Real Life CSA: week 19, produce

A little late today. The photo is off-center not because I was trying to be artsy, but because I think I was a little tired after my self defense class. Week 19 features the last of the tomatoes for the year. Going to cherish these!

We're building up a surplus of red peppers, so I might find a good dish to feature those this week. Broccoli and green beans will make great sides, as will the potatoes if we don't just store them for awhile. 

I love carnival squash - I wish we had even more of these! They look decorative, but they are so delicious they don't deserve to sit on a table somewhere.

Really loving their apples this season. I also love that one of the apples still had a leaf attached. When was the last time you saw that in a store?

This cauliflower was a good size, but it's the greens that are enormous. That thing easily took up half of a crisper drawer in the fridge! Perhaps combined with last week's, pureed cauliflower is in order! (Tastes like mashed potatoes but is lower calorie and slightly sweet.)

Have you made any good dishes lately with produce from your CSA?

Proposed FDA rules - speak up to support local farms!

In support of the Food Safety Modernization Act, the FDA is creating new rules which threaten small farms, sustainable and organic agriculture and farm conservation efforts and the environment. According to the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC), the new rules as currently written will “put many farms out of business, reduce the supply of fresh, local produce in schools and hospitals, push farmers to tear out wildlife habitat, and increase the use of chemicals rather than natural fertilizers.”

A comment period is open until November 15, and it’s important that we speak out to support the farms that supply the food we enjoy so much and that make this area of the country so agriculturally vibrant. (Despite the government shutdown, comments are still accepted on the FDA website.)
Using a template provided by the NSAC, I wrote my own customized comment to submit. You can find more information on the proposed rules, as well as instructions for how to submit your comment on this special website. 

Feel free to copy my comment that appears below or write your own – but either way, speak up. Every voice matters – and if you’ve enjoyed a CSA this season, part of that “community support” is to stand beside farmers and to do what’s right for them and our community and environment.

Follow NSAC on Twitter at @sustainableag for the latest updates – spread the word! 

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Re: Preventive Controls Rule: FDA-2011-N-0920, Produce Standards Rule: FDA-2011-N-0921

I am a concerned consumer, parent, entrepreneur, etc. writing because I am concerned about the impact that FDA’s proposed FSMA rules will have on the farms where I source my food, as well as the environment and my local economy. I ask you to ensure that new regulations do not put family farms out of business, harm farmers’ soil, water, and wildlife conservation efforts, or shut down the growth of local and regional healthy food systems!

My family subscribes to community supported agriculture programs from local farms, which enables us to have access to the freshest, healthiest produce, grown without practices that harm farm workers or the environment. These small businesses are not just an asset to our local economy, but an asset to the health and well being of our community members. Many local farms donate produce to needy families or offer reduced price shares and give back to the community that supports them in many ways. They also allow us to purchase healthy food without the extra markup from conventional stores, adding an economic benefit – the money stays entirely in our community instead of benefiting out of state or out of country corporations. These farms are in indispensable part of our region and my own life. 

I urge you to modify the rules so that they:
•    Allow farmers to use sustainable farming practices, including those already allowed and encouraged by existing federal organic standards and conservation programs. Specifically, FDA must not exceed the strict standards for the use of manure and compost used in certified organic production and regulated by the National Organic Program.

•    Ensure that diversified and innovative farms, particularly those pioneering models for increased access to healthy, local foods, continue to grow and thrive without being stifled. Specifically, FDA needs to clarify two key definitions: first, as Congress required, FDA must affirm that farmers markets, CSAs, roadside stands, and other direct-to-consumer vendors fall under the definition of a “retail food establishment” and are therefore not facilities subject to additional regulation. Second, FDA should adopt at least the $1,000,000 threshold for a very small business and base it on the value of ‘regulated product,’ not ‘all food,’ to ensure smaller farms and businesses (like food hubs) fall under the scale-appropriate requirements and aren’t subject to high cost, industrial-scale regulation.

•    Provide options that treat family farms fairly, with due process and without excessive costs. Specifically, FDA must clearly define the “material conditions” that lead to a withdrawal of a farmer’s protected status in scientifically measurable terms. FDA must also outline a clear, fair, process for justifying the withdrawal of a farmer’s protected status and for how a farmer can regain that status.

waste not, want not - 5 tips to reduce waste

After thoroughly purging and organizing the belongings in just one room of our house this weekend, I got to thinking about waste – specifically how much space has been wasted in our house and also what opportunities are wasted when we store belongings away that could be useful for someone else, if not for us.

Recently, my coworker told me about hearing a news report about the amount of food that is wasted because of expiration dates and labels. Her church organizes a food pantry and is not able to serve or give away food that is “past dated” – even if it’s perfectly safe, edible and even delicious. On one hand, I understand why this guidance is in place for groups that are serving large amounts of people – you don’t want to gamble with people’s safety when you are responsible for others, particularly vulnerable populations. But unfortunately, the dates and labels themselves are misleading.

According to the study that has been reported recently, 90% of Americans say they have prematurely thrown out food because they misinterpreted the labels and dates on the package. These labels are generally suggestions from the manufacturers about peak freshness, not suitability for consumption. According to the same article, “in 2012, an NRDC study found as much as 40 percent of the country’s food supply goes uneaten. The cost of that wasted food? Roughly $165 billion, including $900 million in "expired" food. A family of four, the study found, spends an average of $455 a year on food it doesn't eat.” (emphasis mine) We should look at those numbers and find them unpalatable (no pun intended).

That’s a staggering amount of food waste, especially when industrial agriculture is trying to tell us that they need to produce more to feed the world. We already produce more food than this country needs (not to mention that this country eats more calories a day than it needs to). The reason we have hunger issues in this country is not production – it’s distribution and access.

So what can you do? Here are five strategies we use in our house.

1. Plan your meals.
Each week, we plan out what we’re going to make for dinner and estimate the leftovers to determine lunches. This allows us to have a very good idea of what we can eat in a week’s time and to know exactly what we will need on a given day. We check what we have in our pantry and refrigerator when we are choosing meals – and even have our freezer contents in a shared spreadsheet so we can keep track of what’s hiding at the bottom!

2. Make a shopping list and stick to it.
Use your meal plan to determine what you need for the week and make a list. When you go to the store, don’t veer from the list. We make exceptions when pantry staples are on sale and we can stock up at a savings, but we only buy things we know we will use. If you go to the store without a plan, you’ll buy things that you feel like eating when you’re there, but you might not want to eat later on. You also run the risk of not buying the right quantities. 

3. Buy from the bulk section when you can – and buy only what you need.
We buy spices from the bulk section, as well as grains like oats and rice and dried fruits and nuts for granola. Usually the prices are lower in general than buying the items in a commercially packaged container, but it also helps you only buy what you can use at its peak of freshness. Spices lose their potency over time, so it’s better to buy 4 tablespoons of ginger at a time for a small container at home than enough ginger for a bakery from a warehouse store.

4. Smell and look at your food.
Your milk says “best by 10-8.” It’s past October 8, so instead of getting rid of it immediately, open the container and smell it. You will know when milk has “gone off” or spoiled. We’ve had containers of sour cream we’ve used a month after the “best by” date – no mold, spoilage or nasty smells indicates that it’s safe to eat. The benefit of eating a diet of whole foods is that you’re eating things that are designed to go bad. (We’ve all seen the photos of fast food cheeseburgers that have been petrified for 30 years but somehow never spoiled.) Fruit and vegetables? They rot. Bread molds and so does cheese. Meat rots - in a terribly smelly way. Your food will “let you know” when it’s not safe to eat anymore. (Remember that this is the way that people determined whether or not their food was safe before the advent of the government labels.)

5. Consider labels to be guidelines and not rules.
Go ahead and use the dates as a guideline – but they aren’t rules. You can just as easily get a container of yogurt from the store, open it before the “sell by” date and find mold as you can if the date has passed. Don’t throw away perfectly good food because someone 8 weeks ago estimated that it might not be quite so fresh after a certain point. You will see a difference in your budget when you do!

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October Simplified update: Listed about 50 books for sale that had the potential to help me recoup some cost and packed up the rest to donate and repurposed mismatched sheets as drop cloths for Mark’s wood working space. Up next, the guest bedroom!

October simplified

Our culture is obsessed with finding ways to “simplify” our lives. Every time a new gadget comes out, it promises to simplify our lives. (I actually think my smart phone complicates my life more than it simplifies it.) Each new processed food product promises to simplify a meal to accommodate busy lifestyles with phrases like ‘all-in-one’ and ‘great on-the-go.’ 

In our house, I feel like when it comes to diet, we do make simple choices, even if the dishes we make are sometimes complex and the many places we source foods can make shopping complicated. We use whole, clean foods and try to keep the chain from the farm to our table as short as possible. We celebrate the simple pleasure of a ripe tomato in August or perfect strawberries in June.

But what about the rest of our lives? I got to thinking about this question a lot during the Mother Earth News Fair. Mark and I are blessed to live in a house that is more than adequate in size for our needs. But how did we move from a two-bedroom tiny apartment to a three-bedroom house and somehow within two years fill it up with stuff? We often talk about a dream of living in a small cabin on lots of land – but we can’t do that with an entire house full of stuff. We live a sustainable lifestyle when it comes to what we eat. But how can we carry that lifestyle into other areas of our life?

Having a burst of energy this weekend, I spent most of Saturday organizing one of our bedrooms – the area that functions like an office/library. It has two closets, both of which were bursting – and I’m ashamed to admit the doors hadn’t been shut for probably a year. The entire room was lined with bookcases packed full of hundreds of books, knick knacks and dust. After about 10 hours, I had about 12 boxes of items to sell or donate and had reduced my books by about 50%, a huge feat for me, having a master’s degree in literature and reading being one of the great loves of my life.

This was just one room, but the sense of success, and honestly, peace, I had from completing that task was amazing. I can walk in that room now and not feel that the walls are closing in on me – and I can shut those closet doors. It suddenly felt so much closer to “simple.”

So I’m devoting time in October to simplifying our home. Making space for the things that contribute to the joy we create in the home, and getting rid of things that don’t. I will probably feature some of the simplified spaces on Instagram (@nextgenhouse).

Let’s talk simplifying. What things do you do in your house to keep things simple? Do you have any great strategies to address the challenge of organizing or downsizing?

Real Life CSA: week 18, produce

18 weeks already! I feel like we started this summer's share just a few weeks ago, not a few months! Plenty of staples this week, which is always nice. 

Mixed greens and lettuce will be salad staples, as well as the cherry tomatoes and peppers. Might make a bit of fresh salsa with the tomatoes and hot peppers or we could make lubieh with the green beans and tomatoes. So many options!

This Thai basil smells amazing. The farm email sent some recipes along with it, so maybe we should try one of those this week.

I'm also really happy for more apples. These have been delicious this year - nothing like the giant waxy ones you get in the grocery store. Plus, we have a peeler now, which makes baking with these a cinch. We actually got a big bag of apples from my parents, who picked them from my grandparents' tree, and we peeled and froze them to make into applesauce later or to bake with.

The cauliflower is a cool variety that looks bright, mustard yellow. Small heads, but flavorful! 

I've rediscovered radishes this year - we have been eating them on salad and they add a nice crunch and a little extra bite. (Plus great colors.)

Hoping for more squash next week, as well as more greens and apples!

Mother Earth News Fair recap

For the third year in a row, we headed to Seven Springs for the Mother Earth News Fair (MENF). The best way I can describe it is a giant convention and vendor fair for sustainable living. Vendors showcase everything from farming equipment to handmade soaps and workshops are offered for just about all things under the sun - from classes about livestock to home fermentation.

We have found something new to learn and discover each year, and the fair gets bigger and bigger. This year, I went to workshops on chickens in gardens (and how they can peacefully co-exist), home fermentation, building a real foods pantry and foraging for wild foods. A wicked storm moved in on Saturday and when we were soaked and freezing, we skipped an afternoon of workshops to get dry and warm. But otherwise? Awesome.

In particular, the class on lactofermentation inspired me to finally get off my duff and get my kombucha (fermented tea) going at home. Mark had given me all the tools to get started for a gift one year - including a SCOBY - so I don't know what's been holding me back from starting. Someone at one of the workshops mentioned that you can't be afraid to be a beginner. I think it's given me enough push to get started!

Mark and I laugh that we both leave the MENF each year and want to quit our jobs and move off grid into a cabin in the woods and raise some goats. While that's not in our immediate future, it's nice to come away refreshed and with new ideas on how to live more sustainably.

One of my favorite parts of the fair is the presence of all manner of animals. If you follow me on Instagram (@nextgenhouse), you might have seen these guys.

Seven Springs doesn't offer much in the way of good food options for this fair, which is the only down-side. Particularly at a conference about sustainability, I don't want to eat commercially raised meat or rock-hard, out of season vegetables. Thankfully there were a few vendors that had some good snack options - and one local food truck in particular that had good meal options - Randita's Grill.

It's no secret that we aren't vegans by any stretch of the imagination, so I was a bit hesitant to try out a vegan food truck. I guess in my head I was expecting creepy textured vegetable protein, but I ended up having a great chili and a fantastic salad that was fresh and delicious (with figs! so yum!), a sharp contrast to the processed commercial offerings at the main food area. (The main food area had a mashed potato martini bar. I mean, seriously. Ew.) I was impressed by the food from Randita's - and also how the people in the truck kept their cool despite a ridiculously long line and pouring rain. I'm adding their restaurant in Saxonburg to my list of places to try!

Really, we actually end up learning a lot from the vendors we meet. Here are some of my favorites:

Snack Taxi - I bought two reusable snack bags for my lunch and thus far they've been working out fantastically. I am working on reducing consumption of plastic bags, so my two Snack Taxi bags have already saved me almost 20 bags! Plus it looks cute too.

St. Lynn's Press - Pittsburgh publisher of some great gardening books, including some by local authors. We picked up Good Bug, Bad Bug to help us with pest ID. They'll be publishing The Steel City Garden: creating a one-of-a-kind garden in black and gold by Doug Oster in the fall, which looks to be awesomely Burghy! Might be an idea for our front yard flower area. 

Gourmet Grassfed - I had my first ever beef jerky from Gourmet Grassfed and holy cow (no pun intended), was I surprised at how delicious it was. We bought some jerky and beef sticks - they'll be perfect for Mark to take out in the woods when he's hunting all day.

Farm Fromage - Fantastic raw milk cheese from PA farms. I had a mushroom and leek jack cheese which was amazingly bizarre but delicious.

CeCe Caldwell's Paints - non-toxic, eco-friendly paints, including one called Pittsburgh Gray, which is highly appropriate

Singer Farm Naturals - producer of some delicious cherry juice concentrate. We picked some up to mix with soda water as a yummy drink, but I'm also interested in its use as a recovery drink for running after seeing a blurb about it in an issue of Runners World.

reading this week

I'm still processing all that I learned and saw at the Mother Earth News Fair, but look for recaps on that soon. In the meantime, here's what I've been reading this week.

USDA guts national organic law (Consumers Union)

The USDA recently changed the process of exempting prohibited substances in foods labeled as organic, without having any public comment period. Previously, prohibited substances were given five year periods in which they could be exempted, while alternatives could be found. After that period, they'd expire unless a two-thirds majority of the National Organic Standards Board allowed it, AFTER a public comment period. 

Now, all of that has been erased and these substances can be allowed indefinitely, and with no public comment period, outside of the public view. Not only does it weaken the already relatively weak organic standards, but it pulls more of our food processes behind closed door and decreases transparency.  

CDC's thoroughly convincing report on the threat of antibiotic resistance (Food Politics)
A great infographic on how antibiotic resistance is created, plus links to other stories explaining the issue.

Monsanto could get away with GMO contamination (Salon)

A Washington state farmer's alfalfa crop has been found to contain a GMO trait, which has stopped him from being able to export it (as European nations have much more strict laws regulating GMOs than the U.S.). How this plays out will be interesting, though I'd venture to guess the government will not go out of its way to protect the farmer.

Factory Food From Above: Satellite Images of Industrial Farms (Wired)
Enhanced images from satellites of the feedlots that house industrial meat production

Food banks are a 'slow death of the soul' (The Guardian)
A really interesting take on food pantries from someone who runs one. What he does? It's my dream job. I was asked once in a job interview what my dream would be, and I said if I had capital, I'd open a food pantry that was a community garden and had cooking and gardening classes. To help people get on their feet and empower them to make good choices.

10 Reasons for Gardeners to Love Chickens (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
Self-explanatory. :)