Wednesday, November 23, 2005

NYTimes Op-Eds Eating Good Food
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This piece champions the middle-market farmer, too big to serve the farmer's markets, too committed to sell-out to mega-agriculture.

Organic and then some, this piece makes the same point I have made before. It aint just the organic label. The author notes how Big Ag is pinning for organic to include xanthan gum (an artificial thickener), ammonium bicarbonate (a synthetic leavening agent), and ethylene (a chemical to ripen tomatoes and other fruit). She also notes that organic does not equate with pastured/grass fed, which are much better indicators of quality in meat and milk. She leaves out mention of Whole Foods and the absurdity of brandishing a word like "organic" when the products are shipped off-season from New Zealand, Chile and South Africa, let alone trucked in long distances. Still, the writer points out the best bet for getting wholesome, real food, is to know your farmer.

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