Eating as Though the Environment Mattered

Bruce Friedrich's Eating as Though the Environment Mattered discusses the major impacts different diets have on the environment.The article highlights the damage caused by meat production and consumption including that "eating meat causes more global warming than everything else combined" and that "the meat industry causes global poverty." Read the whole article on the Huff Post GREEN blog.

Huff Post GREEN

No More Bees Means No More Food!

The Salt on NPR explains that the declining bee populations could have a catastrophic affect on crops, ergo no more bees means no more food! In many ways, bee pollination is synonymous with and totally necessary for life itself.  Listen to the story Bee Deaths May Have Reached a Crisis Point for Crops and find out how you can help save the bees for your sake and the sake of generations to come. Below is a chart that shows the percentage of bee colony fatalities in the United States, highlighting a 9.2 pt. increase in mortality during the 2012-2013 season.

Winter Loss Survey, Bee Informed

A Vegan Diet Could Save Your Life

Mark Bittman Talks "Vegan Before 6"

This article on the Huff Post: Healthy Living blog talks about how becoming a part-time vegan or a "vegan before 6" can help with a variety of health problems including losing weight and lowering cholesterol levels. Mark Bittman abstains from eating any kind of animal product or processed white flower foods before dinner, and he claims to have dramatically improved his health in the process. Would you consider becoming a part-time vegan in order to lose weight or improve your overall health and well-being? Personally, I was a vegan for about two years and I found the diet constraints to be a little challenging. Now, I still eat a mostly vegan diet with the exception of really good fancy cheese, dark chocolate, and the occasional fried egg. Bittman's "vegan before 6" doesn't sound like it would be too difficult to ease into, and the health benefits seem to be significant. To learn more about what it means to be a vegan, visit Vegan.org.



Justin Timberlake - Bring It On Down 2... by IdolxMuzic

Huff Post GREEN: Industrialized Factory Farming

Huffington Post GREEN: First Ag-Gag, Now the Name Game

Paul Shapiro, the V.P. of Farm Animal Protection within the Humane Society of the United States, wrote this article in the Huff Post GREEN blog about the poor treatment of farm animals under the current system of industrialized animal agriculture, highlighting the pork industry in particular. Shapiro states that the practices involved in factory farming are the root causes behind the failing industrialized animal agribusiness. Instead of trying to improve the conditions of factory farms, businesses are electing to cover up the ill-treatment of farm animals through "Ag-Gag" laws and other methods of public deceit. Read the full article by clicking on the link above.


This video shows a debate that CNN hosted about the issue of Ag-Gag laws.

L.A. Vegan Beer Fest

L.A. Vegan Beer & Food Fest

Harrisonburg, Virginia is a long way from Los Angeles, California, but I stumbled upon this advertisement for a Vegan Beer Festival and I just had to share it. So if you find yourself on the west coast on May 4th, check out the wide selection of yummy vegan food options and local vegan beer. Do your part in reducing methane emissions from industrialized animal farms and try some Southern Fried Vegan BBQ! Also, let me know if you know of anything like this locally in the comments.

Eat Sustainably Today!

Millan.net Animations

When you pick out your lunch today, keep in mind all of the creatures, great and small, human and animal alike, that your food choices might affect. Make sustainable, earth friendly food choices!

World Food Programme

Freerice.com

Another important aspect of food sustainability and environmental security is making sure that people around the globe have enough food to eat. The World Food Programme is an organization that works to fight worldwide hunger. One way that you can help bring food to the people who need it the most is to simply play a word game on Freerice.com. You are given a word and you must decide the correct definition from a list of choices. For each word you get correct, ten grains of rice are donated to the United Nations World Food Programme. So in addition to buying healthy and sustainable foods for yourself, reach out to others in need and help them get enough nutritional food to eat. Also, check out the World Food Programme website to find out about more ways that you can make a difference.

Food Politics

Happy 5th Birthday: Pew Commission

Foodpolitics.com

Marion Nestle, author of the book Food Politics, shares valuable insight about the politics involved in food production and distribution in her blog. Check out this link to an article about the Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production, specifically the report Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America. Nestle was a member of the Commission herself, and she explains in her article that the  most concerning aspect of industrialized farming is the "overuse of antibiotics and the shocking environmental impact of vast amounts of animal waste."

A Bushel of What?: Orzo Salad

A Bushel of What?: Orzo Salad: Yesterday was my birthday. I celebrated by hanging out with my two favorite boys (one little, one big) and doing nothing special, in particu...


Above is an excerpt from a food blog called A Bushel of What? The site has a number of yummy looking recipes that incorporate different organic and sustainable ingredients. Check out this recipe for an orzo salad.

Farmers vs. Frackers

Organic farmer Greg Swartz explains that nearby fracking operations are causing serious environmental issues on his Willow Wisp Organic Farm near the Delaware River in northern Pennsylvania. Fracking has also been linked to a number of detrimental health problems. Watch the video to learn more about the serious risks that fracking operations pose on both the environment and human safety.

Visit the Ecocentric blog for more information about Greg Swartz's farm and the issue of fracking.

The Curse of Fertilizer - Photo Gallery

The Curse of Fertilizer - Photo Gallery

Check out this amazing collection of photographs by National Geographic's Peter Essick called "Our Fertilized World." Essick explains that "if we don't watch out, agriculture could destroy our planet."

National Geographic: How to Go Green With Food

How to Go Green With Food | National Geographic

Highlights from the article about how to eat more sustainably:
1. visit a local C.S.A
2. find local food vendors and ask about where the food comes from
3. check for "USDA Organic" seal
4. visit the Environmental Working Group Shopper's Guide to Pesticides
5. check for independent humane labeling
6. visit the Blue Ocean Institute website
7. think about becoming a vegetarian! (my favorite)

USDA Organic Guide, United States Department of Agriculture

You can find more articles about sustainable living and food systems on the National Geographic Green Living page.

JMU Environmental Stewardship

James Madison University - JMU environmental stewardship efforts earn more praise

Image Source: http://www.clarkedailynews.com/page/63/

Go James Madison! The University has recently been recognized by the governor's office, the Virginia Recycling Association, the League of American Bicyclists, and the Princeton Review for its dedication to environmental stewardship.

Urban Spoon

To search for local restaurants that offer organic, vegetarian, and vegan food options visit the urbanspoon website. You can narrow your search by location, price, cuisine, and extra features. So the next time you're in the mood for organic food in Harrisonburg, try the Local Twin Oaks Tofu Steak at the Local Chop & Grill House or the Eggs-ceptional Sandwich at the A Bowl of Good Cafe.

urbanspoon.com, Harrisonburg Organic Restaurants

Sustainable Eats at JMU

View the whole Sustainability pdf here

One of the reasons that I wanted to create this blog was so that I could share information about food sustainability as J.M.U. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the J.M.U dining services do a pretty good job at upholding and maintaining "environmental stewardship." Above is a page from the sustainability pdf that explains in detail J.M.U's commitment to environmental conservation. Check on the rest of the slides by clicking the link above, and visit the "Sustainability at J.M.U Dining" homepage to learn more about the various sustainable food options available on campus. You can also sign up to volunteer in the J.M.U student garden here! (betcha didn't know we had one of those)

Sustainability Humor with Jimmy Fallon

With all of the melting polar icecaps, and the dying bees, and the impending extinction of various kinds of plants and animals it's sometimes hard to to see our environment as anything more than a ticking clock of death and destruction. So I offer you this clip of "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" as a little "pick me up" to help us all keep fighting the good fight.

The Little Grill

The Little Grill located at 621 North Main Street in Harrisonburg, VA offers a wide selection of foods for vegetarians, vegans, and omnivores alike. This cash-only institution works as a collective business in which the workers share joint ownership and responsibility. The menu boasts organic, free range, local, and fair trade foods, and the restaurant regularly recycles, re-uses, and composts. So for "sustainable eats" in downtown Harrisonburg, check out the LGC. 

C-Ville: Beyond Organic

Beyond Organic: Local Farmer Michael Clark's Produce Thrives Despite Growing Pains

Photo Source: C-Ville.com, John Robinson

Read this interesting article in C-Ville by Preston Long that talks about organic produce in the Stanardsville, Virginia area. Pictured above is organic farmer Michael Clark, the article's focus. I have also embedded the YouTube video "Growing Ginger in Virginia." In addition to organic farming, Clark also helps design the motion graphics for the YouTube channel Planet Earth, and this is one of their more recent productions. Take a look and let me know what you think.

How Much Do We Care?

Poll Finds Americans Less Concerned About the Environment Now Than When Earth Day Began

Huffington Post GREEN's Emily Swanson writes that a HuffPost/YouGov Poll shows Americans view environmental problems as less significant than they did in 1971, a year after the first Earth Day. However, the poll also shows that more Americans are making an effort to reduce the negative environmental impacts of their lifestyle choices, including using less electricity, eating organic foods, and recycling. Click on the link above to read the whole article, and please comment on how you feel about the poll results. 

Here is a sample of some of the questions asked and the responses given. You can also take the survey yourself by visiting the website. 

Poll Source: HuffPost/YouGov, http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/toplines_earthday411.pdf

Harrisonburg's Friendly City Food Co-Op

Above is an excerpt from the Friendly City Food Co-Op Blog about local ramps.  Located in Harrisonburg, Virginia, the Co-Op sells a variety of organic foods produced by local farmers. Though you don't have to become a member to shop at Friendly City, members enjoy benefits such as discounts, newsletters, and voting privileges. You can also find recipe ideas on their website.  Do you shop at this or any other food co-op? Let me know in the comments what you think about this kind of food venue.