wo news articles that came out recently have inspired me to make some changes in my food shopping habits:
Government orders biggest-ever U.S. beef recall
and
Consumers may not be able to avoid cloned food
I've also been reading Michael Pollan's The Ominvore's Dilemma which has also provided a lot of insight into what you're paying for when you buy your food, and where it actually comes from. It's complicated because one can't simply decide to eat all organic food - problems abound throughout the entire food industry, and sometimes organic doesn't mean what one might think. I'm also very budget-minded when it comes to food, and don't agree with paying a premium for a chicken, for example, who may have had a door to the grass outside, but was never able to make use of it.
I'm no food fascist either, and think it's a personal choice that should be left to the individual. But there are some principles I agree with, and I feel if I can use my food budget to support them I'm happy to do so.
What does this look like, in practical terms for me? Well, I'm switching my organic produce delivery (which is mostly local but also does some importing) to an all-local polyculture farm - I'll pick it up weekly at the farmer's market, which will also give me an opportunity to buy grass-fed beef and organic rice from the people who farmed them. The meat will be more expensive, but I think it's better to eat high quality meat less frequently, and since M. is vegetarian I won't be buying much anyway. I'm also switching from the less-expensive Clover organic milk to Strauss milk in the glass jug. I prefer the taste of Strauss anyway, and though they're still working out the whole cloned cow issue, I feel Strauss will make more of an effort to keep cloned cows or their offspring out of their herds than Clover would.
Mind you, I don't know anything about the actual effects of consuming cloned cow's milk, and probably for practical purposes there are none. But it's about the principle of the thing, and how absurdly far we've come from a true local food economy. I feel it's within my capacity to make changes to support my preferences and beliefs, so I will, but my hope is that doing so will help make better food available for everyone. Plus I just like things grown the old-fashioned way.
What are your thoughts on what to buy and eat? Leave a comment, I'd love to hear from you!
Hi Satya! just found yr blog while procrastinating on work! I love your food blog. so.... we do what you do-- buy as much local produce and dairy as possible, and we won't buy antibiotic-filled meats or eggs or milk in the supermarket, organic when we can, though that's less impt than our local-antibiotic free mandate. The Pollan book has also shaken us up. We're getting as much calories as possible from more fruits and vegetables, as opposed to from meat. we just try to be as conscientious as possible, when possible...
Posted by: mara | February 24, 2008 2:32 PM