Occupy Your Plate

Jan 10, 2012 by Dark Martha

I am so proud of the Occupy Movement! I hope people are getting wise to the contempt Corporate America has for the rest of us. I’m not just referring to the banking industry, either. Corporate goes for all kinds of industry: electronics, textiles, food, energy, etc.., lots of businesses where their primary focus is to make money. Not to serve a community need, to make money. Not to provide a quality product at a good value to the consumer, to make money.

I’ll try to keep this rant to food.

I’ve been preaching about the local foods movement and local business in general, not because it is cool but because it trumps the corporate counterparts by the presence of COMPASSION and that their bottom line isn’t the only line they care about. Have you caught any of the articles tattling on the sometimes disgusting antics of Big Ag and Big Food? Did you hear about the company that re-processed gallons of moldy applesauce to ship to schools? Or the countless recalls of E. Coli-tainted meats and vegetables that somehow still manage to get to the public? Maybe you’ve seen these corporate food lies: your “freshly” squeezed orange juice that has actually sat in a vat for up to a year, your meats that get doused with ammonia , the cellulose and other industrial by-products that find their way into more processed food than you would like to know about. Why isn’t this squawked about on mainstream news?

“So what can I do about this and why should I care?” you might say. “Eating healthy / organic / local is too expensive and I don’t have the time / desire / know-how to cook.”

My shopping reflects my values and I vote with my pocketbook. Start small and don’t try to re-invent the wheel in a week. I would rather spend an hour cooking something for my family than watching TV, but that’s me.

Don’t like factory farms? Seek out a local market and shop there. Spending money with local retailers strengthens the community and is a slap in the face of recession. Start a vegetable garden, and share your bounty with your neighbors – defy the “bedroom community” label and chat in person. Know that if we don’t start giving a damn about what we purchase, and where it comes from – that the quality of these things will continue to tank. The rich will get richer from our apathy. Our economy is based almost entirely on us buying stuff, so make every dollar count!

This video of a farmer addressing the NYC Occupy group nearly got me bawling. I can’t help but feel sickened and a little enraged every time I hear a sound bite about how unorganized the movement is, or the “But what do they stand for?” bullshit. The food lies are as insidious as the lies about “trickle-down economics” – don’t believe the hype. There has been a great interview with Chris Hedges making the rounds that I think hits the mark, and I will leave you with this quote from his book, Losing Moses on the Freeway: The 10 Commandments in America:
“We watch impassively as the wealthy and the elite, the huge corporations, rob us, ruin the environment, defraud consumers and taxpayers and create an exclusive American oligarchy that fuses wealth and political power. We watch passively because we believe we can enter the club. It is greed that inspires us. It is greed that keeps us silent. Our greed is devouring us.”

 

Cheers-

 

Dark Martha

Conscious Urban Living

Carriage House Farm

 

PS – If you are in the Cincy area, and are interested in getting that garden going, join me for my class series coming up in a few weeks.

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Northslice Gone?!!

Oct 4, 2011 by Loki

Some friends and I found ourselves hungry today and decided that is was worth waiting an hour or two in order to go to Northslice.  It’s no secret that I think they’ve got the best pizza I’ve had since I lived in NYC, so it was all about anticipation. As we came up to the storefront on Chase we were greeted by the spectacle of papered in windows.

The doors were locked  and there was no sign of habitation. My first instinct was hope that this was a remodeling that I had missed hearing about, but the feeling in the pit of my stomach was already one of loss. This feeling was confirmed when I ran into Mike, the man who started it, just around the corner. He confirmed that Northslice has closed. I won’t elaborate on what he told me because he was not aware that I write for the public.

I can report that shortly afterwards while we were bemoaning the situation I did overhear conversations to the effect that the building had been sold out from under him. [Edit for Clarity: These were conversations overheard among random customers at Melt, where we had decided to go as our second choice. -Loki] No matter what happened it seems that we have lost the best pizza in Cincinnati. If whoever owns the name and or building reopens under that name it won’t be the same.

My heart goes out to Mike, he seemed crushed. I know I am. This is a horrible loss to the neighborhood and to Cincinnati in general.

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Mayberry Foodstuffs Grocery Closing

Oct 4, 2011 by SpaethC

As you may recall from my Downtown Grocery post, I’m a big fan of the Mayberry Foodstuffs grocery. While they don’t have enough to completely replace a trip to Kroger, they helped fill in the Downtown grocery void. I usually make a visit once week on my walk home from work and often chat a little with the person working. A couple of weeks ago he notified me that Mayberry will start grocery delivery in the Downtown and OTR areas. I figured business must be good. Sadly today our chat was not as positive as he told me Mayberry Grocery will be closing in late October. When I asked “closing? for good?” he said yes, unfortunately business has not been good enough to stay open. Some of the specialty products found in the store will be available in the other Campbell owned properties such as Skinny Pig and World Food Bar.

While I have noticed a reduction of hours and I’m typically the only customer when I do visit, I am surprised by the news. It seemed like a lot of money and work was put into the renovation of their space. I also thought the previous conversation about delivery was a sign business was ok. Unfortunately I guess it was not to be. At least we can still enjoy Josh Campbell’s food creations at Mayberry, Skinny Pig and World Food Bar.

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Food Desert 101

Jun 24, 2011 by Loki

 

Farming has not completely devoured me.  I’ve been teaching more classes, on nationwide radio twice (!) and I spoke at the 2011 Cincinnati Food Congress (I strongly recommend you check out the full report), which was back in April.

The Food Congress facilitates conversation amongst community leaders and stakeholders regarding the state of our region’s food supply and the impact it has on our population.  This year, the focus was on if/how the local Agricultural Community can contribute employment opportunities to the Greater Cincinnati job pool.  I spoke as part of a panel of local growers… as both an independent contractor on a small-to-medium scale farm, and as a mother.

There are SO MANY THINGS I have to tell you about this, too many for one post.  Bear with me for a little while and I’ll get as much of it out to you as I can.

First, a definition:

Food Desert:  A region where the population does not have ready access to fresh food.  The general consensus for what “ready access,” i.e. – within walking distance, reasonable bike ride, or a single-leg public transit trip (i.e., a bus ride without a transfer).  Keep in mind, food deserts are not necessarily urban.  Many rural communities fall under this classification.

The phenomena of the food desert has been an obsession of mine, and it was also the first topic addressed at the Food Congress.  Mari Gallagher presented some sobering figures illustrating just how bad it has gotten in the region, with the most disturbing point being that the best access to high quality food lies squarely in the suburban areas.  Poor, non-nutrient-rich food choices have been shown to lead to health problems, like obesity and diabetes… which spike higher numbers in the less affluent, more urban areas.

Full disclosure – I live in a fortunate, happy bubble here in Northside, because of Picnic and Pantry, which is arguably one of the best micro markets I have ever been fortunate enough to patronize.  They also source some of their goods from the Farm, as well as a number of other local artisans and growers.  Northside also has one of the most diverse farmer’s markets in the City.  I think this is in no small part due to the community being enthusiastic about their food.  For contrast – my parents, having recently relocated to a more rural part of the state, now have a 30 mile drive to the closest market.  They knew this going in, but how many of us choose our home’s location based on where the closest grocery is?

I’d love to hear about how many of you can / do walk / bike / bus to get your groceries… and how content you are with what you get.  I would also like you to consider what it would be like if that “convenience” store a few blocks from you carried some fresh produce and healthy protein choices, instead of the bevy of processed drek that usually fills the shelves?  Would you buy from them?  Are we, as consumers, too used to “one stop” or destination shopping for a smaller, more locally-based model to work?

 

Cheers-

Dark Martha

Garden Manager, Carriage House Farm

www.consciousurbanliving.com

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Findlay Market Focus- An Interview with David Le of Pho Lang Thang

Jun 9, 2011 by Loki

If you find yourself in Findlay Market do your taste buds a favor and pay these guys a visit. Just go look at the pictures on their Facebook page, your mouth will be watering in no time.

Hot Tip: If you want a real treat they’ll be at The Famous Neon’s Unplugged Sunday around 5 pm serving Bahn Mi (badass Vietnamese sandwiches), while Cue Cao from Kajun Crawfish serves up one of the only authentic New Orleans style crawfish boils I’ve seen outside of Louisiana. It will be fine evening of food at one of my favorite bars in the Queen City. Evil Uncle Loki rates this one five stars!

 

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Cincy’s First Bar Week

Mar 26, 2011 by Loki

April 4-10 will be full of happy hour specials thanks to Yelp! Here is a quick interview with Alex Shebar, Yelp’s man on the scene for Cincinnaiti, with all the details.

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