Atlanta Local Food Initiative



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 I just found out about the Atlanta Local Food Initiative (ALFI).  It joins many different groups "to build a local food system that enhances human health, promotes environmental renewal, fosters local economies, and links rural and urban communities".  They follow all of the news stories about local food and put links to them under the news tab on their website.  They are partners with many different groups including Emory University Sustainable Food Initiative, CDC, Heifer International, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension and Center for Urban Agriculture, as well as some others.  They have events listed on their website and contact information, which can be used for volunteer oportunities.

Their website has a lot of good information.  If you are interested in local food check it out here.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (Post 5)

While reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle I've been wondering what the Kingsolver family will eat during the winter.  They were canning tomatoes, other vegetables and fruits during the summer, but I still was not sure they would have enough.  In January Barbara Kingsolver is able to rest and seems to have a lot less to do.  She reads the paper while having warm soup for lunch and sitting by a crackling fire.  Of course she likes to read the food column.  She is upset by the writer who is writing about pesto with fresh, young basil leaves during the winter.  The basil leaves had stopped growing in her area about three months before.  They have to eat frozen pesto they made during the summer.  Many people ask her what her family eats during the winter.  She feels like they want a dramatic story of how they do not have enough food but instead she has to tell them that they "...just ate ordinary things like pasta with pesto, made ahead".  They have an abundance of food it is just all frozen or in the form of roots.  One thing that the Kingsolvers do not have that many people rely on during the winter is fish.  The omega-3 fatty acids that are prevalent in fish help with depression.  The beef that the Kingsolvers get locally during the winter "...has omega-3 levels up to six times higher than CAFO beef...".  This omega-3 would help them through the winter according to Kingsolver.  They eat a lot of squash because some varieties continue growing through the cold weather.   The family was surprised when they found that in "...January, it wasn't all that hard".  They also get about "...$7,500 of annual income" while in their year as locavores.

I never realized all the possibilities that there are for organic food during the winter, you just have to start early.  Also, I never realized all the economic benefits that local food has.  I have learned so much about organic and local farming from this book it's so interesting to know what is growing all year round.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (Post 3)

While the Kingsolvers are on vacation they visit many friends with small farms.  And at one point they visit the "Cheese Queen".  Ricki Carroll is the founder of New England Cheesemaking Supply and gives workshops in her own kitchen on making cheese.  She has also traveled to many places and learned about the different techniques of making cheese (Italy and the Republic of Georgia).  I learned that you can use store bought milk to make cheese as long as it is not labled ultra-pasturized.  Also, there are many legalities connected to producing and selling dairy products.  Many states have regulations that make it very hard for small-dairies to sell directly to consumers.  Some of the over bearing restrictions are: "the milking house must have incandescent fixtures of 100 watts or more capacity located near but not directly above any bulk milk tank; it must have employee dressing rooms and a separate, permanently installed hand-washing facility".  The small-farms will have a house right next door with indoor plumbing that cannot count though.  Mrs. Kingsolver and her daughter, Camille are lactose intolerant.  Lactose intolerance is not a disease but is instead when someone is not born with a gene to allow them to drink milk after around four years old.  When curdling milk to make other products such as cheese and yogurt, the bacteria eats the lactose making it more digestible for people without the gene. 

On their trip the Kingsolvers stop in Vermont at a diner called the Farmers Diner for lunch.  They speak to the owners and learn that all of the products are grown within an hour's drive of the diner.  At a friend's farm that they stay at they see birds clearing bugs from fields and fields full of lightning bugs at night. 

They get home from their trip and have to weed a lot and their chickens and turkeys start to mature right after they return too.  They need to choose a rooster from her younger daughter, Lily's flock.  In choosing a rooster they have to find one that will care for all of his hens and keep them safe.  A flock can only have one rooster so the decision has to be long term.  During this time squash start to come into season and they have so much extra squash that they do not know what to do with it.  At Lily's birthday they make chocolate chip zucchini cookies and all the kids love them but cannot guess what the secret ingredient is.  They even give the recipe in the book. 

Please keep reading our blog to learn more about the Kingsolver's year away from processed foods.

UGA going Organic?



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The University of Georgia is starting a new program for undergraduates this fall that will teach them about local food.  The courses will be offered to every student even those with English, Math, or other majors not related to horticulture.  The University is trying to give students the oppurtunity to learn about the production of local foods.  The students in the program will work in community gardens around Athens.  In 2010 students created an on campus garden called the UGArden.  Students are becoming very interested in local and organic food which is a good sign for the future of agriculture in our country.  You can read more about this new program here.

Dekalb Farmers Market

The Dekalb Farmers Market is located in Decatur.  They support local farms and provide organic, GMO-free foods for customers.  They transport their own food from local farms so that it is fresh and on time.  They have cage free chicken and grass fed beef. In their coffee department they have machines that make fresh nut butters out of a large variety of nuts you can choose from.  They also have organic international foods so that you can experiment with new, healthy foods.  They have a great variety of foods to choose from.  Their website has information on all the foods.

Organic Fast Food

 EVOS is a fast food restaurant located in California, Florida, Georgia, and North Carolina.  They support sustainable farms.  The founders wanted to have a good American burger and fries without the extra fat.  They airbake their food instead of frying so that it is healthier.  They also use organic meat, fruit, and vegetables.  They have burgers, wraps, and even milkshakes (that are really good).  You can check them out on their website.


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Slow Food?



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 Slow Food USA is a movement across the country to make food good for the consumers, producers, and the planet.  You can learn more about this movement at their website http://www.slowfoodusa.org/index.php.