowledge of the vocabulary makes it that much simpler. Understanding that "organic" does mean that it was not farmed in the conventional way with harsh fertilizers or pesticides but knowing that it is not the same as a local farm producing a variety of products. Also looking beyond the packaging and actually knowing the companies that are supplying the food to you; sometimes the simplest package is not the most healthy or sustainable product. And finally asking yourself if you want to spend $1 more on the organic butter from the family farm a few towns away or $9, yes $9, for a carton of eggs that are from "pasture-raised" chickens. Educating the public on what they are buying cannot be done by force it must be a choice that the consumer makes to choose the better option whether it be from their financial point of view or their food values. 

And finally I went to a farm-to-table restaurant, one that I just happened to stumble into which brought me to my last finding from writing this blog. Farm fresh food is closer to you than you think. You could not even be looking for it and then there it is sitting on top of a fresh baked English muffin and mixed in with your hashbrowns. More restaurants are using local products today and some don't even let you know that they are using fresh produce. Yes of course there are restaurants that get their business as an advertised "farm-to-table" restaurant and the prices are to show for that, but some of your favorite restaurants are using percentages of local, fresh products. Farm fresh to you is getting closer and easier to find these days especially here in the Bay Area. Entrepreneurs are always looking more into what people want now and right now the local, fresh, sustainable, organic, healthy, delicious food movement is underway and holding on strong. As long as people keep up their want for good food then this movement will look more like a better food system and that is what we need to happen. 

And yes I know this will not happen over night and yes I am not perfect at this either, and yes there is a lot more work to do in making this eating style accessible to everyone but there has to be a beginning. 

Rethink the farm lifestyle, question where your food is from, weigh the pros and cons, and most importantly be food conscious. 

Feel Good Eating

The hardest part of searching for a farm-to-table restaurant in the Bay Area is picking one which one to eat at. I have been blessed to live in an area full of so many options when it comes to sustainable dining. But having to pick one to write about was proving a complicated task because I just couldn't decide. So on Saturday morning I head out to breakfast with my mom and sister to a small restaurant that opened near our grocery store, Feel Good Kitchen. As soon I look down at the menu to figure out what to eat I notice written at the top of the menu is: "We use local, sustainable, and organic ingredients as much as possible." I have found my farm-to-table restaurant! The owner, Rick Kellner, also owns a bakery in town and wanted to try his hand at something different. His goal: to bring fresh and organic products to the community to encourage heathy and happy living and eating.

Finding a restaurant that serves food made with sustainable, fresh and organic ingredients seems like a difficult task to do. With San Jose and San Francisco both on the top 10 list of American cities with the most restaurants per capita it would seem to be a gruesome task to search for the ones that serve a healthy dose of sustainable food. But surprisingly there are many options and levels of farm-to-table restaurants in the Bay Area. Urbanspoon.com or Yelp.com can help you find the perfect restaurant by just entering "farm-to-table" in the search bar. The best part of this is not only the wide range of cuisines offered under this tag line but also the price range and amount of farm-to-table ingredients used at each restaurant. The accessibility of fresh food is moving closer and closer to consumers everywhere. 

The popular "in" health movement of eating fresh, organic and sustainable is becoming bigger everyday and is beginning to show that it might be around for a while. I just hope that people are reading into what they are eating, making sure that they look up the facts of their food, where it comes from and how it was grown. Many people can be fooled by the green language being thrown around today and could be caught supporting something that does not support their values and beliefs. While it is getting easier to find this "good" food in places around the Bay Area and around the country it is still not widespread. There are still people who do not have easy or even any access to this sustainable food. So before we can say this healthy eating fad is a success we must first make it possible for everyone to have access to their healthy, fresh, organic and sustainable food. 

Butter Believe It's That Easy

Walking into a grocery store can be an intimidating task to complete these days. With products depicting open pastures and green graphics and labels proclaiming "organic" or "sustainable" ingredients and practices it can be difficult for someone to know what is really sustainable. How can an average person even know if a label is telling the truth or not? 

It is not the easiest task to play detective and search for the brand of milk or snack bars that are the most sustainable. Today people are barely finding enough time to cook their own meals let alone research the facts behind the brands they are buying. But if people who are truly interested in finding the products that are local, fresh, organic or any certain kind of sustainable product they can find the answers with just a tiny bit of Googling and interpreting what they find. 

I took the challenge to look up two brands that I use often to see if their mission statements hold up to what their labels appear to represent and what I found, well it surprised me by how easy it was to uncover the truth in this case. Now dairy products, some of the most sold products at a grocery store, ranging from milk and butter to yogurt and ice cream, can be an easy sell of false labels. Images of cows grazing in fields on green colored packaging practically sells itself with ideas of sustainable and fresh products, but is it always the truth?

The first dairy company I researched was Lucerne. The company website seems promising at first with pictures of green plants and fresh blueberries all trying to indicate pure and fresh products is quickly questioned when moving onto the next page when trying to find the facilities. With all USA based facilities I looked up the nearest location and what I found was a Safeway milk plant in the industrial area of San Leandro, Ca. This area does not look like it supports the livelihood of dairy cows in a pasture. Another quick find that contradicted the label of the company's "pure, fresh, and wholesome" products is the very little description that the website offers to the consumer of their mission. Digging for hours did not bring up enough information for me to even find the location of a farm they use. So how can I trust that Lucerne even uses fresh, pure milk from cows that I hope are being treated as the cows on the packaging. 

The second company I researched was Straus. This company is a local California company based in Marshall, Ca in Northern California. Upon looking at the company's website I easily had any information of the history, practices, products and facilities available to me. Looking deeper into where the milk comes from you can find the address of the companies original farm along with the names and profiles of all contributing farmers' history and owners. Any information wanted can be found on the website of the Straus Family Creamery without a hassle. 

Looking up this information does not take as long as many believe it might and sure it might have been a small hassle but the results were very rewarding. Now I know which company I trust and what products I will buy in store when I am looking for sustainable, organic, and local dairy products. And this can be done for any grocery product; all it takes is a few minutes and a search engine. If commitment to companies that follow your values is important to you there will be no hesitation in wanting to research the products you use at home. Becoming more informed about your groceries is one step in the right direction to making a greener and more sustainably conscience community. 

Growing Close to Home

Healthy environments should be available to everyone no matter where you live. Whether it be in the rural countryside, the suburbs, or a bustling urban city; any environment can create a green and sustainable place for community members to work in and find solitude. In my home town of Alameda, Ca I found a place that does just that.

Ploughshares Nursery is an environmentally sustainable retail nursery and farm. A social enterprise of the Alameda Point Collaborative (APC), the nursery and farm provides a volunteer service program to help support housing to formerly homeless families and provide opportunities to at risk individuals who are in need of starting and maintaining stability and personal fulfillment in their lives. APC uses all of its resources to help families and adults break the cycle of homelessness and poverty. The nursery and farm provide volunteer programs, workshops, and apprenticeships aimed to train individuals in food production and management as a starting point in their working careers. Along with furnishing opportunities to community members it also supplies a place of solitude. Gardening is known to have therapeutic influences and allows for time of contemplation to get closer to a natural setting.

Ploughshares focuses on using and promoting sustainable products and processes in urban gardening. Jeff, the general manager, concentrates on propagating and supplying California native, drought tolerant and edible plants to the community. Jeff wants "to inspire people to create their own gardens at home that can add fresh and sustainable ingredients to their kitchens."

The half-acre farm on the property is a hub of sustainable practices that also successfully distributes about 40 Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) boxes every week. Practices range everywhere from drip irrigation, crop rotation, aquaponics, bee boxes, organic fertilizing through mineral powder additives, and composting. Operating the farm is Evan, who works to maintain these sustainable practices and generate fresh produce for the community surrounding the farm. 

Urban areas all over the country are beginning to create more and more urban farms and gardens to provide fresh and sustainable produce for community members. Creating places of community building and job opportunities, these sites are shaping healthy environments for all who are willing to lend a helping hand. Nursery or farm transition opportunities for low income, homeless, or at risk families, teens and adults are programs that are fostering healthier communities and working towards creating greener, safer, and sustainable cities. And I am proud to say my home town is one place that is providing these opportunities and working to be a better city, community and home. 

Farm Fresh to You...or so they say

     

On Saturday mornings, if you remember to wake up early enough, you can find a few vendors in Franklin Square selling fresh produce and delicious food. As you walk up and down several times trying to figure out what you want to eat as well as what you will buy for later you find yourself excited about the fresh food you are about to have in your kitchen. Having a farmer's market is a perk that many people overlook in their day to day lives. With over 8,000 farmer's markets across the nation certified by the USDA and many more that are not, farmer's markets are popping up constantly with more and more people gaining access to affordable and healthy food. But do people really understand what they are buying? 

    As the new fad consists of eating healthy, organic and sustainably gets bigger and bigger people are beginning to go for the cleaner, organic food in the grocery store or even going to "healthier" grocery stores all together. They have come to believe that by buying an organic labeled pack of carrots or bell peppers they are automatically eating better for them selves and for the environment. The hype for WholeFoods, Trader Joe's, and Sprouts is on the rise but the knowledge is not rising in a similar fashion. What people are not always aware of is the fact that organic produce does not equate to healthier or more sustainable. A majority of organic products are farmed in the same style as conventional farms with the only major change being the certified "organic" fertilizers and pesticides. The popular organic community is needing to take a deeper look into what they are purchasing and find if it is truly sustainable and organic if that is what they are looking for. Many people are blinded by the "organic" seal leading them to overlook the reasons why they want to eat healthy in the first place to a longer list of reasons why they should be healthier and sustainable.

Organic and sustainable has a whole list of practices that most people do not even consider when they are looking for produce or products to buy. One of the most important aspects to look at when searching for sustainable organic food is if the farm is using sustainable practices to create and maintain a healthy soil. Soil is complex, living and constantly changing, filled with organisms working together to build a habitable environment. The damaging effects of conventional farming today are depleting the healthy soil around the world on a daily basis. When people are looking into eating healthy, sustainable and organic food they need to look into the practices that the farm uses to make sure that they maintain practices to sustain healthy soil and that they are truly organic to the standards that each person sets.

The biggest issue with the new "in" eating habit besides the lack of overall knowledge and if the practices are truly sustainable would be the lack of accessibility to a vast majority of the public. Over 2 million people live in food deserts in the United States and cannot easily access fresh food. This new healthy food hype is controversial because it is accessible only to those who can afford as well as get to the food. When looking into eating more sustainably and healthier take a look into if they support local food banks, help families in urban food deserts, or even donate to soup kitchens. Choosing to eat heathy, organic and sustainably means to consider all aspects of the food production to follow all of these not just provide the end product of "organic." Making the greater public more knowledgable about the choices they have and what they can do to make it better for the environment as a whole in every aspect of the food's production will create a more informed public. And then maybe the hype could turn into a lifestyle that sticks.

 
 
 
 

Reviving the Farm

On a fresh autumn day in the middle of October I made my way down 101 Highway. As I turned off I was clearly in a different part of San Jose, nothing close to the hustle and bustle of the Downtown area or even near Santa Clara. I was out in the open farm country with undulating hills of open grassland and scattered oak trees. It's hard to believe that only twenty minutes away I could go to a place just like this a family-friendly farm with even a farm stand on the corner with all the produce grown right in the area. But more so than just fruits and vegetables from the this farm and even neighboring farms, during the month of October Spina Farms becomes what most people remember as being their earliest encounter with this kind of scenery, a pumpkin patch. 

         Spina Farms was established in 1944 by farmer John Spina. He started with just a few fruit trees and row crops and after a generation of that they decided to expand. They opened a farm stand to provide fresh local produce to the public and in 1970 they decided to try their hand at a pumpkin patch. Their venture proved successful as after over 40 years they are still as popular as ever. Three generations of the Spina family have worked to provide fresh produce to the public while also providing a friendly farmer face to go along with the fruits and vegetables. 

    For many people living in urban areas a pumpkin patch during the fall is possibly the closest they come to any farm setting. The typical idea of a farmer, one who wears overalls and is always surrounded by cows and sheep, is one taught to us through classic children's songs such as "old McDonald" or children's toys such as the See 'n Say. These classic figures of farm life make it seem as if the farm is way out of reach and an extremely different place than the city life that a increasing majority of the United States population live in today. These ideas push farms out of the believed reach of many city folk and they don’t get to experience the daily fresh products produced by friendly farmers who look and possibly live just like them. The social construction of a farmer is slowly being broken down by society. The farmers market is becoming more and more popular as people in cities want to become more aware of where and who their food is coming from. The old ways of conventional farming are being viewed as a hazard to our health and to the environment and people are ready for a change.

          Although this movement towards more localized food is not happening as quickly as some would hope it is indeed happening. The local food movement is making its way into cities across the country and everyday more and more people convert to locavore lifestyles that are more informed of where their food comes from, making an environmentally conscious decision to buy local and eat healthy. But little do people know they are interacting with local and sustainable farms everyday, they are just disguised as some of their everyday shops and restaurants.