Season
10
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| 28th Harvest Week | Octobr 3rd - 9th, 2005 |
Season
10
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| Want a printable copy of this newsletter? Click here for a pdf file of the paper version. |
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“The
choices we make when we buy food are serious choices. More
and more people understand this. We all know that when people
choose organic foods and avoid mass-produced and fast foods,
they are voting for a sustainable future and against a network
of supply and demand that destroys human health, local communities,
traditional ways of life, and the environment.”
What’s in the box this week: (stuff that’s in one size share that’s not in the other is at the top of its respective list so you can easily see the difference. Remember, small shares will generally have smaller quantities of the duplicate items. – Debbie) Family Share: Small Share: Extra Fruit Option:
CALENDAR |
October is here, and the plants are directing energy into their seeds and roots. It is when nature prepares for the winter months, as seeds store the promise of future growth, nourishment, and bounty inside a safe and protective shell. But don’t let that lull you into thinking the farm is slowing down! October is a busy month; there is so much going on. To begin with, there are all the kids that will be visiting to pick pumpkins and learn about the fall season on the farm. And October is the month we prepare our fields for winter by adding compost and important soil amendments such as rock dust and gypsum. In order to get a good growth start on our winter cover crop, it is important that most of the ground (approximately 70%) is sown before the end of the month. Cover crops are essential in all organic production systems, not only for replenishing the soil’s organic matter and nutrients, but also for protecting it from erosion during the rainy months ahead. And then there are next year’s strawberry and garlic crops to think about. In order to ensure a vigorous crop next spring, we need to get both in the ground by mid-November. In addition to all the above, there is still plenty of harvesting going on, keeping us busy in order to ensure your weekly shares are plentiful and diverse. So although things seem to be slowing down, it is actually one of the busiest times of year. Let’s hope this recent spate of "summer" weather keeps up so we can get all our work done! A couple of weeks ago I received e-mails from the Organic Consumers Association urging us to fight a "sneak attack" on the National Organic Standards. The email stated, "After 35 years of hard work, the U.S. organic community has built up a multi-billion dollar alternative to industrial agriculture, based upon strict organic standards and organic community control over modification to these standards. Now, large corporations such as Kraft, Wal-Mart, & Dean Foods – aided and abetted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) – are moving to lower organic standards by allowing a Bush appointee to create a list of synthetic ingredients that would be allowed in organic production. Even worse, these proposed regulatory changes will reduce future public discussion and input and take away the National Organic Standards Board's (NOSB) traditional lead jurisdiction in setting standards." What this means, in blunt terms, is that USDA bureaucrats and industry lobbyists, not consumers, would have more control over what can go into organic foods and products. In the past, grassroots mobilization and mass pressure by organic consumers has been able to stop the USDA and Congress from degrading organic standards. It seems like we are constantly called upon to fight to preserve and protect our environment from corporate abuses, one permit or regulation, one factory farm, or one dying stream at a time. We are repeatedly called upon to fight against new and more virulent crises. If we win one, there is little time to celebrate because more crises are created all the time. It’s as though corporations and the government have defined the terms by which we, the public, can claim our rights for clean food, water, air, and soil. And the terms are based on corporate greed – free market and economic profiteering – rather than the common public good involving a fair and democratic decision-making process. This is the current situa-tion with our National Organic Standards: the public is being kept in the dark about how private and corporate entities are surrepti-tiously changing these standards which were initially crafted through a lengthy and democratic process. The big question is, what eco-nomic, cultural, or environmental decisions should be public, and what should be private? I believe a clear distinction is extremely important, in order to stop the current assault on our environment and prevent an unacceptable level of ecological destruction. – Tom
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Notes
from Debbie’s Kitchen . . . . .
. . . Have a recipe you’d like to share? Contact
Debbie. 2 C onions, thinly sliced In a nonreactive saucepan, cook the on-ions and garlic in the oil for
about 7 minutes on medium heat, stirring frequently. Meanwhile, core
and cut the cauliflower into florets; there should be about 7 cups. Chop
the tomatoes or squeeze them by hand and add them with their juice to
the onions. Stir in the raisins and vinegar. When the onions are translucent,
add the cauliflower florets and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the
florets can be pierced with a fork but are not falling apart. Add sugar,
salt, and pepper to taste. Serve hot, at room temperature, or chilled. Savory Beet Salad with Yogurt and Caraway 1 lb. raw beets 1. Steam beets until tender, 15 to 30 minutes depending on size of beets [she’s nuts; beets take longer than this, unless you’re using a pressure cooker!]. Drain, run under cold water, and remove skin. Slice thinly, and toss with parsley or dill. 2. Mix together yogurt, garlic, caraway seeds, sea salt and pepper. Toss with beets and serve, or chill and serve. Radish and Orange Salad 3 lg. oranges, peeled and white membrane removed Quarter and slice the oranges over a medium bowl, allowing both the slices and the juice to fall into the bowl. Remove membrane, if desired. Stir the radishes and green onions into the orange pieces. Arrange salad greens on a large serving platter. Transfer the orange mixture to the lettuce using a slotted spoon; reserve the orange juice. Sprinkle the salad with cheese and sunflower kernels. Whisk together ½ C of the orange juice from the bowl, the oil, and the vinegar. Add salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle over the salad and serve. [If it were me, I’d toss the greens with the dressing, but only just before you’re ready to serve so they don’t wilt, and then plate the salads individually, topping each with orange/radish mixture, nuts and cheese. Or, do it family style and toss the whole kit and kaboodle together in one big salad bowl and then serve with tongs and let folks help themselves!] *Click Here* for a link to a comprehensive listing of recipes from Live Earth Farm's newsletters going back as far as our 1998 season! You can search for recipes by key ingredient. Recipe site is updated weekly during the season. |
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