Musings on sustainable food systems, agriculture vs. agroecology, and more!
In anticipation of this past weekend’s festivities, the animal welfare organization PETA, known for its rather radical actions and stances, decided to convince a different clientele than usual of the benefits of turning to Tofurkey instead of the real deal: children. Every year, the organization takes advantage of the holiday to launch a wide-spread campaign, … Continue reading Did Your Child Like This Weekend's Turkey?
Sooooo guess who I had the honor to hear speak yesterday? Allan Savory! [ted id=1683] He is the founder of the Savory Institute and a man on a mission to convince the world that livestock could be the solution to, not the cause of, land degradation and desertification. His TED-talk here is a perfect representation … Continue reading Onto Greener Pastures – Recap of "Holy Cow!" Holistic Management Event
Since World Food Day happened recently, I was surprised to learn that the USA celebrate their own Food Day today! Maybe it’s similar to the difference between the Canadian and American Thanksgiving, or between European and North American daylight savings time? I guess globalization has its limits. 🙂 Still, why not celebrate twice? Happy Food Day! … Continue reading US Food Day – How Food Literate Are You?
This Wall Street journal article raised an interesting point about what Michael Pollan called “the most sustainable meat” – venison or wild such as deer. Apparently, until now it is prohibited for American wild game hunters to sell the meat of the animals they shoot on the commercial market. Instead, they use it themselves, donate … Continue reading Open Minds for Sustainable Meats?
Today, I have two very different, but yet similar videos on our food system for you. I am curious about your impressions and reactions. The first is an art installation called “Sirens of the Lambs” by the street artist Banksy, also known for his socio-critical and beautiful graffiti art. He has a slaughterhouse delivery truck … Continue reading Videos For Thought
It’s a dreary day here in Uppsala, perfect for spending the day catching up on work, news and listening to podcasts. If the same can be said for your current location, I have a suggestion for you! Planet Money just rebroadcast a really interesting podcast on the reality of dairy farming in the US. They … Continue reading A US Dairy Farm in the Global Economy
For some reason the comparison really made apparent to me the immensity of the broiler industry – helped, undoubtedly, by the fact that chickens have much shorter growing cycles than other animals. Still, as this number will only get bigger if demand for meat increases in transition countries such as India and China, should … Continue reading Wait, How Many Chickens?
Feedlots is a powerful series of images by British artist Mishka Henner. They are made up entirely of publicly available satellite images that have been altered only in color, and show the immensity of American factory farming in an impressive way. Especially since the latest so-called ag gag laws that prohibit taking pictures or videos … Continue reading Feedlot Art
Uppsala is setting itself up to be amazing in terms of opportunities to discuss issues of relevance to me both inside and outside of the classroom. I am currently auditing a class called “Environmental and Social Responsibility Marketing”, and the teacher is doing a fantastic job in alerting us to opportunities of events that could … Continue reading Recap: Panel Discussion on "Ethics in Food Consumption"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUtnas5ScSE Once again we see the power of marketing done right – this short film is an ad both for Chipotle (known for its dedication to sourcing only “responsibly raised” chicken, beef and pork that were not treated with antibiotics, live in humane conditions, fed a vegetarian diet and are allowed to display their natural … Continue reading Chipotle Ad Strikes at the Core of the Industrial Food System