Current Affairs Feed

February 21, 2011

New Development: Hollywood Considers Big Agribusiness Evil Enough to Carry the Plot

(Warning: In this post I will reveal a key detail of the movie "Unknown," but not THE key plot twist. I don't think my revelation will ruin the movie for you but if you want to play it safe you might want to skip this post.)

I saw the movie "Unknown" yesterday and while it was a pretty good movie, what impressed me the most is that the evil dark force that drives the plot of the movie is a large agribusiness interest out to protect their monopoly on genetically modified corn. While big ag. companies like Monsanto have been villainized in recent documentaries like Food Inc. and King Corn, this feature turn in major studio suspense thriller seems like a new cultural development. It may be the culmination of a recent trend.

image from www.debbieschlussel.com The 2007 movie Michael Clayton featuring George Clooney portrays another menacing ag company that resorts to placing a car bomb in the Clooney character's car to help along a legal case. The 2009 flick The Informant, with Matt Damon, tells the story of Archer Daniels Midland as big-business price fixers. But Unknown takes it to a new level, with genetically modified corn as the key plot point and a major international mafia hit at the behest of the company. Instead of Cold War politics or Muslim extremism, the action of the movie is spurred on by agriculture wars. 

I'm intrigued by this as a cultural moment. Hollywood specializes in portraying large corporations as evil forces, so maybe this just shows that large ag. companies like Monsanto have grown big enough in the cultural consciousness to warrant the same treatment. It also hints that the topic of genetic modification of plants has hit the mainstream. In an interesting twist, the movie portrays the company as evil and greedy but makes no such judgment on the genetic modification of plants, actually celebrating a new strain of corn as a life-saving breakthrough. The problem with the new strain is that the developer wants to give the secret away instead of hoarding it for profit. While corn and GMO's are the topic, it's really a story about good old-fashioned greed.

As Hollywood develops this new genre of veggie-tales, I've got some recommendations. I'd like to see a movie that does the opposite of Unknown, by showing the companies as well-intentioned, but imaginatively plays out the dire consequences of the genetic modification of food in the long-term. That's actually the more realistic scenario. Maybe a cross between the Matrix and Animal Farm where humankind is ruled by frankenstein-like farm animals. Or something along the lines of Road Warrior, where all the oil is gone, all the mono-culture crops are ravaged by disease and insects, world economies collapse because of the shortage of grain, and hunger runs rampant. I'm not too worried about the first scenario, but the second story seems quite possible. 

Feel free to add your own movie plot ideas. 

Posted by on February 21, 2011 in agriculture, business, Current Affairs, movies | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

December 27, 2010

Top Ten Posts of 2010 at Year of Plenty

According to Google Analytics these were the most popular blog posts on Year of Plenty in 2010.

1. Newsflash: Dairy Industry Wants You to Eat More Dairy - What's So Controversial About That?

This post created quite a stir. It got picked up by the president of Dairy Management Corp. and was emailed to all of his contacts. The folks at Domino's Pizza linked it all over the internet. James McWilliams at the Atlantic Monthly credited Bill Bishop at the Daily Yonder with being the first to grasp the way this story was being misreported, but I think I was the first one on the story. My first official big scoop.

2. World Comparison: Fresh vs. Processed Food Consumption

Google placed this high on their search criteria, so it has received a steady flow of clickers all year and also got picked up in some online communities.

3. How My Little Blog Out-Reported the New York Times

This was my follow up to the Newflash post about Dairy Management.

4. Roast House Coffee Newest Roaster on the Spokane Scene

This year I actually started doing some in-the-field reporting, visiting local businesses and writing up short narratives. Roast House was one of the first.

5. What Would You Do If You Had One Year to Live?

This was my first and only blog post to get "Dished," meaning Andrew Sullivan at the Daily Dish linked to it as one of his "Quotes of the Day". 

6. Wendell Berry: Gardening as Health Regimen and Holy Sacrament

This post got picked up a couple different places on the web.

7. American Farm Bureau President Declares War on "self-appointed and self promoting food experts" 

Unlike the post on Dairy Management where large ag interests were eager to see my blog as an asset, this post led to quite a push back from folks at the AFB and the conventional farming community. The AFB PR took issue with my characterization that the AFB president had declared war on consumers concerned with large ag. practices. 

8. Why You Shouldn't Rototill Your Garden

I did a whole series of gardening posts last Spring and this was the most popular of the bunch. Other popular gardening posts include; How to Turn Your Lawn Into a Vegetable Garden, , How to Make Your Own Professional Seed Starting Soil Mix, Tips for Planting the Garden, 

9. How to Get Started Raising Chickens in Your Backyard: Choosing You Chickens

This was part of a series of posts on raising backyard chickens. The other posts included one on building and designing a chicken coop and another on convincing your spouse it's a good idea.

10. Year of Plenty | The Book

I'm told the book goes to print on January 15 and will be released on March 1, 2011.

Thanks for everyone who has contributed and commented on the blog in the last year. If you want to follow along in 2011 you can sign up for the RSS Feed , you can follow the blog on Twitter , or click the Like button below to follow on Facebook.

Posted by on December 27, 2010 in agriculture, backyard chickens, Books, Chicken Coop, community, Current Affairs, dairy, deep thoughts, faith, farmers, food policy, gardening, health, links, local business, local Manufacturers, locavore, Pacific Northwest, politics, Spokane, vegetables, Weblogs, Wendell Berry, Writing | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

October 15, 2010

Korean Kimchi Crisis Serves as a Reminder of Lost Food Culture in U.S.

image from www.walrusmagazine.com
picture: the Walrus blog

The story of how the rising price of Napa cabbage is creating a crisis of constraints on the Korean supply of kimchi is a fascinating story in its own right. (I wasn't aiming for alliteration in that sentence but, hey, sometimes it just happens) What has really got me thinking, though, is how the Korean way of life is so connected to food and food processes, in contrast to the American way of life that is so disconnected.

Kimchi is so much a part of Korean life that the kimchi crisis warranted a response  from the government as if they were talking about the supply of gasoline or fresh water;

“There is no reason for regular folks to have to buy items integral to daily life at higher prices than international prices,” Mr. Lee said at a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, while instructing his economists to more closely monitor commodity prices that have sent the South Korean consumer price index to a 17-month high.

Notice that the essential nature of the food item is not it's nutritional content, but something deeper, more cultural, more anchored in identity and frameworks of meaning.

The article describes the Autumn family ritual of making kimchi;

The price increases have caused many middle- and lower-income homemakers to cancel the making of kimchi at home this year, a traditional rite of autumn that typically brings together mothers, daughters, aunts, grannies and neighbors. Some families can go through a couple of hundred heads of cabbage, and it’s not unusual for all the bathtubs and sinks in a house to be filled with bobbing cabbages as they are washed, soaked and brined.

The question that arises for me is; What would be the American equivalent to Korean Kimchi? What food items and rituals are so central to our way of life that they would warrant a statement from the governor? What food rituals bring together the generations in our households?

Maybe Thanksgiving turkey comes the closest, but my basic observation is that there is no equivalent. American food culture has been plowed under like a chemically enhanced, genetically modified field of corn. There is not much of an identifiable food culture. By contrast, when we went to Thailand two years ago one of the most memorable, tasty meals was the Korean food on the Korean Airlines flight. Most cultures in the world are integrally connected to food and food processes. A big part of the movement toward local food in the U.S. is an effort to recover our food culture. That's something that economists will never get.

But Korea's food culture may be facing greater challenges than a cabbage shortage;

Mrs. Roh has two daughters, both in their 30s, and she said they learned to make kimchi “by looking over my shoulder, by tasting and doing, like all Korean girls are supposed to.”

One daughter works at an Outback steakhouse, the other at an upscale department store, and they have little time to make kimchi on their own, Mrs. Roh said, lamenting the loss of another tradition to the “ppali ppali” or “hurry hurry” lifestyle of modern South Korea.

Outback steakhouse? I wonder if they serve kimchi with the steak.

Posted by on October 15, 2010 in Current Affairs, farmers markets, food policy, food preservation, history, kids and family, local economy | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

August 27, 2010

Spokane's "Sustainable September" Calendar of Events

Indian paintbrush
This will be the second year for Spokane's Sustainable September series of events and activities. I think this concept was originated on the west of the state, but some leaders in Spokane, specifically the folks at Community Minded Enterprises, are takin it to the next level. Here's the description;

Sustainable September is an annual month-long series of events dedicated to promoting sustainability in the Spokane community. Sustainable September includes discussions, activities, presentations, and tours designed to build community and increase awareness so that Spokane can become more environmentally and economically resilient.

There are currently a diverse variety of environmental and community building non-profits in our area. Sustainable September’s goal is to bring many of these organizations together to build a united front in supporting the environment and health of our community.

Community-Minded Enterprises is partnering with several organizations and businesses to build a strong coalition in promoting action and education within the greater Spokane area. This year Sustainable September is building on partnerships including The Lands Council, the Community Building, LaunchPad INW, Avista, the Sierra Club, and the Northwest Eco-Building Guild.

Here are some off the food related events:

Kickoff Luncheon
September 1, noon at Masonic Temple

This event will kick-off the month long series of Sustainable September. Please join us for a talk from your chef, Jeremy at Sante Restaurant, a speech from Mayor Verner and a Keynote address by Kevin Danaher, founder of Global Exchange. Tickets available at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/123974

The Ethics of Eating Event
September 9, 5:30pm at Trezzi Farm

Guest speakers explore the ethics of eating and access to healthy food in our community. Meal will feature local ingredients. Tickets required and available at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/122812. Download SSS Ethics of Eating for this event.

Green Drinks Spokane
September 14 at The Swamp

Green Drinks monthly event, www.greendrinks.org Featured Organizations: Down to Earth, Sustainable September Cost: FREE Time: 5:30 pm

Food Summit
September 27, 1-3pm - (location to be determined)

Gathering for non-profit and other groups committed to local food and food access issues. meet and greet, and discuss current projects, goals, and challenges. Potluck lunch. RSVP to Kristi at lavenderlaver (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Wheat, Wine and Wild Salmon 4th Annual Dinner
September 29, 10-11 am at Hills Restaurant

DescriptionEach year 3 local organizations, Slow Foods Spokane River, Save Our Wild Salmon & Spokane Falls Trout Unlimited, come together in support of one single issue... supporting the longevity of wild salmon & steelhead in Salmon Nation. Many challenges face these fish, so critical to the health of the NW ecosystem, economy and culture. Extremely local and delicious meal. Tickets available now at www.brownpapaertickets.com/event/118578 Discount for early ticket purchase (before 9/22).

There are a full slate of activities. Go here for the full calendar of events.

Picture: Indian Paintbrush at Mt. Spokane taken last week.

Posted by on August 27, 2010 in community, Current Affairs, events, local, local business, local economy, locavore, Pacific Northwest, Spokane, sustainability | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

December 18, 2009

WA State House Bill 2402 - Proposed Property Tax Exemption for Non-Profits Hosting Farmers' Markets Originated in Spokane

I mentioned awhile back that a bill was in the works to help churches and other non-profits maintain their property tax exemption even if they host a farmers' market. According to current state law farmers' markets are considered commercial activity that nullifies a non-profit's property tax exemption. This has translated to the churches that host the downtown Spokane and Millwood Farmers' Market paying property taxes on their parking lots and has left the South Perry Farmers' Market in limbo trying to find an alternative location to the church that has hosted them in a parking lot for the past four years.

This whole issue arose when the Department of Revenue was doing a perfunctory review of Millwood Presbyterian Church's property tax exemption status, and they happened to show up on a Wednesday while the market was going on.

The bill has been fine-tuned and is now available for your reading pleasure, HB 2402 Farmers' Market Exemption. Kudos to local Reps. Larry Crouse from the Valley and Timm Ormsby from downtown area who have co-signed on the bill. Special thanks to Ellen Gray, Executive Director of Washington Sustainable Food & Farming Network. who has been integral to the process.

Let the lobbying begin. Please contact your State Senator or Representative. Links for Spokane area folk are listed below.

State Representatives for the Millwood Farmers' Market District Email Links:

Senator Bob McCaslin
Representative Larry Crouse
Representative Matt Shea

State Representatives for the Downtown Spokane Farmers' Market and South Perry Farmers' Market Email Links:

Senator Lisa Brown
Representative Alex Wood
Representative Timm Ormsby

Posted by on December 18, 2009 in community, Current Affairs, farmers markets | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

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