On Wednesday, the New Jersey Court ruled that factory farming practices cannot be considered humane just because they are widely used. This decision, reached unanimously, sets a legal precedent to end abuses of livestock on factory farms across the U.S. and comes as several other states are making similar rulings.
Yesterday I sat on the grassy hump in front of my mother’s gravestone and dug out five shallow holes in the fertile earth in which to set five small flower pots. Nestling the pots in protects them from the wind and gives the roots access to moist dirt when I can’t get back to water them.
While I scraped out holes with a wire hanger from the back of the car, little ants and beetles kept crawling up and down my legs. I was very gentle in removing them from me, for, after all, aren’t they my brothers and sisters, nourished on my mother’s flesh and bones?
Later, driving home, one little ant came crawling up my arm. Reacting without thinking, I brushed her off roughly. I’m sorry, my little sister! I hope you found a stray pretzel or goldfish on the floor to make up for it.
This TIME article about Club4Climate implementing a piezoelectricity dance floor to generate electricity reminded me of my post about using power generating equipment on playgrounds. Coincidentally, just before I read it, I was talking to a friend about how great it would be if kids could generate power, not just by spinning on those spinny merry-go-round things, but also on the swings.
Maybe it’s an idea whose time has come. The question is, who can build it?
catbird :: Jul.16.2008 :: going green :: Comments Off
Sometimes I can’t even believe what I’m reading is actually real.
“For the first time, the new rule allows the government to publicly release the names of the stores that have sold recalled meat and poultry posing the most severe risks to peoples’ health.”
Note that it’s a “rule” not a law.
“..the changes announced today would not have applied to the February recall, which was categorized as a slightly lesser risk to public health.”
Not a “most severe risk” although it was the largest recall ever in the U.S.
Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer stood by the new rule, pointing out that consumers are a bunch of idiots and can’t handle too much information: “‘We don’t want to unnecessarily scare the public,’ he said asserting that releasing information during recalls that have less serious health risks might confuse consumers.”
This must have left more people than just me scratching their heads in disbelief.
Wenonah Hauter, Food & Water Watch’s executive director said (and I heartily agree), “If a problem is serious enough to spark a recall, it is serious enough to give consumers all the information they need to avoid potentially dangerous products.”
The Consumers Union suggested (wisely) that the rule should include to Class II recalls and that the lists of places receiving tainted meat and poultry should also include schools and nursing homes.
Well, duh.
My personal theory is that the USDA doesn’t want us to know how many recalls there actually are. Sign up for recall notices by email.
catbird :: Jul.11.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off
Just one day after reading that scientist James Hansen believes Earth is near the climate change tipping point, I read this interview with Michael Pollan in which he discusses farming, environmentalism, and ways to combat the current food and energy crises.
Pollan talks about the connections between, well, everything: what we eat and how it’s grown or raised and how those things are related to skyrocketing oil prices, food shortages, obesity and the increase in food prices. He outlines three things we need to do… I won’t spoil it for you but let’s just say it has to do with fewer subsidies and more solar-based agriculture.
Here’s a taste:
You can compare conventional beef production to a grass-based system of beef production, which is how we used to produce beef. Cattle are evolved to eat grass — they have rumens so they can digest it. So when they [cows] are getting grass, you have a really exquisite and sustainable food chain — where the sun feeds the grass, and the grass feeds the ruminant, and the ruminant feeds us. They are not competing with us for food, and it doesn’t take vast amounts of fossil-fuel fertilizer to produce that food. It takes none, until you start trucking the animal off of the ranch.
The problem with that system for the marketplace was that it’s a slower way to produce beef, and it takes more skill. It’s a lot easier just to put them on a feedlot, give them lots of corn, give them antibiotics so they can survive the corn, give them hormones to speed up their growth. Suddenly you take a two-year process and get it down to 13-14 months. Time is money, so we moved that way.
Wow. I think I have a little geek-environmentalist crush on Michael Pollan.
catbird :: Jun.26.2008 :: going green :: Comments Off
U.S. law allows food manufacturers to label a food as something that it only vaguely resembles. For example, what is yogurt?
Yogurt is, according to Merriam Webster, is “a fermented slightly acid often flavored semisolid food made of milk and milk solids to which cultures of two bacteria (Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus) have been added.”
However, Dannon is allowed to label its Fruit on the Bottom strawberry as yogurt even though the ingredients are:
- Cultured grade A lowfat milk
- strawberries
- sugar
- fructose syrup
- high fructose corn syrup
- pectin
- modified corn starch
- natural flavor
- kosher gelatin
- purple carrot juice concentrate
- carmine and turmeric (for color)
- malic acid
- calcium phosphate
- active yogurt cultures including L. acidophilus
Compare to Stonyfield Farms Strawberries and Cream ingredients:
- Cultured Pasteurized Organic Whole Milk
- Organic Strawberries
- Naturally Milled Organic Sugar
- Pectin
- Organic Beet Juice Concentrate (For Color)
- Natural Flavor
- Six Live Active Cultures Including L. Acidophilus, Bifidus, L. Casei And L. Rhamnosus.
Even better, take a gander at Sky Top Farms maple yogurt:
- Organic Whole Milk
- Pure Organic Maple Syrup
- Active Yogurt Cultures (S. thermophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. acidophilus, bifidobacterium longum, bifidobacterium infantis)
So, which one sounds the most like yogurt, as opposed to “yogurt”?
I find it ironic — or maybe just sickening — that to get a Dannon “yogurt” that is actually closer (yes, just closer) to yogurt, you have to buy the one that says “All Natural”. What? That seems just crazy to me.
Oh, and another Dannon note: the ingredients of Danimals (Dannon’s smoothies for kids) aren’t even listed on the web site. Hum… I wonder why. Not really.
Kinda makes you wonder: Is your yogurt really yogurt? How about your bread? Your peanut butter?
Steve’s Born replacement shoes have cracked a sole. Are these shoes designed to only last 6 months? Ridiculous. I won’t even bother contacting the company this time. But really, we are done with Born.
President Bush wants to allow offshore oil drilling in previously protected lands off the U.S. Coast. Doing so could yield 18 billion barrels of oil.
“That would meet current U.S. consumption for about 2-1/2 years, but it would likely take a decade or more to find the oil and produce it.”
<sarcasm>Brilliant.</sarcasm>
Meanwhile, here in NJ lawmakers are considering a different question:
“The bill would allow the owners of preserved farmland to construct, operate and install solar or wind energy facilities or equipment on their farms. The generated power could be used to operate the farm or be sold to a utility company.”
Why not? Solar panels are unobtrusive and don’t take up extra space. Even windmills are soothing to look at (at least I think so.) Seems like a win-win.
catbird :: Jun.18.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off
I finally figured out that we can compost our shredded bills and such. Cool.
We still don’t have usable compost. Sometimes I give the dog compostable food scraps instead since he is a much more efficient source. The poop composter generated soil for flowers and shrubs but the pyramid composter is still working on things (no doubt due to our lack of attention to mixture and such.)
catbird :: Jun.13.2008 :: going green :: Comments Off
The End of Food by Thomas F. Pawlick. Another book to feed my obsession with food issues (no pun intended).
catbird :: Jun.13.2008 :: cat rants, going green :: Comments Off
All kids make up their own fun games to play. I know my kids have invented some really fabulous ones. Maybe your kids have played them, too.
Lock the Door
Use the key to lock and unlock the door repetitively. Stand on a chair if you can’t reach. Advanced version: wait until Mommy goes outside to lock the door.
Goldfish Crush
Smash goldfish into tiny crumbs then swipe them onto the floor. See how long it takes for Mommy to notice. Also works with pretzels, graham crackers, saltines, or even Playdough.
Phone Tag
As soon as you hear Mommy on the phone, run around like a maniac yelling at the top of your voice.
Water Splash
This is a competitive game. See who can splash the most water out of the bath tub. Game ends when water drips into kitchen. Bonus points for soaking Mommy.
Water Splatter
Pour water (or any other handy liquid — milk, juice, paint) onto the table and pat enthusiastically with your hands until you and the walls are well splattered. Bonus points for using a smelly, sticky, or permanent liquid. Fun to play with Goldfish Crush.
Collapse
Lure a sibling into the pillow fort while you are outside then collapse it. Advanced level: lay on top of pillows covering sibling until crying starts. Bonus points for making Mommy come running.
I just spent an hour in Scrabulous trying to find the perfect place to put the perfect word in a game that I am already losing by over 100 points.
I think I have a problem.
catbird :: May.28.2008 :: house stuff :: Comments Off
1. “Nate, stop licking your brother.”
2. “Only one serving of chocolate chips at breakfast.”
3. “Stop blowing bubbles with your mucus.”
4. “Nate, stop licking the train seat.”
5. “Take the magic marker out of your ear.”
6. “Van, get your mouth off the guinea pig cage.”
7. “No spitting on the furniture.”
8. “Nate, stop licking the dog.”
9. “Please don’t drink the water from the mud puddle.”
and
10. “Really Van, you want the kale, potato, and chorizo soup?”
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As wildly ecstatic as I was about Whole Foods last week because of the local grass-fed beef, I am just as wildly disappointed this week. I just read a news story about how much of the 365 brand organics aren’t USDA certified, as we are led to believe by the packaging, and, in fact, many come from China.
Not only am I upset about being misled (although my frozen spinach clearly says “Product of China”), but I’m also upset that my 365 vegetables have a much larger carbon footprint than I believed, and that, now, my grocery bill will go up once again as I switch to more expensive brands.
I guess I should have been more skeptical. They had to get the better prices somehow.
catbird :: May.22.2008 :: cat rants, going green, socio-pop :: Comments Off
The strangest things make me celebrate these days. I’ve been looking around for a while to find local (i.e. w/in 50 miles) grass-fed beef. We haven’t eaten beef since I read The Omnivore’s Dilemma and I had all but given up hope of succeeding in my search. Several months back Edible Jersey mentioned two grass farms in Central Jersey that I had been wanting to check out this summer.
But now I don’t have to.
Our Whole Foods now sells 100% organic grass fed beef from the farm in Skillman, NJ. I almost started dancing in the aisle and surely the butcher thought I was a bit loony. He said they had tried before and not enough people bought it so they stopped carrying it. I’m telling everyone I know to go buy it. Why should you? Ask Michael Pollan; you don’t want to get me started.
Did it taste better? Yes, yes it did. We made hamburgers last weekend and they were really scrumptious. I have to admit I didn’t think I’d notice a difference, but I did. Next we’ll try a couple steaks.
You know what else tastes a million, zillion, godzillion* times better too? Sky Top Farms (NY) yogurt from grass-fed cows. And Natural by Nature butter from grass-fed cows… yum I could eat it with a spoon straight from the container.
I guess I shouldn’t be amazed that food tastes better from cows that eat what nature intended.
(*The next biggest number, according to Michael. I think it will be Mothratrillion, personally.)
catbird :: May.22.2008 :: going green :: Comments Off
When Nate gets to pick dinner, he almost always picks mac and cheese. But ,since the kids rarely eat a whole box and they won’t eat it reheated (Why? Who knows. It’s just one of those parenting mysteries.), I’m stuck with leftovers.
I don’t love mac and cheese, but I dislike wasting food even more so I concocted this meal out of the leftovers. I cook spinach, broccoli, or peas in a pan with a little olive oil and garlic. Then toss in the leftover mac and cheese. Today I had some turkey to toss in, too. Except for the fact that the mac and cheese is in the shape of little bunnies, it’s just like a grown up meal. If you don’t feel like going to all that trouble, just throw the leftover pasta in with regular pasta and red sauce. The cheese adds some nice flavor to a basic tomato sauce.
Samba writes a blog about, well, overdevelopment in West Orange. Specifically the (in)effectiveness of the town council in protecting trees by adopting a tree ordinance.
catbird :: May.06.2008 :: cat rants, socio-pop :: Comments Off
Instead of keeping all these links tabs open in tabs and losing them every time I have to restart, I thought I’d make a list:
Guitar:
Children’s Songs for guitar
more Children’s Songs for guitar
A Guitar Teacher’s Lesson Notebook
Guitar strumming patterns
How to Play Guitar for Newbies
Video guitar lessons
interactive chords
chord chart
Ukulele:
Alligator Boogaloo ukulele songs
Ukulele lessons online
Super-cool Beatles ukulele site
A good online ukulele tuner.
Steve is on a Quest for the Perfect Cup of Coffee. It’s been going on for about 6 years now, and I’m just here for the ride. Believe me, if it was my quest it would be more like the Quest for the Perfect Porter or the Quest for Eight Hours of Uninterrupted Sleep.
But no, it’s Steve’s quest for a home-brewed cuppa joe that’s consistent and hot from first sip to last and from first cup to last, as well as convenient to make and environmentally friendly.
It started when we switched from a regular old Mr. Coffee machine to a Krups machine with a built in carafe in order to keep the coffee hot from first cup to last. This stage also dictated the end of spoons to stir since the metal spoon created a “heat sink” that cooled the coffee to an undrinkable temperature.
After four years, this system was deemed unsatisfactory. Our second (and third) cups were too cold and we were wasting a lot of coffee and water on full pots that got thrown away. (Let it be noted that during this stage we had kids, so I only get one hot sip of coffee followed by room temperature dregs an hour later anyway.)
So now we have a Keurig single cup brewer. This meets most of the criteria — each cup starts off hot and fresh. But the k-cups are anything but environmentally friendly. When we first got the machine I had visions of a growing pile of k-cups in a landfill somewhere resulting from my caffeine addiction. So we used a filter with our own coffee. For each cup of coffee, we had to clean and fill the single use filter. Talk about inconvenient. We could use fair trade coffee and compost the grounds, but making coffee became a tedious chore and if the coffee wasn’t ground just right or filled to the optimal amount, the result was, well, less than consistent in taste from cup to cup.
Steve still hasn’t found what he’s looking for. So now we have this thing called a pod holster (yes, I’m still talking about coffee) in which we can load a coffee pod. Pods are fully compostable. So it would seem we have met all the criteria. Each cup is consistent, hot, convenient, and green.
Except, I said to Steve, we can’t get Fair Trade pods. In fact, it’s hard to even get organic pods.
So what’s next you ask? Why, a Perfect Pod of course! So now we’ll buy our own Fair Trade coffee (from Grounds for Change, by the way), make it into pods, use the pods in our pod holster, and conveniently create the perfect cup of hot coffee every time.
Hopefully.
catbird :: Mar.30.2008 :: going green, house stuff :: Comments Off
