Please view Eating for the environment for ongoing updates of global statistics.
1. Limiting the consumption of meat and dairy:
Even if we don’t feel completely ready to cut out all animal products from our diets, it will make a significant difference to the planet if we all limit the amount of meat, dairy, fish, and eggs that we purchase.
(see more on this in the article below)
“Raising animals for food generates more greenhouse gases than all the cars and trucks in the world combined” – UN Environmental Report
2. Buy only Organic corn and soy.
About 65% of the corn and 75% of the soy grown in the U.S. is now Genetically Engineered. Not only does corn require a massive amount of pesticides but most of it is grown just to feed factory farmed livestock. Because of the corn surplus we are now using high-fructose corn syrup as a sweetener in almost every product on the market. A direct result of this is the unprecedented obesity we see in our children and the diabetes epidemic that now affects over 20 million Americans.
3. Eat local
Using your purchasing power to support local farmers is one of the best ways to help both the environment and your immediate community. By eating foods that are grown within a 100-mile radius of where you live you are not only living closer to how nature intended but also preventing the unnecessary use of oil needed to ship fruits, vegetables and meat thousands of miles in all directions.
4. Buy a water filter and limit your use of bottled beverages.
In the U.S. alone we use approximately two million plastic bottles every five minutes and 270 million aluminum cans each day. The amount of oil needed to make these plastic bottles equals about 15 million barrels a year. Most plastic bottles do not get recycled, but keep in mind that while recycling is preferred it is not possible without still more use of fossil fuels. Moreover, it takes 3 liters of water to manufacture just 1 liter of bottled water. So buy a stainless steel thermos and re-use instead.
5. Grow your own food or join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
If you have the space grow your own fruits, vegetables and herbs. If not, join a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and shop at local farmer's markets whenever possible. By joining a CSA you will be supporting sustainable family farms whether you live in a big city or small town.
Lawns in the U.S. take up 25 million acres of land while food packaging accounts for 30 million tons of waste annually.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
What to eat for the environment
Most of the discussion on this site deals with the subject of what not to eat or drink, rather than what we should be eating. I’ve written it in this way for many reasons. Firstly, because the mainstream American diet has become so destructive that if we all cut back just 25% on our consumption of meat, dairy, corn syrup, and bottled beverages we would probably go from being the nation that causes the most eco-damage to the leader in solving the problem.
Secondly, I did not want to delve too deeply into food comparisons as this invariably brings up the contentious subject of personal nutrition which is beyond the scope of this book. And lastly, I’ve found that as most people begin to make food choices from a more educated and conscious starting point they naturally replace the relinquished foods with alternatives that are healthier for themselves and the planet. Having said that, I understand that making the jump to a true environmentalist’s diet may be easier if some alternatives are introduced. The foods I mention here are the ones that will have both an immediate positive impact on the planet and your health.
Eat real food
It may sound odd, but by simply eating more real food – meaning edibles that take their nutrition directly from the soil and the sun – we are already helping to heal the planet. For simplification purposes, real food may be defined as all fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. Sadly, real food has become quite alien within the Standard American Diet. It has become such a problem that many people who are raised on fast food actually experience withdrawal symptoms such as headaches, shakes, and fevers when they replace real food for the artificial products they are used to. Refined packaged products, that often include man-made supplements and preservatives, are a drain on our natural resources and on our health care system, while real food actually works to counter the effects of chronic disease as well as carbon emissions.
According to the USDA: “Farm and grazing land soils are currently storing: 20 million metric tons of carbon a year…With improved management, farms and rangelands have the potential to store an additional 180 million metric tons annually, for a total of 200 million metric tons a year. This would be 12 to 14 percent of total U.S. emissions of carbon”. This is asking a lot of certain farmers who are struggling just to keep their business operational, but the more that the public demands fresh, wholesome food, grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides (aka real food), the easier it will be for all farms to improve their growing methods and crop management.
We all know that trees will absorb carbon from the air, which is why many companies try to offset their carbon footprint by planting more trees in the right places, but the beneficial effects of agricultural crops is not as widely understood. This is why organic fruit is a particularly important crop. Once established, most fruit trees continue to bear fruit year after year, not only feeding us nourishing, hydrating food but continually taking in carbon and releasing oxygen. The longing for the fructose in fruit is written into our genetic code and has been the sugar of choice since humans first walked the earth.
When scientists manufacture sweet treats in a lab they are basically taking our innate craving for sweet fruits and amplifying it by using the flavors that we love but adding more sugar or corn syrup to appeal to our modern palettes. Unfortunately, children who are raised on processed sweets become so accustomed to this heightened sugary taste that fundamental fruits such as apples, pears, and bananas begin to taste bland to them.
Additionally, in many ways real food takes up much less space on already overcrowded planet. It generally takes less space to grow, less space to store, and less space once we are finished with it. For example, consider the difference between eating peaches that may be stored for years in an aluminum can versus peaches that are in their whole state. The canned peaches will not only be lacking in nutrition compared to their freshly picked counterpart, but the can itself (which took energy to create) will either wind up in a landfill or in a recycling center, adding once again to the useless stream of garbage, carbon, and methane that we generate. The bottom line is that by simply making real food the largest percentage of your diet you are doing more for the planet than almost any other lifestyle change.
Hemp – America’s crop of the future
"Make the most you can of the Indian Hemp seed and sow it everywhere."
--President George Washington, 1794
"Hemp and tobacco were staple crops for our founding fathers when our country was new. It is baffling to see how far removed from real freedom this country has become since then. Hemp, even for industrial uses, of which there are many, is illegal to grow at all." – Republican Congressman Ron Paul
As I write this a quiet battle is being waged between the allies of industrial hemp, which includes many U.S. farmers, politicians and forward thinking companies, and the retractors of hemp products, which includes the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEAD), politicians, and companies that want to keep hemp off the market for fear of competition. At this point, sixteen states have passed pro-hemp legislation and eight states (Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Montana, North Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia) have removed barriers to its production or research. But even with the barriers removed farmers still need a permit from the DEA to grow hemp legally but this permit has not been forthcoming. The DEA has used and abused its power to inhibit farmers from growing hemp in their home states based on an archaic and asinine law that equates industrial hemp with marijuana.
Industrial hemp is the non-psychoactive, low-THC, oilseed and fiber varieties of the Cannabis sativa plant. Due to its negligible amount of THC hemp cannot be used as an hallucinogenic drug. In fact, many claim that since hemp is high in CBD (cannabidiol, a cannabinoid in hemp) it actually suppresses any effects of THC on our brain centers. Presently in the U.S. industrial hemp (which may be thought of as the roots, stalk, and stems of the cannabis plant) is legal to possess, but marijuana (being the flowers, buds, or leaves of the plant) is illegal. And although Americans purchase more industrial hemp products than any other nation in the world it is still against the law for farmers to grow it on American soil. This is at the core of the controversy over hemp, but for anyone who has fully investigated this issue it is really a no-brainer.
Not only is hemp native to our land, it was grown by some of the founding fathers of America, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson (who drafted both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution on hemp paper). In the early days of Virginia there were times when it was actually illegal not to grow hemp as it was recognized as such an important community crop during difficult times. By 1850 there were well over 8,000 hemp "plantations" in the U.S. that grew industrial hemp for cloth, canvass and rope. In the 1920’s Henry Ford, father of the automobile who considered agricultural materials to be the fuel of the future, even designed a car that ran on ethanol made from hemp.
The reason that the so many innovative Americans encouraged the cultivation of hemp is due to its versatility and sustainability. It can be easily grown with no pesticides, very little energy output, and small amounts of water. Additionally, it’s no secret that industrial hemp can be utilized for more purposes than almost any other plant. Some of the most common uses for hemp include: food (breads, protein powders, nuts, and cereals), edible oil (one of the most nutritious sources of healthy Omega rich fatty acids), biofuel, clothing, bags, socks & shoes, ropes & netting, paper (cardboard & packaging), bedding, and body care products (shampoo, soaps, and cosmetics).
Considering the versatility of industrial hemp it should come as no surprise that there are many powerful special interest groups that do not want to see it grown and propagated here in the U.S.. Once educated, the American consumer would benefit greatly from affordable, local access to hemp products and the American farmer would be thrilled to add a new trouble-free crop to their collection that is already in high demand.
So if hemp is truly a win-win crop for the grower, the buyer, and the earth why aren’t we taking advantage of this opportunity? Moreover, why is every other industrialized nation allowing their farmers to grow hemp while the U.S., which prides itself on fairness and free market competition, has made it illegal. There are many possible answers to these questions, but if you look deep enough you will find that it all comes down to one word: fear.
From clothing to paper to fuel, the companies that have locked in their customer base are fearful that if hemp were produced right here in the U.S. it would lead to declining interest in their products. The cotton industry, for example, feels that their profits will be directly impacted by more hemp on the market. Not only does cotton require at least double the amount of land in order to grow the same amount of fiber as hemp, but growing conventional cotton requires massive amounts of pesticides. In fact, an unbelievable 50% of the world’s pesticides / herbicides are used for cotton production. Hemp, on the other hand requires little or no pesticides and only moderate amounts of water. The timber industry also fears the legalization of industrial hemp because they realize that hemp can be used as both a building material and a reliable paper source. Back in 1916, the USDA calculated that by the 1940’s all paper would come from hemp so there would be no need to clear cut land just for paper products. Their report noted that hemp produces a new crop every season, while trees took decades to be ready for cutting, and hemp yielded more than four times as much pulp per acre as timber, making it a cheaper and more sustainable source for all grades of paper (see: http://www.hempmuseum.org)
Unfortunately, fear is also present in the minds of the American citizen, who for far too long has been spoon fed horror stories about marijuana and its link to hemp. We have been told that if many acres of American soil were filled with legalized hemp then there would be no way to distinguish it from it’s hallucinogenic sister plant, thereby adding to more drug trafficking and violence right here within our borders. As so often happens, fear is being used to override fact. Industrial hemp plants grow very tall and very close together while marijuana needs space to thrive, so hemp would quickly overtake most of the marijuana in the fields. More importantly, hemp has such miniscule THC levels that if the two were grown side by side the cross pollination would ruin the marijuana’s female bud production, rendering it practically useless.
On April 2nd 2009 the federal bill HR 1866 - The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2009 - was introduced by Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX). If passed into law this bill would remove restrictions on the cultivation of non-psychoactive industrial hemp. Due to industry pressure and mainstream misunderstanding, it seems unlikely that this bill will pass on its first attempt, but with the attention that it has gathered more Americans now appreciate the magnitude of this issue. There is finally a consensus among all type of Americans who now realize that hemp is not just another crop that we can idly overlook.
By way of the media and internet there is a growing grass roots movement working towards the legalization of industrial hemp. I’m confident that this bill will come up in again Congress, and when it does it’s imperative that we make our voices heard so that our representatives cannot pretend to misunderstand how important this measure is to our economy and our environment. Once hemp is growing legally, as it should have been for the past century, we will then utilize it in more ways than we ever dreamed possible. Meanwhile, it is equally important that we all cast a vote right now by including more hemp food, cosmetics, and clothing in our everyday life. By supporting the purveyors of hemp products we are demonstrating that America is already educated, willing, and eager for this crop of our past to become the crop of our future.
Secondly, I did not want to delve too deeply into food comparisons as this invariably brings up the contentious subject of personal nutrition which is beyond the scope of this book. And lastly, I’ve found that as most people begin to make food choices from a more educated and conscious starting point they naturally replace the relinquished foods with alternatives that are healthier for themselves and the planet. Having said that, I understand that making the jump to a true environmentalist’s diet may be easier if some alternatives are introduced. The foods I mention here are the ones that will have both an immediate positive impact on the planet and your health.
Eat real food
It may sound odd, but by simply eating more real food – meaning edibles that take their nutrition directly from the soil and the sun – we are already helping to heal the planet. For simplification purposes, real food may be defined as all fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains. Sadly, real food has become quite alien within the Standard American Diet. It has become such a problem that many people who are raised on fast food actually experience withdrawal symptoms such as headaches, shakes, and fevers when they replace real food for the artificial products they are used to. Refined packaged products, that often include man-made supplements and preservatives, are a drain on our natural resources and on our health care system, while real food actually works to counter the effects of chronic disease as well as carbon emissions.
According to the USDA: “Farm and grazing land soils are currently storing: 20 million metric tons of carbon a year…With improved management, farms and rangelands have the potential to store an additional 180 million metric tons annually, for a total of 200 million metric tons a year. This would be 12 to 14 percent of total U.S. emissions of carbon”. This is asking a lot of certain farmers who are struggling just to keep their business operational, but the more that the public demands fresh, wholesome food, grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides (aka real food), the easier it will be for all farms to improve their growing methods and crop management.
We all know that trees will absorb carbon from the air, which is why many companies try to offset their carbon footprint by planting more trees in the right places, but the beneficial effects of agricultural crops is not as widely understood. This is why organic fruit is a particularly important crop. Once established, most fruit trees continue to bear fruit year after year, not only feeding us nourishing, hydrating food but continually taking in carbon and releasing oxygen. The longing for the fructose in fruit is written into our genetic code and has been the sugar of choice since humans first walked the earth.
When scientists manufacture sweet treats in a lab they are basically taking our innate craving for sweet fruits and amplifying it by using the flavors that we love but adding more sugar or corn syrup to appeal to our modern palettes. Unfortunately, children who are raised on processed sweets become so accustomed to this heightened sugary taste that fundamental fruits such as apples, pears, and bananas begin to taste bland to them.
Additionally, in many ways real food takes up much less space on already overcrowded planet. It generally takes less space to grow, less space to store, and less space once we are finished with it. For example, consider the difference between eating peaches that may be stored for years in an aluminum can versus peaches that are in their whole state. The canned peaches will not only be lacking in nutrition compared to their freshly picked counterpart, but the can itself (which took energy to create) will either wind up in a landfill or in a recycling center, adding once again to the useless stream of garbage, carbon, and methane that we generate. The bottom line is that by simply making real food the largest percentage of your diet you are doing more for the planet than almost any other lifestyle change.
Hemp – America’s crop of the future
"Make the most you can of the Indian Hemp seed and sow it everywhere."
--President George Washington, 1794
"Hemp and tobacco were staple crops for our founding fathers when our country was new. It is baffling to see how far removed from real freedom this country has become since then. Hemp, even for industrial uses, of which there are many, is illegal to grow at all." – Republican Congressman Ron Paul
As I write this a quiet battle is being waged between the allies of industrial hemp, which includes many U.S. farmers, politicians and forward thinking companies, and the retractors of hemp products, which includes the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEAD), politicians, and companies that want to keep hemp off the market for fear of competition. At this point, sixteen states have passed pro-hemp legislation and eight states (Hawaii, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Montana, North Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia) have removed barriers to its production or research. But even with the barriers removed farmers still need a permit from the DEA to grow hemp legally but this permit has not been forthcoming. The DEA has used and abused its power to inhibit farmers from growing hemp in their home states based on an archaic and asinine law that equates industrial hemp with marijuana.
Industrial hemp is the non-psychoactive, low-THC, oilseed and fiber varieties of the Cannabis sativa plant. Due to its negligible amount of THC hemp cannot be used as an hallucinogenic drug. In fact, many claim that since hemp is high in CBD (cannabidiol, a cannabinoid in hemp) it actually suppresses any effects of THC on our brain centers. Presently in the U.S. industrial hemp (which may be thought of as the roots, stalk, and stems of the cannabis plant) is legal to possess, but marijuana (being the flowers, buds, or leaves of the plant) is illegal. And although Americans purchase more industrial hemp products than any other nation in the world it is still against the law for farmers to grow it on American soil. This is at the core of the controversy over hemp, but for anyone who has fully investigated this issue it is really a no-brainer.
Not only is hemp native to our land, it was grown by some of the founding fathers of America, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson (who drafted both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution on hemp paper). In the early days of Virginia there were times when it was actually illegal not to grow hemp as it was recognized as such an important community crop during difficult times. By 1850 there were well over 8,000 hemp "plantations" in the U.S. that grew industrial hemp for cloth, canvass and rope. In the 1920’s Henry Ford, father of the automobile who considered agricultural materials to be the fuel of the future, even designed a car that ran on ethanol made from hemp.
The reason that the so many innovative Americans encouraged the cultivation of hemp is due to its versatility and sustainability. It can be easily grown with no pesticides, very little energy output, and small amounts of water. Additionally, it’s no secret that industrial hemp can be utilized for more purposes than almost any other plant. Some of the most common uses for hemp include: food (breads, protein powders, nuts, and cereals), edible oil (one of the most nutritious sources of healthy Omega rich fatty acids), biofuel, clothing, bags, socks & shoes, ropes & netting, paper (cardboard & packaging), bedding, and body care products (shampoo, soaps, and cosmetics).
Considering the versatility of industrial hemp it should come as no surprise that there are many powerful special interest groups that do not want to see it grown and propagated here in the U.S.. Once educated, the American consumer would benefit greatly from affordable, local access to hemp products and the American farmer would be thrilled to add a new trouble-free crop to their collection that is already in high demand.
So if hemp is truly a win-win crop for the grower, the buyer, and the earth why aren’t we taking advantage of this opportunity? Moreover, why is every other industrialized nation allowing their farmers to grow hemp while the U.S., which prides itself on fairness and free market competition, has made it illegal. There are many possible answers to these questions, but if you look deep enough you will find that it all comes down to one word: fear.
From clothing to paper to fuel, the companies that have locked in their customer base are fearful that if hemp were produced right here in the U.S. it would lead to declining interest in their products. The cotton industry, for example, feels that their profits will be directly impacted by more hemp on the market. Not only does cotton require at least double the amount of land in order to grow the same amount of fiber as hemp, but growing conventional cotton requires massive amounts of pesticides. In fact, an unbelievable 50% of the world’s pesticides / herbicides are used for cotton production. Hemp, on the other hand requires little or no pesticides and only moderate amounts of water. The timber industry also fears the legalization of industrial hemp because they realize that hemp can be used as both a building material and a reliable paper source. Back in 1916, the USDA calculated that by the 1940’s all paper would come from hemp so there would be no need to clear cut land just for paper products. Their report noted that hemp produces a new crop every season, while trees took decades to be ready for cutting, and hemp yielded more than four times as much pulp per acre as timber, making it a cheaper and more sustainable source for all grades of paper (see: http://www.hempmuseum.org)
Unfortunately, fear is also present in the minds of the American citizen, who for far too long has been spoon fed horror stories about marijuana and its link to hemp. We have been told that if many acres of American soil were filled with legalized hemp then there would be no way to distinguish it from it’s hallucinogenic sister plant, thereby adding to more drug trafficking and violence right here within our borders. As so often happens, fear is being used to override fact. Industrial hemp plants grow very tall and very close together while marijuana needs space to thrive, so hemp would quickly overtake most of the marijuana in the fields. More importantly, hemp has such miniscule THC levels that if the two were grown side by side the cross pollination would ruin the marijuana’s female bud production, rendering it practically useless.
On April 2nd 2009 the federal bill HR 1866 - The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2009 - was introduced by Representatives Barney Frank (D-MA) and Ron Paul (R-TX). If passed into law this bill would remove restrictions on the cultivation of non-psychoactive industrial hemp. Due to industry pressure and mainstream misunderstanding, it seems unlikely that this bill will pass on its first attempt, but with the attention that it has gathered more Americans now appreciate the magnitude of this issue. There is finally a consensus among all type of Americans who now realize that hemp is not just another crop that we can idly overlook.
By way of the media and internet there is a growing grass roots movement working towards the legalization of industrial hemp. I’m confident that this bill will come up in again Congress, and when it does it’s imperative that we make our voices heard so that our representatives cannot pretend to misunderstand how important this measure is to our economy and our environment. Once hemp is growing legally, as it should have been for the past century, we will then utilize it in more ways than we ever dreamed possible. Meanwhile, it is equally important that we all cast a vote right now by including more hemp food, cosmetics, and clothing in our everyday life. By supporting the purveyors of hemp products we are demonstrating that America is already educated, willing, and eager for this crop of our past to become the crop of our future.
Chocolate (Cacao)
Cacao
Whether you consider yourself a carnivore, omnivore, vegan, or locavore there’s a good chance that you still enjoy a decadent dessert from time to time. One of the most widely consumed and sought after sweets is chocolate. And while Switzerland, Austria, and Ireland lead the world in chocolate consumption the U.S. still eats its fair share. In 2001 Americans consumed 3 billion pounds of chocolate, which totaled $13.1 billion in sales. Long known for its creaminess, versatility, and mood enhancing qualities, chocolate has been a sought after food in Europe ever since the early 1500’s when the conquistador Hernan Cortes supposedly brought it from Mexico to Spain after his overthrow of the Aztec Emperor Montezuma.
In the grand scheme of things, most think of chocolate as being a bit naughty or even hedonistic. We may have grown up pestering our parents for a scoop of chocolate ice-cream or a piece of chocolate cake only to be told that we would first have to finish our dinner before being allowed a prize such as that. But what most of us never learned is that all chocolate treats start out as cacao beans, which happen to be one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. Cacao has been enjoyed in its pure, raw form for roughly 5,000 years in the South America region where it is able to grow wild. Known for its medicinal qualities, the Mayans were the first, but far from the only, civilization to use cacao beans as a form of currency. In and of themselves these beans are a fairly bitter food which is why they didn’t gain notoriety in Europe until additives like sugar, milk, and a multitude of possible flavorings were mixed in to create delicious desserts while never losing the underlying chocolaty taste.
There may be three main reasons for chocolates long-lasting, mass appeal. One of the reasons being that it contains a measurable amount of caffeine. This in and of itself is never a problem, but when we combine the small amount of caffeine with a fair amount of sugar we wind up with a sharp increase of energy that will lead to an inevitable crash as the day goes on. The second reason for its popularity is an element called anandamide. This neurotransmitter is an oil that has been called the “bliss chemical” because it is generally released in our bodies when we are feeling our best. Some studies have linked the “runner’s high” to the production of anandamide which may carry endorphins through the blood-brain barrier to give us a feeling of exhilaration. And lastly there is the caffeine related alkaloid called theobromine, a very mild stimulant found in cacao that is often mentioned as the possible culprit for chocolate addiction. Theobromine has also been used as a heart stimulant and cough suppressant.
Past civilizations have called cacao the “food of the Gods” and many nutritionists seem to concur when they assert that raw cacao is nature’s most perfect all around food. In addition to anandamide cacao is rich in magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, and vitamins B1, A, C, and E. Cacao beans also contain polyphenols, similar to those found in wine, which have a powerful antioxidant effect. Cacao and chocolate also contain tryptophan, an essential amino-acid which aids the bodies production of serotonin, an important neurotransmitter and a significant mood elevator in its own right.
If you are a self-proclaimed “chocoholic”, who feels a trifle guilty each time you indulge, then there is wonderful news. If taken in its raw, unadulterated form chocolate is actually very healthy for both you and the planet. Once heated and mixed with sugar cacao loses many of its beneficial qualities, but when eaten raw (either alone or blended with natural sweeteners) it is rightly known as a superfood. Furthermore, the tree that bears the cacao fruit is one of the most sustainable and productive on the planet. Although it has some very specific requirements for growth, once established it is one of the only trees that can produce food year-round. This is an extremely important point when we consider the current threat to many of our crops and increased dearth of good arable land. Cacao trees need steady warm temperatures in a humid climate, regular rainfall, and protection from harsh winds, but they grow best in partial shade in places like the tropical rainforest. This means that cacao can easily be grown right under the rainforest canopy without having to bulldoze the existing land, as we have been doing to grow conventional soybeans.
Presently most of the world’s supply of cacao (about 75%) comes from two West African countries: Cote D'Ivorie (Ivory Coast) and it's neighbor, Ghana. However, the rarely reported horrific fact is that the massive world demand for chocolate has created child slavery in these regions. The largest chocolate manufacturers, such as Nestle and Hershey, have been quietly purchasing cheap cacao from farms that, altogether, use as many as 100,000 children for slave labor. Amid public pressure there has been some progress made in this area but nothing close to alleviating this tragic issue. For this reason, among others, it is particularly important to seek out either the “fair-trade” or “certified organic” label whenever you buy chocolate.
There is every reason to believe that places like Brazil and Ecuador, where there is already an ample amount of cacao production, can someday become major exporters of this remarkable food while at the same time assisting in protecting the rainforest. An adult cacao tree produces anywhere between 300 to 1,000 pounds of cacao per acre for about 50 years. This tells us that when we plant chocolate in this region we are working to keep the rainforest safe, indigenous people employed, and countless numbers of exotic plant and animal species from extinction.
Whether you consider yourself a carnivore, omnivore, vegan, or locavore there’s a good chance that you still enjoy a decadent dessert from time to time. One of the most widely consumed and sought after sweets is chocolate. And while Switzerland, Austria, and Ireland lead the world in chocolate consumption the U.S. still eats its fair share. In 2001 Americans consumed 3 billion pounds of chocolate, which totaled $13.1 billion in sales. Long known for its creaminess, versatility, and mood enhancing qualities, chocolate has been a sought after food in Europe ever since the early 1500’s when the conquistador Hernan Cortes supposedly brought it from Mexico to Spain after his overthrow of the Aztec Emperor Montezuma.
In the grand scheme of things, most think of chocolate as being a bit naughty or even hedonistic. We may have grown up pestering our parents for a scoop of chocolate ice-cream or a piece of chocolate cake only to be told that we would first have to finish our dinner before being allowed a prize such as that. But what most of us never learned is that all chocolate treats start out as cacao beans, which happen to be one of the most nutritious foods on the planet. Cacao has been enjoyed in its pure, raw form for roughly 5,000 years in the South America region where it is able to grow wild. Known for its medicinal qualities, the Mayans were the first, but far from the only, civilization to use cacao beans as a form of currency. In and of themselves these beans are a fairly bitter food which is why they didn’t gain notoriety in Europe until additives like sugar, milk, and a multitude of possible flavorings were mixed in to create delicious desserts while never losing the underlying chocolaty taste.
There may be three main reasons for chocolates long-lasting, mass appeal. One of the reasons being that it contains a measurable amount of caffeine. This in and of itself is never a problem, but when we combine the small amount of caffeine with a fair amount of sugar we wind up with a sharp increase of energy that will lead to an inevitable crash as the day goes on. The second reason for its popularity is an element called anandamide. This neurotransmitter is an oil that has been called the “bliss chemical” because it is generally released in our bodies when we are feeling our best. Some studies have linked the “runner’s high” to the production of anandamide which may carry endorphins through the blood-brain barrier to give us a feeling of exhilaration. And lastly there is the caffeine related alkaloid called theobromine, a very mild stimulant found in cacao that is often mentioned as the possible culprit for chocolate addiction. Theobromine has also been used as a heart stimulant and cough suppressant.
Past civilizations have called cacao the “food of the Gods” and many nutritionists seem to concur when they assert that raw cacao is nature’s most perfect all around food. In addition to anandamide cacao is rich in magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, and vitamins B1, A, C, and E. Cacao beans also contain polyphenols, similar to those found in wine, which have a powerful antioxidant effect. Cacao and chocolate also contain tryptophan, an essential amino-acid which aids the bodies production of serotonin, an important neurotransmitter and a significant mood elevator in its own right.
If you are a self-proclaimed “chocoholic”, who feels a trifle guilty each time you indulge, then there is wonderful news. If taken in its raw, unadulterated form chocolate is actually very healthy for both you and the planet. Once heated and mixed with sugar cacao loses many of its beneficial qualities, but when eaten raw (either alone or blended with natural sweeteners) it is rightly known as a superfood. Furthermore, the tree that bears the cacao fruit is one of the most sustainable and productive on the planet. Although it has some very specific requirements for growth, once established it is one of the only trees that can produce food year-round. This is an extremely important point when we consider the current threat to many of our crops and increased dearth of good arable land. Cacao trees need steady warm temperatures in a humid climate, regular rainfall, and protection from harsh winds, but they grow best in partial shade in places like the tropical rainforest. This means that cacao can easily be grown right under the rainforest canopy without having to bulldoze the existing land, as we have been doing to grow conventional soybeans.
Presently most of the world’s supply of cacao (about 75%) comes from two West African countries: Cote D'Ivorie (Ivory Coast) and it's neighbor, Ghana. However, the rarely reported horrific fact is that the massive world demand for chocolate has created child slavery in these regions. The largest chocolate manufacturers, such as Nestle and Hershey, have been quietly purchasing cheap cacao from farms that, altogether, use as many as 100,000 children for slave labor. Amid public pressure there has been some progress made in this area but nothing close to alleviating this tragic issue. For this reason, among others, it is particularly important to seek out either the “fair-trade” or “certified organic” label whenever you buy chocolate.
There is every reason to believe that places like Brazil and Ecuador, where there is already an ample amount of cacao production, can someday become major exporters of this remarkable food while at the same time assisting in protecting the rainforest. An adult cacao tree produces anywhere between 300 to 1,000 pounds of cacao per acre for about 50 years. This tells us that when we plant chocolate in this region we are working to keep the rainforest safe, indigenous people employed, and countless numbers of exotic plant and animal species from extinction.
Quinoa & Indoor sprouting
Quinoa
Quinoa (pronounced “keen-wa”), is a highly nutritious grain that comes from the Andes mountains of South America and was one of the three staple foods of the Incas. Technically quinoa is a fruit that is used as a grain, so it contains no gluten, which causes digestive problems for many people. Quinoa is not only a complete protein source but it contains more protein than any other grain (around of 16 percent, compared with 14 percent for wheat and 7.5 percent for rice), which makes it an excellent food for people transitioning off of a meat centered diet. It is also high in iron, calcium and magnesium. In recipes it is often used as a substitute for rice but it can also be used as a porridge, a dessert, or in middle-eastern dishes like tabouli. With its increased popularity, you can now find quinoa being sold in the form of pasta and polenta.
During its growth cycle the outer coating of quinoa has a very bitter taste which makes it undesirable to most insects and birds, therefore needing very little man-made protection. Some distributors process it to remove the bitter coating, but if not all it takes is a thorough rinse before cooking to rid yourself of the harsh coating that can also be slightly toxic in large amounts. Once boiled, quinoa has a very light, nutty flavor that works well as a side dish, a main course, or as a creative addition to soups. It’s also very convenient as it takes less time to cook than rice and is generally easier to digest.
Aside from its nutrition and taste, another good reason to purchase quinoa is that it is grown in South American countries like Bolivia, Peru, and Chile where third world farmers work hard to produce quinoa with minimal equipment and resources, as compared with our modern farming methods. Thankfully it has also managed to remain largely untainted and unaltered in this voracious world of corporate agribusiness. Unlike many staple crops that have lost most of their varieties, Peru and Bolivia maintain seed banks with 1,800 types of quinoa. With all of its virtues it’s easy to see why the Incas called it the “Mother of all grains” and the United Nations classified quinoa as a “Super crop”.
Indoor sprout gardens
If you are someone who is motivated to eat healthier and grow your own food but feel intimidated, either by lack of money, space, resources, or time, then learning how to grow fresh sprouts at home may be the perfect way to begin. Sprouts are economical, highly nutritious, and easy to grow in large quantities, especially after you’ve done some experimenting. As opposed to an outdoor garden, that may need ample sunlight and quality soil, sprouts require only a tiny amount of space and can be grown in a sprouting kit, a mesh bag, a glass ball-jar, or any large container that allows the seeds to stay moist while the air circulates around them to prevent mold.
Sprouts are essentially baby plants that are bursting with living enzymes, protein, and minerals. By weight, sprouts are generally more nutritious than most vegetables. Some of the most common sprouts include: mung bean, alfalfa, broccoli, buckwheat, chick pea, clover, mustard, radish and sunflower. Studies have shown that certain sprouts contain high levels of anti-oxidants which aid in the prevention of cancer, asthma, and premature aging. UCLA researchers have recently reported that a compound in broccoli sprouts can protect against respiratory inflammations that cause conditions like asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Studies have also shown that phytoestrogens, which are plentiful in many sprouts, play an important role in prevention of menopausal symptoms, osteoporosis, cancer and heart disease.
For most people the main drawback to eating sprouts may be the taste, or at least the perception of how they taste as so many of us are too picky to give them a try. If you fall into this category then try mixing sprouts with your favorite sauces or salad dressings to mask their “sprouty” aftertaste. Sprouts are extremely versatile and can be added to sandwiches, soups, wraps, or dips. Also, try sprouting a combination of seeds that include some of the spicier ones like mustard and radish to make the salad mix more palatable.
I find that one of the great things about having a variety of sprouts on hand is that they are a great “grab and go” snack food. Most Americans complain that they are too busy to eat healthy, so they opt for buying between meal snacks that are either heavily salted or overly sweet. But when you have a few containers of sprouts in the frig you can easily take them with you in a small plastic container to be used as a quick fix that will give you energy rather than exhaust it.
Since organic seeds are inexpensive and easy to grow, taking some time to find the ones you like best can be a fun project. Since they grow quickly you can make it into a little science experiment for the whole family, watching how they change from day to day. A large bag of sproutable seeds may cost anywhere from $2-$5 and will yield about six servings, as compared to organic green vegetables that will cost approximately $2 per serving. What's more, as long as you keep the seeds in a cool dry place they should stay fresh for at least two years, which also differs from harvested vegetables that have a much shorter shelf life.
To summarize, even if you’ve always thought of sprouts as something that only old time hippies or eccentric vegans grow in their basement, keep an open mind and give them a try. Use them as a substitute for nuts or trail mix. Throw them into a soup or blended drink to get used to their texture. Admittedly, their taste is far removed from the flavors at your local fast food restaurant, but with some creativity you’ll be surprised how your own tastes may change.
Quinoa (pronounced “keen-wa”), is a highly nutritious grain that comes from the Andes mountains of South America and was one of the three staple foods of the Incas. Technically quinoa is a fruit that is used as a grain, so it contains no gluten, which causes digestive problems for many people. Quinoa is not only a complete protein source but it contains more protein than any other grain (around of 16 percent, compared with 14 percent for wheat and 7.5 percent for rice), which makes it an excellent food for people transitioning off of a meat centered diet. It is also high in iron, calcium and magnesium. In recipes it is often used as a substitute for rice but it can also be used as a porridge, a dessert, or in middle-eastern dishes like tabouli. With its increased popularity, you can now find quinoa being sold in the form of pasta and polenta.
During its growth cycle the outer coating of quinoa has a very bitter taste which makes it undesirable to most insects and birds, therefore needing very little man-made protection. Some distributors process it to remove the bitter coating, but if not all it takes is a thorough rinse before cooking to rid yourself of the harsh coating that can also be slightly toxic in large amounts. Once boiled, quinoa has a very light, nutty flavor that works well as a side dish, a main course, or as a creative addition to soups. It’s also very convenient as it takes less time to cook than rice and is generally easier to digest.
Aside from its nutrition and taste, another good reason to purchase quinoa is that it is grown in South American countries like Bolivia, Peru, and Chile where third world farmers work hard to produce quinoa with minimal equipment and resources, as compared with our modern farming methods. Thankfully it has also managed to remain largely untainted and unaltered in this voracious world of corporate agribusiness. Unlike many staple crops that have lost most of their varieties, Peru and Bolivia maintain seed banks with 1,800 types of quinoa. With all of its virtues it’s easy to see why the Incas called it the “Mother of all grains” and the United Nations classified quinoa as a “Super crop”.
Indoor sprout gardens
If you are someone who is motivated to eat healthier and grow your own food but feel intimidated, either by lack of money, space, resources, or time, then learning how to grow fresh sprouts at home may be the perfect way to begin. Sprouts are economical, highly nutritious, and easy to grow in large quantities, especially after you’ve done some experimenting. As opposed to an outdoor garden, that may need ample sunlight and quality soil, sprouts require only a tiny amount of space and can be grown in a sprouting kit, a mesh bag, a glass ball-jar, or any large container that allows the seeds to stay moist while the air circulates around them to prevent mold.
Sprouts are essentially baby plants that are bursting with living enzymes, protein, and minerals. By weight, sprouts are generally more nutritious than most vegetables. Some of the most common sprouts include: mung bean, alfalfa, broccoli, buckwheat, chick pea, clover, mustard, radish and sunflower. Studies have shown that certain sprouts contain high levels of anti-oxidants which aid in the prevention of cancer, asthma, and premature aging. UCLA researchers have recently reported that a compound in broccoli sprouts can protect against respiratory inflammations that cause conditions like asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Studies have also shown that phytoestrogens, which are plentiful in many sprouts, play an important role in prevention of menopausal symptoms, osteoporosis, cancer and heart disease.
For most people the main drawback to eating sprouts may be the taste, or at least the perception of how they taste as so many of us are too picky to give them a try. If you fall into this category then try mixing sprouts with your favorite sauces or salad dressings to mask their “sprouty” aftertaste. Sprouts are extremely versatile and can be added to sandwiches, soups, wraps, or dips. Also, try sprouting a combination of seeds that include some of the spicier ones like mustard and radish to make the salad mix more palatable.
I find that one of the great things about having a variety of sprouts on hand is that they are a great “grab and go” snack food. Most Americans complain that they are too busy to eat healthy, so they opt for buying between meal snacks that are either heavily salted or overly sweet. But when you have a few containers of sprouts in the frig you can easily take them with you in a small plastic container to be used as a quick fix that will give you energy rather than exhaust it.
Since organic seeds are inexpensive and easy to grow, taking some time to find the ones you like best can be a fun project. Since they grow quickly you can make it into a little science experiment for the whole family, watching how they change from day to day. A large bag of sproutable seeds may cost anywhere from $2-$5 and will yield about six servings, as compared to organic green vegetables that will cost approximately $2 per serving. What's more, as long as you keep the seeds in a cool dry place they should stay fresh for at least two years, which also differs from harvested vegetables that have a much shorter shelf life.
To summarize, even if you’ve always thought of sprouts as something that only old time hippies or eccentric vegans grow in their basement, keep an open mind and give them a try. Use them as a substitute for nuts or trail mix. Throw them into a soup or blended drink to get used to their texture. Admittedly, their taste is far removed from the flavors at your local fast food restaurant, but with some creativity you’ll be surprised how your own tastes may change.
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