I think Julia Child had it figured out when she said: "Eat EVERYTHING...but just a little bit!"
We are proud omnivores. I embrace food from every imaginable source. I had crispy fried crickets at a Mexican eatery once. They were tasty.
That being said, everything you said about the food industry and our farming system is true. Actually it's worse than you described. Our mono crops are vulnerable. Our soil is eroding. Subsidies have fed the rich big time farmers and done little for the "family farmers" who are attempting sustainable agriculture. Our country still subsidizes the production of corn and soy - dosing the Earth with evil chemicals.
Our government is using our tax dollars to make people sick. So the profit driven healthcare industry can get rich trying to "fix us". It's an insidious circle of money and early painful death. That's not a conspiracy. It's just another inconvenient truth.
Here is a video from 2013 featuring Michael Pollan who tells us why we should shop the outside aisles of a market. https://youtu.be/ATAZrRfebiw
And to your point about meat. One of the biggest agricultural consumers of water is alfalfa - four crops a year - for cow feed.
I don't think we should be telling people to eat meat or not to. But if we all embrace a more diverse diet, reducing meat consumption, we would save lives and save water. To grow vegetables. Of course, one of the biggest consumers of water is almond trees. Ridiculous amounts required to keep those trees alive. It's complicated. But. Don't eat almonds.
Almond orchards were ubiquitous when I lived in Northern California in the 60s and 70s. Apparently sucked the San Joaquin valley dry. Interesting that Tulare Lake has reappeared after this years record precipitation. Probably go see it tout de suite. It won’t be there for long
What topped it off for me was the CBS piece about Arizona & the Saudi's raising all those acres of alfalfa & shipping it to Saudi Arabia for their dairy & beef herds because - wait for this - they arent allowed to raise that water intensive crop in their country! How about that? Seem kosher to you?
Watch Arizona closely. California has the first rights to the Colorado River Water. There is not enough water to sustain growing cities and irrigation desert agriculture. SW aquifer have already been bleed dry. Mead and Powell are at historic low levels. Powell could teach Deadpool in the next drought year, meaning too low to produce electricity. This winter was pure luck. Hard choices are coming for our Southwest.
I get another blog, Land Desk, that keeps me up on what is going on in the West. Its getting really scary - water wise, and I think far too many people just stick their heads in the sand - literally!
Bill, as a retired Public Health Nutritionist,thanks for your comment.
My husband has memories of traveling to visit family in Mexico many summers during his childhood and sampling some sort of bug tacos. I’ve never noshed a bug ..that I know of🤔.
Another memory is when we traveled to Bonaire and locals invited us to a barbecue. Grilled iguana…it really did taste like chicken ! Julia Child had it right..
I think Julia Child had it figured out when she said: "Eat EVERYTHING...but just a little bit!"
We are proud omnivores. I embrace food from every imaginable source. I had crispy fried crickets at a Mexican eatery once. They were tasty.
That being said, everything you said about the food industry and our farming system is true. Actually it's worse than you described. Our mono crops are vulnerable. Our soil is eroding. Subsidies have fed the rich big time farmers and done little for the "family farmers" who are attempting sustainable agriculture. Our country still subsidizes the production of corn and soy - dosing the Earth with evil chemicals.
Our government is using our tax dollars to make people sick. So the profit driven healthcare industry can get rich trying to "fix us". It's an insidious circle of money and early painful death. That's not a conspiracy. It's just another inconvenient truth.
Here is a video from 2013 featuring Michael Pollan who tells us why we should shop the outside aisles of a market. https://youtu.be/ATAZrRfebiw
And to your point about meat. One of the biggest agricultural consumers of water is alfalfa - four crops a year - for cow feed.
I don't think we should be telling people to eat meat or not to. But if we all embrace a more diverse diet, reducing meat consumption, we would save lives and save water. To grow vegetables. Of course, one of the biggest consumers of water is almond trees. Ridiculous amounts required to keep those trees alive. It's complicated. But. Don't eat almonds.
Yeah, almonds bad. Unfortunately here in CA they have a nice lobby presence in Sack-a-tomatoes.
Almond orchards were ubiquitous when I lived in Northern California in the 60s and 70s. Apparently sucked the San Joaquin valley dry. Interesting that Tulare Lake has reappeared after this years record precipitation. Probably go see it tout de suite. It won’t be there for long
What topped it off for me was the CBS piece about Arizona & the Saudi's raising all those acres of alfalfa & shipping it to Saudi Arabia for their dairy & beef herds because - wait for this - they arent allowed to raise that water intensive crop in their country! How about that? Seem kosher to you?
Money talks.
Kind of like the international bottled water companies?
Closer to exactly like it!!
They should be banned, what a crock
Watch Arizona closely. California has the first rights to the Colorado River Water. There is not enough water to sustain growing cities and irrigation desert agriculture. SW aquifer have already been bleed dry. Mead and Powell are at historic low levels. Powell could teach Deadpool in the next drought year, meaning too low to produce electricity. This winter was pure luck. Hard choices are coming for our Southwest.
I get another blog, Land Desk, that keeps me up on what is going on in the West. Its getting really scary - water wise, and I think far too many people just stick their heads in the sand - literally!
Yep.
Thanks. Very good point
😤😵
Bill, as a retired Public Health Nutritionist,thanks for your comment.
My husband has memories of traveling to visit family in Mexico many summers during his childhood and sampling some sort of bug tacos. I’ve never noshed a bug ..that I know of🤔.
Another memory is when we traveled to Bonaire and locals invited us to a barbecue. Grilled iguana…it really did taste like chicken ! Julia Child had it right..
Well done Bill. The agribusiness problem in a nutshell. Not an almond shell.