What is Glyphosate?

from Google: cornfield.jpg (no other info given)

Do you know anything with celiac disease or gluten intolerance? You may want to research what glyphosate is in some peer-reviewed research here.

Have You Heard of the Paleo Diet? Microbes in Our Guts?

http://npr.org/goatsandsoda

With all the different diets vying for attention and diseases from common foods in the news today, I thought this NPR article was interesting, as it relates the microbes in our guts to what kinds of food we can handle. Research is showing just how much we are made up of microbes that govern many processes in our bodies and brains. A sort of symbiotic relationship, if you will. There are other articles to link into once you're at the main article, here. If you know someone with celiac disease, or other issues, it's worth a read. The Western diet is really not very friendly to the human body, alas.

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Things I'm Scared to Think About

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stinky_Cheese_Man_and_Other_Fairly_Stupid_Tales

Just a quick post to share some "food" news. Food labeling sounds like a really good idea to me!

Let me elaborate. I found this interesting article (and verified it!) about making cheese out of human bacteria found in...well...places like your belly button, or under your arms.

And I figured: why not share the even more unpalatable (but with added flavor chemicals, I'm sure its great!) article on a concoction of a human feces burger developed in Japan.

Ketchup, anyone? ;)

And that crazy bastion of independence--Vermont--just passed the first GMO labeling law yesterday. Read about it here.

Happy reading!

Food, Pesticide, and Water: The More You Know!

Harvard's Healthy Eating Graphic
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/

So, does Brazil have a better food pyramid than the US? Actually, they have a completely different mindset toward food and it's making waves. You can read about it here and here.

Here's a really interesting site, EWG, that measures the pesticide in foods. This goes back to the Clean 15 and the Dirty Dozen. The summary explains how foods are tested and is very well-documented.

Stock image from
http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photo-planet-earth-splashing-water-forming-beautiful-dramatic-splash-gradient-background-lighter-under-north-image39862615

Liane found this incredible report called Climate Counts Company Scorecard. Prepare to have your mind blown! Very interesting. I've still got a lot of reading to do on this one!

Closely related on the environmental front is an interesting article by Huffington Post Green on how much water it takes to produce our food. You can see which rates lower--chicken or beef? pasta or rice? wine or beer? Water is used in creating almost EVERYTHING!

Happy (and disturbed) reading. :)

A Few Articles to Get You Started

A few of my 2013 garden yields!

I've been saving up a few links to articles that I'm interested in perusing, so I thought they could be of interest to you as well. I'll be adding more as we go along:

KIND bars had to remove the "healthy" label. Before you get angry at their deception, read the full story.

Have you heard about all the trouble monarch butterflies are having trying not to become extinct? What's the problem? Check out the story here.

Ever wonder how you can save money at the grocery store or farmers' market? Find out when fruits and vegetables are in season.

Here's another food article (sorry it's from the same source! I try not to do that!) on Kraft CHEESE (ahem). I loved Kraft mac-n-cheese back in the old days!

I make my own laundry detergent, and now I think I'm going to try this---for the bathroom!

There's much more I want to add, but I'm still at school and need to start my weekend. More later!

--Mrs. C.

Welcome, 2015 AP Students!

penley.jpg
 (used by permission by Steve Penley/Teresa Penley Sheppard

It's that time of year again! The question always looms: Why food ethics? Why food? Why bother?

The goal is not to change your eating habits, though I hope that happens. The goal is to know what's going on in your body, in your neighborhood, in your country, in the world. Food touches all these areas and is the source of controversy, enjoyment, and confusion. This is an opportunity to own your learning--to explore things that are of interest to you.

As you get older, you will discover that government will not do everything for you. You must be your own advocate, and along the way, you may find yourself advocating for others.

This blog will feature links to pertinent issues in the news regarding food and food ethics. Check back often!

Welcome to the search. :)

Mrs. C.

Fake Milk? You've Got to be Kidding Me!

"Milk" by Daniel Hurst
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28390932@N07/3332225132/

But then again, why am I surprised!? I'm including a link to snopes.com regarding the information, just so I have all the facts. I think the saddest part of this is that the International Dairy Foods Association feels that adding artificial sweeteners would "benefit school children" who only like to drink sweet beverages. There's that sugar/corn beast rearing its ugly head again, plus the idea that everything can be manipulated, except our own willpower and understanding of the detrimental effects of both sugar and sugar substitutes.

Next week will end the blogging portion of the blog project, and then we'll have book discussions and blog visits, an assessment, and...a taste testing day. I mean, we can't leave the world of food ethics without eating, can we? :)

Other issues you may want to research in the next two weeks:

CHOCOLATE and SLAVERY? When there is no standard for ethical behavior and decision making, anything goes...

80% of Supermarket Items are Spiked With...SUGAR! When is a calorie not a calorie? Protect your health!

Why are STRANGE ITEMS ending up in our food? This seems to be happening on a regular basis. Is it that we are short on inspections? Inspectors? What is behind this decline in safety?

Did you know that more people have a mobile phone than a toilet? Check out interesting water facts here.

A good place to get started on looking into animal treatment ethics is here. Follow the links!

Happy hunting and good eating on this fine St. Patty's Day!