It's That (Itchy) Time of Year Again...

Spring has sprung, and our crops are growing, and as such our back door is seeing tons of activity as Justin and I travel from inside to outside, and vice versa, with gardening tools, plants, and other items.  However, we're not the only two coming in and out of the house; mosquitoes are, too.  Last night, for instance, I managed to swat a half dozen blood suckers.  Although, swatting with my hand is as far as I'll go to kill these pests.

As residents of St. Louis County, our local government routinely sprays for mosquitoes from the months of May through October.  However, the mosquito tucks don't spray down our block.  That's because we're on the do-not-spray list.  Yes, it's true, people have a right to opt-out of mosquito spraying!

But what's the problem with mosquito spraying, you ask?  Plenty.

(keep reading...)

The Future of "Food"?

Genetically engineered animals are inching dangerously closer to our dinner plates today, as the FDA commences public hearings on whether to approve gene-altered salmon for human consumption.

AquAdvantage® Salmon (AAS) is the creation of Massachusetts-based AquaBounty Technologies. The company boasts that AAS "reach market size twice as fast as traditional salmon," thereby creating a more economical and efficient meat source for producers.

...and thereby making it logistically easier for fish farms to turn into CAFOs: growing more fish in faster time with less space.

One ethical problem with AquaBounty's engineering of salmon is that they approach the fish as merely a product or commodity, with the end-goal being increased revenue for both AquaBounty and the fish producers who buy their product.

As we mentioned previously about Cornish cross chickens, animals bred for size exhibit signs of pain and muscle immobility. Considering that Cornish crosses cannot move a few paces without their legs tiring from carrying their own weight, we wonder whether AquaBounty's product will suffer any health implications from being genetically altered for size.

Sure, gene-altered salmon seem like a great idea for AquaBounty shareholders... but is it a good idea for the fish themselves?

If you share our concern over this technological innovation, Food & Water Watch provides an excellent online petition for you to voice your doubts to lawmakers. Click here, and also note that they provide phone and fax numbers for the White House, should you really want to get your point across.

What We're Reading Right Now

The End of Food, by Paul Roberts

"The very meaning of food is being transformed: food cultures that once treated cooking and eating as central elements in maintaining social structure and tradition are slowly bring usurped by a global food culture, where cost and convenience are dominant, the social meal is obsolete, and the art of cooking is fetishized in coffee-table cookbooks and on television shows."

The Face on Your Plate, by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson

"We eat every day. We put our forks into something or someone three times a day. We cannot disengage ourselves, even if we wanted to. We are all involved in agriculture on a daily basis. We vote with every meal. We make a difference with every bite. We cannot choose to ignore this issue, thinking it has nothing to do with us. It has everything to do with us."

A Month's Worth of Lunch

Want to go a little further in your fight to help the environment? We all eat, but have you ever taken into account the massive amounts of packaging tied to the food we consume? Being more conscious about how to reduce food waste is one of the easiest ways we can make a difference environmentally.

Danielle works a typical 9-5, and she used to spend upwards of $50 per week on lunches from nearby grocery stores and restaurants - lunches wrapped in plastic or styrofoam, with plastic silverware, in plastic or paper bags. However, she stopped all that ridiculousness in 2007, and she's been bringing her own lunches to work ever since: homemade soups, leftover rabbit stews, pastas, sandwiches, tomatoes, squash and other vegetables from our garden - all on reusable china or in compostable wrappings. The picture here is what July's lunches looked like for Danielle.

The folks at TakeOutWithOut have launched a campaign to reduce restaurant waste. Check it out and become inspired to readjust your own eating habits. You can make a difference too, one lunch at a time.

What We're Reading Right Now

Animal Factory, by David Kirby

"Nature did not intend for animals to live by the hundreds or thousands, crammed together inside buildings, raised with pharmaceutical products, with no access to grass, sunlight, or the clean, healthy scent of outdoor air."

"Many Americans have no idea where their food comes from, and many have no desire to find out."

There's Someone You Should Meet...

...and we hope his singing gets stuck in your head.

No Spray Zone

With mosquito season upon us, you should know you have a right to opt-OUT of pesticide fogging. St. Louis, Missouri sprays May-October. Residents can call (314)727-3097 and ask to be put on the Do Not Spray list. You can also call (314)615-4BUG to find out nightly spraying routes in St. Louis County. We strongly encourage folks who live in other parts of the country to research who to contact in your local area to find out how to opt-out of mosquito spraying.

After all, it defeats the purpose of having an organic garden if the county's going to pump known carcinogens into the air every couple weeks.

Set Your DVRs

This week (Wednesday, April 21), PBS will be airing the acclaimed documentary, Food Inc. If you haven't seen it yet, you should. If you've already seen it, you could probably benefit from watching it again. It's a crucial movie for anyone who eats - and, well, that includes everyone. Consider this YellowTree Farm's official endorsement.

FDA approves use of ‘pharm’ animals

In a measure that spells out trouble for all animals, the Food and Drug Administration approved last Friday the first ever drug made from genetically engineered animals – in this case, a blood thinner derived from goat milk.

According to reports, the drug is produced by first injecting human DNA into goat embryos. These embryos then get implanted into the wombs of surrogate mommy goats. Not long later, baby goats are born that themselves go on to produce milk with special blood-thinning qualities.

This leads us to speculate that not only will domestic animals continue to be housed under horrific conditions for the purposes of meat production, cosmetic testing, or scientific research – but now, the FDA will allow pharmaceutical companies the right to run their very own CAFOs.

Oh, we're so trendy...

NPR's All Things Considered ran a little piece this evening about the growing popularity of people raising backyard chickens in urban settings. We can only hope that the movement will gain even more momentum in the near future, causing municipalities nationwide to loosen up on their livestock regulations. You can listen to NPR's story by clicking here.