springing food

Spring has sprung and it is decidedly an excellent season for some fresh food. Spring vegetables and fruit are coming into their own now and farmers' and local markets are brimming with countless varieties of freshness. A pretty comprehensive list about what is in season can be found here and it is further broken down into region as well. Another good place to look is here which also gives you some recipes to try. My seasonal favourites include the berries, asparagus, morrells and artichokes.

Eating seasonally is a very good method to ensure nutrients in the food are at their highest. When you buy local and organic, it also drastically cuts down the 'foobon footprint'. This is a term I coined and in a previous post I write about the benefits of eating locally, organically and seasonally. So you may wonder why I'm posting something similar again.

Well, I have read a lot more, learnt a lot more and understood a lot more about the industrial food-chain to advocate a kind of eating that is most natural. There is nothing natural about strawberries in December or out-of-season asparagus flown in from Peru in October. I'm not even attacking the whole meat debate here as I am saving it for another post. The British Council started a SOUL food project in Ireland and it advocates eating the way food should be eaten. SOUL (Seasonal, Organic, Unprocessed, Local) is a concept that we have moved away from and it is now proving to have drastic consequences not only on our health but also the health of our planet.

I have spent the last couple of weekends visiting farmer's markets and talking to the farmer's themselves about the methods they use to cultivate their produce. Every farmer that I have spoken to uses a method that creates a holistic ecosystem on their land. None of these growers advocate factory farming of animals or growing fruits and vegetables out of season. They possess a deep understanding of the limits of the natural systems and also knowledge of how best to coax these systems to give them the best yield. The sense of pride that any farmer feels for his produce and farm, regardless of where they are from is a palpable energy they exude.

Most of these farms have more yield per acre than monoculture farms. In addition, they also have better soil health, animal health and use absolutely no chemicals and generate no waste. Many farms advocate an 'off-grid' method of cultivation where their produce can sustain not only the people living on the farms themselves but also the local community. This may seems like an Uthopian ideal to many city-dwellers but all agriculture started off this way before monoculture, GM crops and factory farms. All the industrialized methods of food production use pesticides, fertilizers, hormones, antibiotics and an array of chemical arsenal to ward of diseases and boost health.

Health is a default state of Nature - most small organic farmers understand that when their animals exhibit poor health, then there is something wrong with the system, not the animal. The same goes for plants. By encouraging this mass industrialization of food we are compromising on at least 30 different kinds of health. We are also encouraging government subsidiaries to promote 'cheap' food and are not entirely realizing the real cost of it.

Spring is a season brimming with newness and possibilities. So start a new movement today, eat local, eat seasonal and eat organic. Head out to the nearest farmer's market, speak to the people who grow your food and learn where it comes from. Your food bills might increase a little but remember that you are paying for quality, health and well-being which is something you cannot put a price on. Also, did I mention that fresh, unprocessed, organic food tastes a whole lot better?

Photos: Akhila Vijayaraghavan ©

welcome to the church of the holy cabbage. lettuce pray

Recently I have been doing a lot of research on food production as this is one of ways in which the environment is impacted. Not only is food growing an energy intensive process as it is largely dependent on fossil fuel resources, there are several steps in the production process that uses energy. Transportation of food not only domestically but also internationally contributes towards a large part of what I like to call 'foobon' footprint which is specifically carbon footprint of food. Additionally consuming packaged, frozen, processed food contributes towards this not only during the process itself but also the disposal of waste material created in the process.

The obesity epidemic we are currently seeing even in the developing world is tied into the way we view and consume food. This in turn is tied into the way we can change our eating habits in order to reduce individual foobon footprint. This will eventually lead to a healthy system and a cleaner planet.

I'm not touting becoming vegetarian or vegan or anything which seems extreme although people with these food habits usually have a lower foobon footprint. However, what I am promoting is eating locally, seasonally and if/where possible organically.

Eating locally produced food grown within a 100mile radius of where you live not only reduces energy used to transport food but also boosts local economy. In the bargain, the food you consume is fresher - better yet, if you have enough space grow your own vegetables and herbs. Even very small apartments have enough space for a herb-box at the very least.

Eating seasonally means you only eat fruits and vegetables which are grown in that season which means you reduce air-miles of those food which are brought in from other parts of the world.

Eating organic means cultivation of food without chemical pesticides and herbicides which is better for the soil. It also means that fresh food tastes better than chemically grown fruit and veg. Additionally, as a side point - eat whole-grain which is not only better for your body but also is less processed. Buy fair-trade where possible as it is a socially-responsible way to eat.

All this brings us to the great meat debate. Is there a greener way to eat meat? It is well known that the production of red-meat is energy intensive and releases methane. Again I would suggest eating locally or buying from a butcher rather than a supermarket which atleast reduces packaging and energy used in the packaging process. With most commercial fish species now endangered, the greenest way to consume seafood is to make sure it is sourced from ecologically managed fisheries. White meat from free-range farms generally have a lower foobon footprint. Finally if you are not inclined to become vegetarian then reduce the amount of meat you eat. The green stuff is better for you anyway!

Finally you are what you eat. And since eating habits are so deeply tied into ecological and biological systems, think before you munch.