sorry for the wait...

i just wanted to take a moment and thank those who have visited my tiny little blog looking for the information about food that they deserve.

i know i haven't updated in a while, but i assure you it is just because i am trying to get myself better organized and able to crack down on the what's what in the current state of our food industry. i've got a lot of little things planned and i intend to follow through.

so just keep an eye out, and things will surely grow!

-heather enders

What Food? website - a website home for all this information

Heather Ender's Bookmarks - my bookmarks on delicious.com. a more up-to-date way to see the bank of websites i pull from.

 

art project : 155 lbs

today i was going through my e-mails and came across a very interesting parallel. It was an article on the Green Garbage Project, which was started by a concerned couple to try and see how little waste they could produce within a year.

the reason why i was so drawn to this article was that a little less than two weeks ago my roommate, kim, a friend of ours, justin, and i just showed an installation of all the recyclable 'waste' kim and i have been hoarding in our apartment for seven months. and now we are looking to be even more thorough in collecting our waste for the next year.

in the first installment of our project we set out collecting these items so we could re-purpose them and reduce waste. we use glass drink containers and jars as dishes. we use plastic containers as tupperware, planters, and dishes as well. we use milk cartons, cans, and fruit containers as planters. cardboard, and containers have been used for art projects and canvases. tuna cans make great ashtrays and coin dishes. and even still we have more bottles and cans and bags and cartons than we can really handle in our tiny three bedroom boston apartment.

and that's two eco-friendly art students' consumption rate, not even the average american.

we did the math and we produce around .35 lbs of recycling per person per day, which is very low compared to the average 4.5 lbs of garbage the average person generates. and on average it takes us about a week and a half to fill up a kitchen trash bag with the other waste. so even with numbers lower than the average american, in only recycling we were able to fill an entire squash court.

that's a lot of trash. and when you hold onto it and live with it in your space every day for seven months it really strikes you how much trash we're making on this planet. and how necessary it is to be responsible for that waste.

The Problem is in the Food

the scariest thing is that they don't know the food is what's bad for them. in a country where a healthy vegetable pasta doesn't meet UDSA cafeteria pasta, but french fries and pizza count as a vegitable and a grain it is no wonder we're in the midst of an obesity epidemic. children are no longer being taught what is healthy or unhealthy because of parents that have been misinformed by the food industry, and are being served what is most appealing to them by the school system. no elementary schooler would say no to pizza for breakfast, but that doesn't mean you have to give it to them.

i heard about jamie oliver's show briefly when i read an article about him winning the 2010 TED award, and then again by my mom and another article about the 'faling' of his Food Revolution. So I went on hulu and watched the first three episodes and was shocked about how bad things really are. kids don't even know what potatoes and tomatoes are. try after try jamie oliver attempts to prove that kids will make the healthy choice over the food that's killing them, and every try ends in favor of poor food. but he keeps trying.
 

TED Prize to Celebrity Chef to Fight Obesity - an article on jamie oliver winning the $100,000 TED prize to fund the Food Revolution in the us

How TV Supershef Jamie Oliver's 'Food Revolution' Flunked Out - another article talking about the loosing battle jamie seems to be having with bettering our food system.

Hunger and Obesity: Two Sides of the Same Coin - this article talks about the relationship between food scarcity and obesity in our society

On job creation—local fruits and vegetables vs. corn and soybeans - a recent study shows not only is the midwest able to grow fruits and vegitables, but they'd profit better and everyone would be healthier as well!
 

yes we can

all it really takes is educating ourselves on where our food really comes from, and to make a few slight lifestyle changes in order to stop the food industry from contaminating our food. it seems we have been disillusioned by corporations into thinking 'how can i do anything?' and therefore don't want to know what we're eating in fear. the most disheartening thing i've heard since beginning this project was while informing a group of friends about the food we eat one of them simply said "I don't want to know what's in our food... we can't stop them."

one or two people can't stop multi-billion dollar corporations. but who says they have the authority to tell us what we should and shouldn't eat. who cares if GM food really isn't that bad (studies show otherwise). if i want to eat food grown without pesticides, or modern science i should have every right to, especially when humans have been surviving without it for hundreds of years. yes one or two people can't do anything, but if we can get an educated group together, we definitely can do something.
 

Non-GMO iPhone App - this website gives a quick 101 on why you should choose a diet without GMOs, as well as a non-GMO food guide app for your ipod or iphone or a downloadable PDF.

The GMO Tipping Point - another article about why you should avoid GMOs and why we should and can stop them.

Press Release: the American Academy of Environmental Medicine - this is a press release by the AAEM calling for a moratorium on the use of GMOs due to their negative impact on public health.

Institute for Responsible Technology's Facebook - and a way to stay updated via facebook
 

Toxic Sludge in Your Food?

one of the most shocking things i've been hearing this week is about the use of toxic sludge (sewage, chemical waste, pharmaceutical waste, etc) as fertilizer and in low-income neighborhoods. since the outlawing of dumping waste into the ocean in 1992, it seems that the new solution is to dump the wastes elsewhere, and someone thought that dumping it onto our crops seemed like a good idea.


Toxic Sludge Being Marketed as Fertilizer Utilizing Low-Income Americans as Guinea Pigs - this shocking article is from early 2008 and covers the controversial "study" of whether using toxic sludge on lawns with high lead prevents lead poisoning in children when eaten.
    "The idea that sludge - the leftover semisolid wastes filtered from water pollution at 16,500 treatment plants - can be turned into something harmless, even if swallowed, has been a tenet of federal policy for three decades."

Sludge Spread on Fields is Fodder for Lawsuits - an article from 2003 about the use of toxic sludge in fields and the harm it has done to people and animals alike.
    "One Georgia farmer, H. J. Peterson of Stockbridge, sued DeKalb County in 1995, saying 61 of his cows died after eating hay grown using sludge"

Infidels? no shit! - a first hand account on Carol Langley's experience living beside toxic sludge.
    "now I'm getting ready for the nosebleeds to start, the headaches are starting, II'm hoping I don't get paralysis and chest pains like last year."

Tell the "World's Greenest Mayor" to Stop Poisoning His City with Toxic Sludge - article on the use of toxic sludge in San Francisco as well as the rest of the US, and includes links to take action on this subject.

EPA Requests Feedback on Plan Analyzing Impact of Hazardous Waste on Disadvantaged Communities - a slightly more hopeful article from January 2010 on what the EPA is looking to do to fix the problem of toxic dumping on low income families.

Sludge News
 

learn more

Interview with Eric Holt-Giménez part 2 from East Bay Pictures on Vimeo.

this is a pretty long video (about twenty minutes) but it's well worth the watch. Eric Holt-Giménez breaks down the food industry and the way it is working in the united states and explains simply enough why it is not working. sadly there isn't too many documentaries i've been able to find dealing with the darker side of the food industry, but here are some that are definitely worth the watch.

the Future of Food - this was the documentary that essentially opened my eyes to this whole issue and got me thinking about it. it's completely amazing. it's from 2004 and focuses mainly on the agricultural part of the food industry. and it's on hulu so you can watch it for free. it is definitely worth the time.

Food Inc. - if you haven't seen it, you have to. i admit, it took me a while to actually go out and see this movie since i had already seen the Future of Food, but when i finally did i wished i had seen it sooner. it touched on everything, from the meat to the agricultural part of the industry and i found out more than i though i would.

the Botany of Desire - not one hundred percent about the food industry, but one segment mentions it. and it gives you a lot of food for thought about the plants we live beside every day. Michael Pollan picks out four of the most successful plants and shows how we are working for them just as hard as they're working for us. also, it's a PBS documentary so it is absolutely beautiful

if you know of any more, please let me know and happy viewing!

breaking down the supermarket

I've been spending a good portion of ten months trying to navigate myself around all the gimmicks of the grocery store. Blindly trying to figure out was organic really worth the extra two dollars, and was there really Genetically Modified ingredients in non-organic food that i had to worry about. It wasn't until I started the research for the united states of Kraft project about a month ago that I really was able to sort through all the marketing and get to the facts. But along the way I've started to find some great websites that help.


9 Food Label Lies - a great article that breaks down step by step the most common "healthy food" phrases that are really just marketing exaggeration.
    "the government doesn't regulate the use of the phrase "free range" or "cage free" on eggs. Legally speaking, it's meaningless"


Mass Production of Food is Ruining Our Health - a pretty lengthy but very smart article that touches on every reason why you should be upset with the disaster that is going on behind your food.
    "If you could witness how most of our food is produced, you would not eat it; you would be outraged. We are so far removed from our food."

CSPI's Food Additive Chart - the center for science in the public interest put together this really great chart that lists a whole bunch of food additives, breaking them down to say a little bit about them and how safe they are.

Huge List of Genetically Modified Frankenfoods - the origin of this list I haven't been able to locate, and there is chance that this is long outdated (it's from 2004). But it's a great list to read and just keep those products in mind... especially considering this is the only GM product list I have been able to find thus far.

Genetically Modified Food - this article not only has a list of what crops are genetically modified, it also gives a background on genetically modified food.


and for people who want to take matters into their own hands Sustainable Seed Co and Bountiful Gardens are both online sellers of heirloom seeds. Which means, not only are they "organic", but they are also GM free and not a monoculture. I've only bought from Sustainable Seed Co at this point in time... but they were a great company and I look forward to buy more from them and try out Bountiful Gardens as well.
 
 

it's just business

it's looking like this previously criticized corporation is slowly being tolerated as consumers are left in the dark about what Monsanto really has to do with your food. Monsanto was named Forbes' company of the year for 2009, not based upon how they do business, but simply on the amount of money they bring in. we have to keep consumers aware and upset by their plans for replacing most natural crops for GM ones or else we will never really know what is going on with our food.


The Planet Verses Monsanto - Forbes company of the year article on Monsanto.
      "economic achievement is not the same thing as public adulation. Over most of the time that Monsanto has been working to make humanity better fed, it has been the object of vicious criticism."

Some Food For Thought - a cute informational video from Monsanto about american farmers impact on the world. note the absence of any of the negative facts about GM crops/farming as well as the clever graphic design to make the entire video appear wholesome and "green".

Monsanto: The World's Poster Child for Corporate Manipulation and Deceit - part one out of a ten part article on the truth behind the Monsanto corporation.
      "his team asked Monsanto executives what their ideal future looked like in 15 to 20 years. The executives described a world with 100% of all commercial seeds genetically modified and patented. Anderson consultants then worked backwards from that goal, and developed the strategy and tactics to achieve it"

Monsanto Sues Farmers?? - The Truth Revealed! - and another video released by Monsanto five days ago explaining why they have to sue farmers, and claiming they have been misrepresented by the media.

Monsanto Makes Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For List - a short article with employee quotes on Monsanto ranking 59 on the Fortune's top 100 list
 

GM wheat is slowly growing

it looks as if GM crops keep slipping under the radar with Monsanto's newest 2009 plans for creating and marketing GM wheat within the next ten years. despite not only consumer concerns but scientific concern as well, WestBred, a wheat germplasm specialist to help aid them in their goal for more GM crops in our food system.


Monsanto Buys Wheat Germoplasm Specialist - an article from July 2009 on Monsanto's $45,000,000 investment in the wheat research company
      "the acquisition is a long-term investment for Monsanto, which does not expect the deal to be accretive to earnings for five to ten years"

Dr. Norman Borlaug speaks - a video released by Monsanto in april 2009 of Norman Bourlaug, the father of the Green Revolution, speaking about their new wheat campaign.
      "we've got work together to improve not one crop, but all the basic crops and animal products that uh, make our world better than it ever has been" - Dr. Norman Bourlaug

US Wheat Industry Welcomes Monsanto's GM Wheat Plans - an article further expanding upon Monsanto's plans for further wheat research and the acceptance of this by two major US wheat organizations.
      "Over the past months and years, we have repeatedly voiced our support for biotechnology and outlined appropriate conditions for commercialization"

The Case for Biotech Wheat - a PDF Released by the NAWG for why the wheat industry needs biotechnology. the article also claims that only 14% of US consumers want additional food information on labels, and only 1% wants biotech ingredients labeled.
      "Like any other business owner, farmers will produce the products that provide the greatest potential returns for the least amount of risk."

Stop Genetically Modified Wheat - an article and petition from 2002 in reaction to the first time Monsanto suggested the introduction of GM wheat. not one hundred percent sure the petition is still running (though I'm sure there will be another) but the facts still hold true

Crop Biotech Update: January 15 2010 - an update on the GM wheat test trials that they plan to be sown in the near future.

Wheat - an entry on Wheat in the GMO compass database.


WestBred Website
National Association of Wheat Growers Website
US Wheat Associates
 

art project : the united states of Kraft.

this is the project i am currently working on in order to spread more awareness to the subject of what really is inside our food.

i've been scowering the depths of the internet (books, interviews, documentaries...) for information on what is really in the ingredients of manufactured food when you really break them down. focusing at this point on the Kraft Food Inc, the largest food manufacturer in the united states, i've been picking one product at a time to break down the ingredients list as much as i could with the information i have found.

then i've beeen painting each of these singular ingredients individually in Kraft's colors (red, white, blue) onto food boxes which will eventually be mounted, framed, and each having it's own name plaque so they can be arranged in a loose family tree like way.

so far i have broken down Kraft's "Original" A1 Steak Sauce, and painted about half of the ingredients, and looked into 19 other products to be completed in the same way.

A1 Steak Sauce Ingredents
Broken Down List
Website (work in progress)