The Pasture Post, March 2008
New Feature Article - Top Ten Barriers to Local Food Access for Low-Income Individuals
June is just around the corner and many Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) communities will be delivering their first shares of vegetables and fruit. It is an exciting time for many shareholders, but for some people fresh food is not an option. A dedicated organization in Iowa City is working to make fresh food available for all. Local Foods Connection is a non-profit organization that enrolls low-income families in CSA groups, through which they receive a box of fresh, organic produce every week for approximately 20 weeks. Running concurrently with the CSA program, Local Foods Connection offers opportunities to learn about nutrition and healthy meal preparation. Their clients can also earn points for each educational activity they complete and can use points to purchase kitchen equipment.
Local Foods Connection is providing us this month’s Feature Article - Top Ten Barriers to Local Food Access for Low-Income Individuals. They are committed to finding solutions and bringing good food to all. By understanding the barriers to local food access, they can focus on real solutions.
Top 10 Barriers to Local Food Access for Low-Income Individuals:
- Financial Restrictions
- Preparation and Storage of Food
- Distribution of Food
- Lack of Knowledge and Education - Low-Income Individuals
- Cultural Values and Lifestyles
- Disabilities
- Preparation and Storage of Food - Social Service Agencies
- Fulfillment of Government Nutrition Standards - Agencies & Institutions
- Lack of Education - Social Service Agencies
- Lack of Education - General Population
Please read the detailed feature article here.
Sustainable Table’s Eat Healthy Monday Campaign
Sustainable Table has joined the “Healthy Monday” Campaign - bringing you “Eat Healthy” tips on our blog on Mondays. "The Healthy Monday movement centers on the use of Monday as a nationally recognized day dedicated to increasing health awareness, empowerment and action."
Here’s our tip from this Monday: Slow down! It takes several minutes for you body to start feeling full. So if you eat too fast, you may not even notice you’re full until you’ve overeaten. Take plenty of time to enjoy your food and you’ll eat less.
Two Angry Moms
We watched this new movie here in the office and highly recommend it for any parent or concerned citizen worrying about what kids are eating at school. We definitely know how to start working with the school system- these Two Angry Moms (Amy Kalafa and Susan P. Rubin D.M.D., H.H.C.) don’t only identify this awful problem, they also offer up do-able solutions! Check out their website for great resources and ways to screen the film.
“Armed with a movie camera, Amy follows Susan's crusade over the course of a school year. Exploring the roles the federal government, corporate interest, school administration and parents play in the feeding of our country's school kids, Two Angry Moms shows not only on what is wrong with school food; it offers strategies for overcoming roadblocks and getting real food into school cafeterias.”
Take Back the Tap Video Contest
As part of Food & Water Watch’s Take Back the Tap campaign, they are hosting the “I Heart Tap Water” student video contest. The last day to send in your entries is Monday April 14th and the winner will be announced on Earth Day, April 22nd. One of the judges is Alec Baldwin! Get your video camera rolling!
“We will need enormous public support to get Congress to dedicate the billions of dollars needed to ensure safe and affordable water for future generations,” stated Food & Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hauter. “With this video contest students are building support among tomorrow’s leaders to make the smart and healthy choice of tap water over bottled water.”
From NewsInferno.com March 24, 2008: Salmonella Tainted Water in Colorado Sickens 200+
Guest Blogger – Laura Pensiero
Laura worked closely with us last year at the final event on our Eat Well Guided Tour of America. The event was held at her Gigi Market in Red Hook, NY. We are lucky to have her make a guest appearance on our blog!
Laura Pensiero is a French Culinary Institute graduate, registered dietitian, health educator, owner of Gigi Trattoria & Gigi Market, cookbook author, spokesperson, and industry expert who believes that “Good food should thrill the senses.” She has also created a sustainable synergy at her market and restaurant, providing a retail venue for local farmers and food producers year round, and using those beautiful products to create dishes at the restaurant.
Look for Laura’s posts on our blog soon!
Recipe of the Month - Oyster & Shiitake Mushroom Pie
Here’s a great savory pie recipe from a friend we made at the Jackson Hole Farmers Market, Tye Tilt.
 Ingredients:
1 lb. oyster mushrooms, sliced
½ lb. shiitake mushrooms, sliced
? cup organic butter
1 or 2 medium onions, chopped
1 tablespoon flour
½ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sherry or cognac
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Pastry for a double crust pie (8 inches)
Directions:
In a large skillet, heat the butter and sauté the onions and mushrooms for five to ten minutes. Stir in the cognac, salt and pepper. Add cream and cook until the mixture begins to thicken. Let the mixture cool while preparing your crust.
Preheat oven to 450F. Pour mushroom mixture into pie crust. Add a lattice top or get creative and add hand cut pastry mushrooms or little animals! Bake for twenty minutes, or until crust is browned and filling is bubbly.
Sustainable Table Survey- Results are IN!
Thank you to everyone who participated in the Sustainable Table Survey! The survey ended this week - we will be analyzing, sorting and reading all of your answers in the upcoming month. Your survey responses will help decide the direction we take with our Educational Kits, our websites, and our forum & blog.
Just a few interesting facts from the survey for now- more to come in the upcoming months:
- Very important - Buying and Eating Local
- Very important - Organic
- Very important - Sustainable Food and Farming
- Many of you are parents!
- People want to encourage others to take positive action!
Take Action – Food & Water Watch and Organic Consumers Association
Tell EPA that Factory Farms Aren’t Above the Law!
The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed a rule that would let factory farms get out of reporting their releases of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and other toxic air pollutants caused by the breakdown of animal manure in massive lagoons. The public has a right to know what factory farms are releasing into the air and the EPA has no business letting these polluters off the hook.
Go to the Food & Water Watch website to find out more information!
End Exploitation and Modern-day Slavery in the Florida Fields
Burger King and other food industry leaders have a lot of power to affect change through their purchasing power. However so far they have failed to use this power to benefit the workers and have refused to join Yum! Brands and McDonald's in working with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) to improve farm labor conditions. Show your support for the Florida field workers who supply Burger King and other food industry leaders, go to the Organic Consumers Association for more information!
Help! The Meatrix International Needs Chinese, Japanese & Korean Proofreading!
We are in the final stages of creating an International DVD including all 3 Meatrix movies! It is quite exciting; each movie has over 15 translations. We have created subtitles for all the languages and some even have dubbed versions.
But, we are in desperate need of people to help proofread the Asian languages. Can you read Chinese, Japanese or Korean? Do you have a friend who might be able to help? If you could volunteer a little time, please contact Dawn at dawn@sustainabletable.org for more details. For Chinese, we need someone who can read and write and who has the capability to re-type the subtitles for us… this would be a little more time commitment if anyone is interested! Thanks!!
Please share sustainability with your friends!
Help us spread the word about sustainable food and what we’re doing here at Sustainable Table and The Meatrix. Please pass this newsletter on to your friends – and encourage them to get involved on our site. The only way we’re going to save family farms and be able to provide local, sustainable food for everyone is if we all join in and work on this together.
Please stay in touch with us!
The Parlour, our forum
Comment on our blog!
MySpace – Moopheus & Sustainable Table
Sustainable Table on Facebook
See great pictures from our road trip last summer! |
