Organic Confidential

National Extension Site for Organic Content

From organic leader Jim Riddle:
"Help spread the word that organic content is now posted to a national Extension site -
Check it out!"

Bittman on Local

Mark Bittman has a good post in the New York Times on the shortcomings of Using Local as a Label.

I Tried . . .

.  . .  to get a photograph of the White House garden plot today, on my way to the National Gallery to see some art, but it was not visible from anywhere that people were allowed to be. A friendly police officer told us that the garden looked okay, but "not as good as my mother's." You have to love his loyalty, and hope that time will be good to the garden and bring it up to par with his mama's.

In the little street party that always seems to be happening outside Obama's house, I had a sweet conversation with a woman from Ohio also looking for the garden; we agreed that a White House GardenCam will be absolutely necessary, so the nation can watch the radishes grow. 

I did see Marine One take off from the South Lawn, presumably after dropping off Mr. and Mrs. O. That was cool. And I had a great breakfast at Founding Farmers, a restaurant that says it is owned by a farmer collective and promotes local and sustainable agriculture. The food was good, and the restaurant is lovely. Outside, cherry blossoms were in bloom and the sun was shining.

This Just In! Kathleen Merrigan Chosen for USDA

This is fantastic news for USDA and the future of food:

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama chose Kathleen Merrigan, an assistant professor at Tufts University who helped develop U.S. organic food labeling rules, for the Agriculture Department's No 2 job, the White House said on Monday.

Merrigan, tapped for deputy secretary of Agriculture, was head of USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service from 1999-2001 during the Clinton era and helped develop USDA's rules on what can be sold as organic food. As a Senate aide, she worked on the 1990 law that recognized organic farming.

"Sustainable and organic farmers are excited ... that someone who has been associated with these issues her whole career is going to be at that level in the department," said Ferd Hoefner of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.

Merrigan, who went to work at Tufts in Boston after serving at USDA, has worked at the Wallace Institute for Alternative Agriculture and as a consultant for the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization from 1994-99. She worked on the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee from 1987-92. She has a doctoral degree in environmental planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

I'm also very proud that Kathleen wrote the foreword for my  2001 book, The Organic Foods Sourcebook. 

Obama Foodorama Blog

Obama Foodorama is a very entertaining blog about all things food- and Obama-related, including food and ag policy and the movement for an organic garden on the White House grounds. I'm not sure who is behind this blog, but I sure wish I'd thought of it .  . it's terrific. Enjoy!

Pictures of Tenacity

Over at The Morning News, there's a beautiful photo essay on the American farmer, from American Farmer: The Heart of Our Country, a new book by Paul Mobley. 

Glaci3r.com and Taste3

This blog has been picked up by Glaci3r.com's feeds page. Glaci3r is an environmental news and blog aggregator, and Organic Confidential is in some great company there. Go take a look.

I have to admit I was surprised, since I've only posted a few times this year on this site (there is much more on sustainable textiles and apparel, as well as the Slow Cloth concept, on my textile art, craft and culture blog). I'm less involved in the organic foods industry this year, so I don't even know all the current "confidential" information (I do, however, know where many of the bodies are buried).

So, hello to new readers; please have a look through the archives while I figure out if I want to rebirth this blog and write new regular posts. If so, posts will likely be less industry-related and broader in focus, and that's probably a good thing. Let me know what you'd like to hear about from me. And yes, I'm busy freelancing and consulting, and also looking for a job.

In other great food-related news, I've been offered a fellowship to attend the Taste3 conference next month. This stellar conference on food, wine and art takes place at the Copia center in Napa, and is modeled after the TED conference in that it brings unusual and innovative leaders from disparate backgrounds together to exchange and develop ideas, conversations and connections. All this in the spectacular setting of Copia. I'm very interested in the links between art and agriculture, and this is an exciting opportunity.

Sustainable and Organic Apparel Report

The International Market for Sustainable Apparel, the report that I authored for Packaged Facts on organic clothing and eco-fashion, has been published. Read the press release here; the abstract and table of contents are available here. Please contact me if you have questions about this report or about sustainable and organic clothing and textiles.

Organic and Romantic: How to Woo a Tree-Hugger

"Be joyful though you've considered all the facts."
(Wendell Berry)

For those who wander by, here's a special Valentine's Day post.

Environmentalists can and should embrace joy, beauty and abundance -- and what's more joyful, beautiful and infused with abundant possibility than falling in love? Yes, things are dire; yes, as countless apocalyptic movie scripts tell us, humans will still brake for love and romance.

The business of romance is lucrative, but it isn't very green. Just wait this week for those annual stories about how much we spend on chocolate, flowers, and jewelry in February -- the amounts are staggering. Yet chocolate as a commodity doesn't get a very high score on social, environmental or economic justice scales. And that's just the beginning - as it turns out, every heartfelt romantic gesture has its environmental issues.

Good news: There are options. Whether you're courting a newly-minted or old-growth environmentalist, do it sustainably and stylishly to melt their beautiful green hearts. If you're the wooee, suggest to your wooer that he or she keep the footprint light. Be righteous but gentle with tender and well-meaning suitors. Love makes the world go 'round - and it can help keep it spinning for generations to come with a few simple updates to tradition:

• CHOCOLATE. It's the food of the gods and the food of love. Make yours certified organic and fair-trade to protect small farmers, the rainforest shade canopy, and the songbirds -- because where will romance be without songbirds? -- and to prevent child labor and eco-exploitation.
• CANDLES. Avoid petroleum-based candles in favor of soy wax or, best of all, beeswax. Buying bee products helps to ensure their preservation, and they are at risk. And beeswax candles last a long time, glow with a warm and sexy light, and smell naturally wonderful.
• JEWELRY. If you're serious and in the market for diamonds, visit Amnesty International's site and read up on the current state of diamond mining and certifications to look for. The good folks over at the Organic Clothing blog also have a terrific post on jewelry. Most precious metal and gemstone mining is full of social and environmental difficulties. Look for a jeweler who specializes in the best materials and sources them carefully. Consider resetting vintage or family stones.
• FRAGRANCE. Blend voluptuous, fragrant essential oils instead of synthetic perfumes.
• MASSAGE AND BATH OIL. You are planning a candlelit bath and massage, right? Again, scent organic base oils from your natural foods market with essential oils. There are plenty of good aromatherapy books available with suggested fragrance recipes.
• CARDS AND LETTERS. Get creative here; make something beautiful and use words from the heart. Love letters are one of the great treasures of life on Earth.
• FLOWERS. Most flowers available in February are grown with heavy doses of pesticides and flown a long way. More organic flowers are available now than ever before; try organicbouquet.com or look for a local florist who is sourcing organic or more responsibly grown flowers (organic certification is best), or even a farmer growing flowers if you're in a warm climate. If your thumb is green, pledge to plant a rosebush, a cutting garden, a moongarden or a magical herb garden for your sweetheart.

The rest is up to you; whatever you do, make it warm and graceful and passionate. May Cupid's aim be true.

Tears of a Clone

I'm stepping in briefly to recommend Verlyn Klinkenborg's excellent essay on cloning animals for food, "Closing the Barn Door After the Cows Have Gotten Out," in the New York Times. Diversity matters.