I started writing this post in response to the comment Momma T. made on the blog post “Not Quite a Recipe…”, but it got kind of long, and I also thought that our readers might see it more esily if we morphed into making our major comments into individual blog posts here….what do you think about that, Momma T?
In response--Kudos to you Momma T; a lot people that have a childhood that didn't offer good nutritional choices don’t seem to try to make the adjustment to eating healthier. My early exposure to good quality food was kind of accidental. We were really poor, but since we lived “in the country” (in a foreign country, at that) and poor people HAD to live sustainably, we actually ate healthier by default than a lot of our more affluent friends. Go figure!
Our early experiences are usually the foundation of our choices as we become adults. I know people who won't even try vegetables...they think dinner means a hamburger from a fast food joint; that to eat healthy means to order the grilled chicken filet sandwich at the drive thru, and that french fries are a vegetable! One leaf of iceburg lettuce on their hamburger is the only green they get (and that is if they don’t order it without!).
I absolutely agree with you about the corporations, too! For years, I have wondered what was going into our store-bought food because it just didn’t taste like the food I grew up on, but only lately has there been enough of an increased awareness (and research and news sources) for me to get educated enough, and angry enough about it to work at making changes in my own life to grow, shop and eat more healthy (and more sustainably, and support the small, local farmer).
The corporations have so much power over everything from what and how our food is produced (scary), from legislation on what they grow (scarier), to what they are allowed to do to it (even scarier!), to controlling our politicians on every level of government to driving out any competition from the small farmer! You would be astounded at the ways that corporations prevent competition from the local farmers! For instance, a small farmer produces a steer that he wants to sell. If he is not a USDA-inspected facility (which means paying big bucks to the government), he has to sell that cow to no more than three people. That means each person has to buy at least 1/3 of a whole cow at a time. Most people do not have enough freezer space for that much meat at one time, and have trouble using that much meat, and have to buy cuts that they may not really want (although we should teach ourselves to use ALL parts of the animals). It is also difficult to butcher a cow into thirds fairly. And buying half the cow is even more expensive. And a whole host of other problems that I won't go into.
Bottom line, the big corporations and the US government have become so entangled that we can't prove who is controlling whom, and the food production, distribution and handling laws are so perverse, that the small farmer's overhead is artificially high. So to make a living, he has to find customers that can accommodate the way the government dictates that he has to sell, and he has to charge more per pound (unless you take all the parts of the animal) than the grocery store. The good news is that there are small farmers who are so passionate about what they do, and honestly care about their neighbors (you know, the ones that they sell their products to, that their kids are friends with, that live in the same city, county, state that they do). This gives them accountability. And accountability is the one thing that corporations and our government fear most.
Government also hasn't yet been able to prevent the home gardener from planting (almost) whatever they want. Growing a garden is something I am looking forward to when we move up to Mentone permanently! You are lucky to have one, Momma T. Of course it is difficult to grow a good and diverse garden, too. I don't think that people who don't have gardens appreciate just how hard it is! And you can have the garden all year long if you ‘can’ your produce. Canning tomatoes, green beans, okra, etc. is pretty straightforward, but you can ‘can’ lots of other stuff as well! And with practice and learning some techniques, the veggies taste almost as good as straight from the garden! Freezing also works very well, and will maintain the texture of some kinds of veggies better (providing you have freezer space left after you buy that 1/3 cow. LOL).
I have an idea for you, Momma T. Since you grow a garden (and I assume that you don't use ALL that you grow), why don't you ask around as to who else plants a garden, what they are planning on producing, how much they expect their yield to be, and maybe you can start your own local Farmer's Market!
You can even make a little money from the vendors if you are willing to do the organizing and procure a busy street-corner (lots of businesses will allow you to do it free in their parking lot), or park, or other site (make sure you check with your city/county government for any permits needed). And charge the vendors a fee. Our farmer's market organizer makes a salary at it. Of course, it is a lot of work to organize everything, but as I remember, Momma T., you are a good organizer and not at all afraid of hard work!
I believe that more and more Americans are going to be willing to make the effort to live sustainably, and turn away from the big corporation method of buying. At first, it will take effort on the part of both our local producers and our consumers, but with hard work, awareness, and spreading the word, it will get easier.
I think there are lots of opportunities for people as soon as they quit thinking that they have to be rich to be happy. That is one of the ways that the big corporations seduce us into unquestioning obedience and reliance on them. Big corporations are the reason the economy is in the mess it is in. Think about it. Let's not let them get away with it. I know this is a cooking blog, but we also have to be socially conscious. We are all intertwined.
