REAL FOOD IN SCHOOLS DAY

We think of Labor Day as a time to consider the working lives of adults, but this September 7th, why not do something active for the working lives of children? Slow Food and other local organizations are sponsoring a National Action Day to Get Real Food into Schools. In case you don't know it, the national school lunch system is in need of serious overhaul. Jan Poppendieck, whose prior work has been on emergency food, non-profits, government accountability, and hunger, has turned her attention to school lunches -- and while her new book, Free For All, isn't out until January, it shouldn't stop you from learning about the issues now and adding your voice -- and your potluck dish -- to the collective outcry. Here's a link to a recent interview with Poppendieck. And here's what University of California Press has to say about Poppendieck's book: "Drawing from extensive interviews with officials, workers, students, and activists, she discusses the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs and turns a critical eye on the "competitive foods" sold in cafeterias. How did we get into the absurd situation in which nutritionally regulated meals compete with fast food items and snack foods loaded with sugar, salt, and fat? What is the nutritional profile of the federal meals? How well are they reaching students who need them? Opening a window onto our culture as a whole, Poppendieck reveals the forces--the financial troubles of schools, the commercialization of childhood, the reliance on market models--that are determining how lunch is served. She concludes with a sweeping vision for change: fresh, healthy food for all children as a regular part of their school day" In the meantime, let's consider what you can do: When they re-convene this fall, Congress will decide whether to update the Child Nutrition Act, which is the law that determines what 30 million children eat at school every day. As many of you know, some of our national nutritional guidelines are shaped by political rather than health interests (remember that ketchup is considered a vegetable...). This national action claims that, "By giving schools the resources to serve real food, we can build a strong foundation for our children’s health. We can teach them healthy habits that will last them through life. We can make a down payment on health care e reform. We can do all of this--but only if we help our legislators connect the dots." The Call-to-Action on September 7th includes three good activities: 1. Attend an Eat-In in your community on Labor Day, Sept. 7, 2009. On that day,people across America will come together for public potlucks that send a clear message to legislators: It’s time to provide our children with real food at school. Right now there are 239 potlucks planned in 49 states! Many of these are taking place outdoors and in public parks, in schools, and in private homes. Check out the map on the slow website to find one near you. If there's no potluck in your community, consider gathering your friends and family together, taking a photo and sending it along to us in order to show your support. We need to show legislators that there's a real movement for change, which means we need people from every corner of the country to help out. 2. Sign the Time for Lunch petition at . Help us get 20,000 signatures by September 7th by telling friends, family, coworkers, church, groups and everyone else you know to sign it, too. One of the best ways to do that is post a link to Facebook and share it with blogs, message boards and listservs. Spread the word! 3. Tell your legislators in Congress that it’s time to give schools the resources to serve real food. The petition and National Eat-In will build momentum, but legislators need to know that this is a priority in their districts. Contact your legislators by writing them a letter, making a phone call and inviting them to your Eat-In. The Slow website has all the resources you need to do this.. The Time for Lunch Platform explains the first steps Congress needs to take in order to get real food into schools. For more information, go to http://slowfoodusa.org/timeforlunch.

The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved

Sandor Ellix Katz could be called a god, a guru, and a great teacher, but he's so modest he'd never admit to anything other than being a fermentation fetishist. What Sandor wants you to know, though, is that fermentation is at the heart of human consumption. Consider the simple observation that many common and delicious foods and drinks are probably fermented, including the "ordinary" such as bread, cheese, wine, and beer; the more exciting such as cider, chocolate, coffee, tea, and pickles; the ethnically wonderful such as sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, tempeh, and soy sauce; and the "healthy" such as yogurt, kefir, and kombucha. In interviews and on his wonderful website, Wild Fermentation, Sandorkraut (as his friends call him) answers the burning question, "What's so wild about fermentation?":

"Specifically in regards to fermentation, one of the themes I have encountered everywhere I've gone is that there exists a huge cultural fear around any aging of food outside of refrigeration. We are culturally indoctrinated to believe that we cannot eat safely without energy-intensive food cooling systems, and furthermore that aging food outside of refrigeration requires technical expertise and controlled conditions. Fermentation actually consists of ancient rituals that generalists have been performing forever and that create food safety. Wild fermentation is a way of incorporating the wild into your body, becoming one with the natural world. Wild foods, microbial cultures included, possess a great, unmediated life force, which can help us adapt to shifting conditions and lower our susceptibility to disease. These microorganisms are everywhere, and the techniques for fermenting with them are simple and flexible. Wild fermentation involves creating conditions in which naturally occurring organisms thrive and proliferate. Fermentation can be low-tech. These are ancient rituals that humans have been performing for many generations. They are a powerful connection to the magic of the natural world, and to our ancestors, whose clever observations enable us to enjoy the benefits of these transformations. By eating a variety of live fermented foods, you promote diversity among microbial cultures in your body. Biodiversity, increasingly recognized as critical to the survival of larger-scale ecosystems, is just as important at the micro level. Call it microbiodiversity." While Sandor is engaged in activism for better food and better health, he's also fond of promoting others who challenge the existing food system. The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved (a play on Gil Scott Heron's 1970s anthem and poem) chronicles the experiences of grassroots activists who challenge the way we think about food. In it, he profiles seed savers, Slow Food conviviums, community-supported farmers, raw milk producers, land rights advocates, and foragers who all contribute to alternatives to corporate control over our health. Sandor Katz does not use the word "revolution" lightly -- he believes these people and their seemingly simple acts of food production off the corporate grid are the basis for a real challenge to food politics as usual. And of course, he's right.

These books are a must-read for any green advocate. While you may not be ready to start your own fermentation experimentation, his approach makes it seem possible and you'll be inspired by the stories of people who are making it happen one day at a time. Getting closer to thinking it'd be fun to share your own kimchi with friends? Sandorkraut holds workshops across the United States during the year. Check his website for a schedule of events.