The WELL: inkwell.vue.299: Eric Gower, "The Breakaway Cook"

#121: Betsy Schwartz (betsys) Thu 31 May 07 14:07

Thu, 31 May 2007 14:07:00 PDT

The first part of the Omnivore's Dilemma is all about corn. The book traces four meals: a fast food meal which turns out to be all corn and soy all over the place; a super-organic meal from Polyface Farm; a Big Agro factory-organic meal ;and a meal Pollan hunts, gathers and kills himself. I thought the fourth section was sort of weak, but the first three were fascinating. I have been recommending the book to everyone. Some of Pollan's writing on corn here:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/1031/p17s01-lihc.html http://www.rethinkingschoollunch.org/publications/rsl/michael-pollan.html

Fat Land by Greg Critser traces the history of corn subsidies and the marketing of cheap food to children. (Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation does a similar job on the meat side of the equation) [Read entire topic]

#120: What is going to amuse our bouches now? (bumbaugh) Thu 31 May 07 13:46

Thu, 31 May 2007 13:46:00 PDT

Pollan had a great piece in the NYT not long ago (someplace on the Well someone drew it to my attention) about the dietary consequences of U.S. agricultural subsidies (e.g., things made with corn syrup are cheaper than they would otherwise be, ergo, people trying not to spend a lot of money on food end up buying loads more things made with corn syrup than would be best).

One of my two favorite parts of William Alexander's *The $64 Tomato* was the chapter describing his efforts to grow apples organically and his dismal conclusion (and realization about a childhood memory). [Read entire topic]

#119: Paulina Borsook (loris) Wed 30 May 07 22:26

Wed, 30 May 2007 22:26:00 PDT

yeah, i know a lot of farms that -are- organic just say their stuff is 'sustainably grown', if the bureaucracy and hassle of getting the usda organic cert is too much. [Read entire topic]

#118: Betsy Schwartz (betsys) Wed 30 May 07 21:29

Wed, 30 May 2007 21:29:00 PDT

I used to belong to a terrific CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) that was a Biodynamic Farm. While I know that woo-woo stuff seems to be a part of the Biodynamic theory, this farm was all about being organic and never mentioned the mystical stuff.

Brookfield Farm, http://www.brookfieldfarm.org/ , if anyone wants a CSA in Amherst Ma (delivery to Boston area also)

(We stopped belonging because a farm less than half a mile from our house went CSA)

I note that they did, however, have a few words about why they were not calling themselves "Organic", having to do with how difficult the regulations were for a small non-profit farm. There was something I didn't quite follow about needing a mechanical compost turner, for example. It is a cruel irony that small farms which do everything possible right cannot get this certification, while large agribusiness can get their monoculture wastelands stamped and approved.

BTW "The Omnivore's Dillema" by Michael Pollan has a terrific description of a "beyond organic" farm, Polyface farm in Virginia

http://polyfacefarms.com/index.html [Read entire topic]

#117: Paulina Borsook (loris) Wed 30 May 07 21:09

Wed, 30 May 2007 21:09:00 PDT

probably. and there may be some -as-yet-we-cant-explain-it-but-20-yrs-from- now-we-will phenom --- just as our understandings of the complexities of ecological webs has grown in time... [Read entire topic]

#116: paralyzed by a question like that (debunix) Wed 30 May 07 20:11

Wed, 30 May 2007 20:11:00 PDT

Likely it has to do with extra care that someone willing to stir the solutions one way and then another is willing to take with their crops, and overall good organic practice. [Read entire topic]

#115: Paulina Borsook (loris) Wed 30 May 07 20:08

Wed, 30 May 2007 20:08:00 PDT

perhaps. but evidently the crops grown this way are better and yummier than just plain organic. i bet it's one of those things where one cant really extract which are the useful bits and which are the superstitions from a farming practice that seems to A Good One.

that being said, i have had too much experience with stuff that i cant explain that well, just is --- so i just shrug and go 'well, that helped/worked/ was beneficial'. empircism of the most basic kind... [Read entire topic]

#114: paralyzed by a question like that (debunix) Wed 30 May 07 20:02

Wed, 30 May 2007 20:02:00 PDT

From the article in the chronicle this week, it looks like a cross between organic agriculture and homeopathy--at least, my B.S. O'Meter was screaming at stuff like this:

"Two of the preparations, 501 and 500, involve stirring quartz and manure respectively into water in a way that creates a vortex in the water, reversing direction intermittently throughout one hour. The mixture is highly dilute, and often described as "homeopathic" in dosage.

Some other formulas include those injected into compost. One consists of dried chamomile flowers stuffed into intestines (natural sausage casings) and buried underground for six months. A yarrow compost preparation consists of dried yarrow blossoms stuffed into the bladder of a deer, hung from a tree for six months then buried underground for another six months. Oak bark preparation, also used in compost, must be placed in the skull of a domesticated horned animal and buried for six months before it is used."

That's just plain nutso. [Read entire topic]

#113: raisin d'etre (peoples) Wed 30 May 07 18:50

Wed, 30 May 2007 18:50:00 PDT

what's "biodynamic farming?"

Can I do it in my back yard? [Read entire topic]

#112: Mark McDonough (mcdee) Wed 30 May 07 17:11

Wed, 30 May 2007 17:11:00 PDT

In terms of restaurant vs. home, yeah, a home cook is unlikely to match the French Laundry, but with a little bit of practice, it's not hard to beat the vast majority of restaurant food.

We still eat out some times -- just to relax, to experience foods that are a pain to make at home, or to enjoy a specialty of the house that's made really well. But unless you frequent a very expensive range of restaurants, you'll pass most restaurant food on the first turn. [Read entire topic]