ENVIRONMENT IN FOCUS Diet for a sustainable planet

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ENVIRONMENT IN FOCUS

Diet for a sustainable planet

The challenge: Eat locally for a month (You can start practicing now)

 

Olivia Wu, Chronicle Staff Writer

 

Wednesday, June 1, 2005

 

As World Environmental Day opens in San Francisco, with 100 mayors

brainstorming about environmental problems worldwide, four Northern

California women are viewing the issues through the prism of their own

kitchens.

 

Calling themselves the Locavores, the women -- Lia McKinney, Jessica

Prentice, Dede Sampson and Sage Van Wing -- are passionate about

eating locally and have devised a way to show others how to do that,

too.

 

With San Francisco as the center, they have drawn a circle with a 100-

mile radius from the city, and are urging people to buy, cook and eat

from within that " foodshed " -- or their own foodshed, based on where

they live -- in a monthlong challenge in August called " Celebrate Your

Foodshed: Eat Locally. "

 

Eating within a foodshed, they say, is the best way to support the

environment.

 

" Eating locally solves the major issues facing us, " says Bart Anderson

of Palo Alto, co-editor of Energy Bulletin, an online news portal

(energy bulletin.net).

 

For the Locavores and others who believe in eating locally, doing so

affects the planet's top three problems: the fact that we're on the

downhill side of the supply of oil and other fossil fuels,

environmental deterioration and economic issues, all of which will be

addressed by World Environmental Day meetings this week.

 

Eating locally is the best way to promote sustainability, say those

who are passionate about the practice.

 

Sustainability in its most general sense means eating in a way that

maintains and promotes the health of the planet, the food supply and

the people who steward it.

 

Serving monkfish, which is an endangered species, or snacking on South

American cherries in December are not sustainable practices, but

eating California-caught Dungeness crab during theNovember-May season,

and buying Central Valley cherries in summer are.

 

" Our food now travels an average of 1,500 miles before ending up on

our tables, " says one of the Locavores, Sage Van Wing, of Point Reyes.

The process imperils " our environment, our health, our communities and

our taste buds. "

 

Sustainable food comes from sustainable agriculture, which does not

rely on heavy use of petroleum on the farm or in distribution. Besides

conserving oil, sustainable agriculture reduces carbon emissions,

which are linked to global climate change and poor health. Finally,

supporting local agriculture sustains the local economy.

 

Sustainable vs organic

 

Organic -- which used to mean largely local, small and family-owned

operations -- can now mean food grown half the country away, or

abroad, and by large, corporate-owned farms that use highly mechanized

methods and distribute through centralized, large transportation

systems.

 

It is now possible to buy organic food from Argentina and Chile, but

" I'm sorry, that's not sustainable, " says Dave Henson, director of the

Occidental Art and Ecology Center in Sonoma County.

 

" We have to consider the whole food stream, from genetic inputs to

seed, to the quality of labor, to harvest and shipping and packaging

and the waste stream,'' says Henson. " Food miles is another

indicator. "

 

" Food miles " are foremost in Jessica Prentice's thoughts as she

prepares for the August challenge of eating within the foodshed that

she and the Locavores have drawn. We spent an afternoon with Prentice

as she shopped and cooked dinner. Between now and August, she and the

other Locavores are going through their pantries, researching and

refining the boundaries of their personal foodsheds.

 

Prentice, a professional chef and self-described " passionate home

cook, " is testing the final recipes for her book, " Thirteen Moons:

Food and the Hunger for Connection, " to be published by Chelsea Green.

(A few of those recipes can be found on these pages.)

 

The book comprises a series of essays interlaced with recipes that

reflect cooking by the 13 lunar months of traditional cultures (see

chart). In her essays, she argues for eating in sync with local

seasons and for food systems that restore body and land.

 

Practice run

 

On a recent visit to the Berkeley Farmers' Market, she did a practice

run for the foodshed eat-athon. " How far away is your farm? " she asks

a peach farmer. When he answers that he drives about 130 miles, she

says, " I guess that means no peaches from him. " As the walk continues,

she refines her question to, " As the crow flies, how far away is your

farm? "

 

She pauses in front of blueberries. " They're not certified organic,

but they don't spray, " she says. She believes supporting a local

farmer, even if not certified organic, is better than not supporting

that farmer at all.

 

As Prentice passes the coffee vendor, she admits that she used to

cruise the farmers' market sipping coffee. Coffee is not local by a

long shot, but she hopes potential foodshed participants don't rule

themselves out of the challenge because they can't give up their

morning cup. " We're not food Nazis, " she jokes.

 

One goal of the foodshed month is to encourage people to draw their

own boundaries. " If you don't want to give up coffee, then maybe

you'll buy what's roasted locally, " she says.

 

At the Kashiwase family stone-fruit stand, she points out that " the

fourth generation is farming their land. " At the Four Sisters produce

stand, she says, " When they started, they had 2 inches of topsoil, and

now they have 2 feet of it. It's beautiful. " One of the main tenets of

sustainable farming is the restoration of the farm and surrounding

environment and the support of farm families.

 

Supporting farms

 

As she approaches Full Belly Farm, the farmer greets her with the news

that they are milling their own organic wheat for flour. Wheat (and

therefore bread) is one of the big challenges, because wheat is not in

her foodshed. While Prentice says sticking to organic corn and

potatoes and not making her usual sourdough will be no hardship in

August, now she says she'll be able to make a few quick breads and

desserts with the Full Belly organic wheat.

 

She chooses the smaller strawberries from Lucero organic farms.

Lucero's smaller, second-year strawberries concentrate flavor, she

says, but most farmers pull their first year plants after bearing. She

adds that owner Ben Lucero is of Native American descent and as a

child traveled around Watsonville with his migrant farmer parents.

 

Blackberries, boysenberries, snap peas and some free-range eggs

complete her shopping. As we pass the booth of an Asian farmer, she

says that although the farm is not organic, she supports it because

it's local and because it supplies exotic herbs and vegetables that

other farms do not.

 

" Putting money in farmers' hands -- one of my favorite things to do, "

she says. Good farmers sustain the land, and if you shop farmers'

markets year- round, including winter, you enable them to pay for

year-round labor, illustrating another anchor in the sustainable

movement: social justice.

 

In her kitchen in Richmond, Prentice cooks simply. She fries pork

chops (from pastured pigs) that she has brined, sautes snap peas with

a handful of mint from her yard and mashes potatoes with raw cream

from pastured cows.

 

The flavors are stunning. It's the sort of meal that Americans used to

put together from small, local farms, from a time when simple food was

delicious because of the way the ingredients were raised.

 

She follows the Nourishing Traditions food philosophy, which advocates

a nutrient-dense diet based on traditional agricultural practices. As

she cleans up, she talks about what she calls food security. " It's

possible that, in my lifetime, food becomes so expensive that we have

to rely on what's local. "

 

In the meantime, celebrating August in a California foodshed is as

easy as being a rabbit in a carrot patch. We harvest fresh food

year-round; January in North Dakota is another story. However, the

foodshed is not intended as a hardship, but rather, Van Wing says, " to

think about where your food comes from. "

 

Baby steps

 

For the past decade, Prentice has lived largely by a sustainable

repertoire of local food with " sauces, flavors and stretchers " from

farther away. Many of those who join the August program will likely

follow some variation of that diet, she predicts.

 

Yet, any activity that promotes awareness of sustainable food networks

is welcome, including, she says, " Sitting down to a farmers' market

dinner once a week with the kids -- and talking about the food. "

 

While at her level Prentice tries to to figure out if she can find an

acceptable local salt, and a substitute for pepper (she says she may

draw her personal line at pepper), it's just as important for someone

else simply to go to a farmers' market and ask questions.

 

She compares the challenge of eating locally to running a marathon.

For most marathoners, she says, " It doesn't matter where you finish.

It's the doing it that matters. "

To find out more and sign up for Celebrate the Foodshed: Eat Locally

month, visit foodshed.wisefoodways.com

Eating by the lunar calendar

 

To eat from the local foodshed year round, you must know the growing

season. Here is a list of some ingredients and foods that express the

lunar months of traditional farmers. This list is adapted from Jessica

Prentice's soon-to-be published " Thirteen Moons: Food and the Hunger

for Connection. "

 

When the moon falls:

 

Early summer (May or June)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Summer berries, cherries, early summer squash, shelling peas, roasting

chicken, lettuces, plums, salmon

 

Summer has arrived (June or July)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Honey, sweet corn, tomatoes, fresh lavender, green beans, apricots,

salmon, buffalo, beef, homemade ice cream

 

Height of summer (July or August)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Basil and other fresh herbs, eggplant, peppers, heirloom tomatoes,

peaches and nectarines galore, salmon, cucumbers, melons, grapes

 

Late summer (August or September)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Same as above, plus early winter squash and sweet potatoes, okra

 

Early autumn (September or October)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Pumpkins, potatoes, apples, pears, last of the season's salmon,

oysters, figs

 

Height of autumn (October or November)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Pork, Asian pears, persimmons, pomegranates, winter squash, celery

 

First hint of winter (November or December)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Turkey, chestnuts, winter squash, winter greens, celery, rutabagas,

parsnips, turnips, beets

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Around winter solstice (December or January)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Roasts, meat stews and soups, Dungeness crab, cabbage, grapefruit

 

Height of winter (January or February)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Same as above, plus radishes, root vegetables, lemons, limes,

mandarins, oranges, tangerines, cherimoya and foods in the late-winter

category (top)

 

Late winter (January or February)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Root vegetables, braised meats, sauerkraut, winter greens, dried

beans, citrus fruits

 

First hint of spring (February or March)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Same as above, plus corned beef, cabbage, asparagus, kiwis

 

Spring has arrived (March or April)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Spring tonic greens such as nettles and sorrel, asparagus, artichokes,

eggs, lamb

 

Late spring (April or May)

 

What to eat/natural abundance

 

Lots of milk, butter and cream, fresh milk cheeses, baby carrots, new

potatoes, young beets, snap peas, rhubarb

Choosing organic vs. local

 

You may find yourself confronted with the choice of organic or local.

How do the two fit in each other? Here are the Locavores' guidelines:

 

-- Whenever possible, buy, eat and cook local -- i.e. within the

foodshed.

 

-- If not locally produced, then organic. This choice generally

protects the environment and your body from chemicals and hormones.

 

-- If not organic, then family farm. If it comes down to Kraft versus

Cabot (a dairy co-op in Vermont), choose Cabot.

 

-- If not family farm, then local business. Coffee and wheat products

may be difficult. At least support a local coffee-roasting house and

local bakery.

 

-- If not a local business, then go for terroir. Purchase foods that

express the region they are grown in and support the local

agriculture. If you're buying Brie, by it from Brie, France; if

Parmesan cheese, from Parma, Italy.

 

-- O.W.

Foodshed sources and alternatives

 

If you want to practice foodshed eating, but some of the staples of

your diet just don't fit, what can you do?

 

First, research an ingredient to find out where it comes from, then

research a local source.

 

After that, the choices basically boil down to three -- give up the

ingredient; ignore the foodshed philosophy for this food and keep

eating it; or seek some middle ground using creative strategies such

as the following:

 

Coffee: Buy beans that are roasted locally and/or by fair trade

producers.

 

Tea: Drink herbal teas from homegrown or locally grown fresh herbs,

such as lemon verbena, peppermint, lemongrass

 

Wheat breads and pastries: Buy only locally baked breads and pastries,

or bake your own with locally milled flour.

 

Pasta: Buy from small local producers, or use pasta made from locally

grown grains.

 

Chocolate: Buy chocolate that's made locally by environmentally

conscious producers.

 

Ketchup (and soy sauce, fish sauce and other condiments): Buy products

from local manufacturers.

 

Salt: There is local salt, but you may not like its taste, or find it

as pollutant-free as you'd like, so choose salt that is as free of

additives as possible.

 

Black pepper (and other exotic spices): Substitute chile pepper or

California red peppercorns.

 

Sugar: Use locally harvested honey instead.

 

Vanilla: Substitute other aromatics in baking, such as lavender or

rose petals.

 

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