Month: January 2020 (Page 2 of 4)

You and the Food System

January 31, 2020 / Kristen Kozar / 0 Comments

Dried Apricots

Main ingredient: Apricots

Before coming back to school, I picked up some snacks at Trader Joe’s, including dried apricots. As stated on the packaging, the apricots were a product of Turkey. Turkey is the largest producer of apricots, and generally apricots are native to parts of Asia. However, the fruit is grown worldwide in countries including France, Armenia, Morocco, and various parts of the United States including California. Therefore, my dried apricots traveled approximately 5,500 miles to get to my plate. Dried fruit is made by either taking the water out of the fruit by sun drying or through using a machine called a dehydrator. As a result of the water taken out, sugars are more concentrated in this dried fruit. The environmental impact of apricot production is considered relatively low with 1,287 liters of water used to produced 1 kilogram of apricots, however, the distance of the apricots from Turkey would definitely increase the environmental impact.

Broccoli

Main ingredient: Broccoli

Broccoli is one of my favorite foods.

I ate broccoli in the caf, and therefore am not entirely sure where my broccoli came from. However, in the United States, the main producing states include California, Arizona, Texas, and Oregon. Since California produces 90 percent of the country’s broccoli production, I will assume the broccoli came from there. My broccoli traveled approximately 2,700 miles to get to my plate. Most broccoli harvested in the US is sold as fresh produce, however, the broccoli I ate in the caf was likely frozen. Pesticides and other chemicals were likely used in the production process. Out of the three foods, I selected, broccoli has the smallest water footprint, approximately 285 liters of water used to produce one kilogram of broccoli with a low average carbon footprint as well/

Peanut Butter:

Main ingredient: Peanuts

For my first- year seminar “Food Justice”, I did an assignment in which I had to try to figure out where everything I ate came from for a week. In the process of hassling the cafeteria staff about many products, I recall learning that the caf uses Jif peanut butter- both the regular and natural options. Jif peanut butter is produced at a facility in Lexington, Kentucky, the largest peanut butter production facility in the world. Their peanuts primarily come from farms in the south of the United States including Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and South Carolina. From the farms, my peanuts travelled approximately 1,000 miles, though the whole journey would likely be more miles after taken in consideration the mileage to and from production plants. Though peanut production is water intensive, according to UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, the global average water footprint of peanuts is approximately 2,782 cubic meters per ton of nuts is less compared to other nuts, for instance almonds which use an average of 8,047 cubic meters of water used per ton of nuts- though peanuts are technically legumes not nuts which is why their impact is substantially smaller.

Though I try to be conscious of my food consumption and carbon footprint in some respects due to eating primarily vegetarian/ plant-based options, I realized through this exercise that I am less conscious of my decisions at school, even in comparison to when I am home on breaks where I can more easily make personal decisions. At Dickinson, we are required to have meal plans, therefore we are less autonomous in our decision- making process.

Assignment 1

January 31, 2020 / galloe / 0 Comments

Jan 27 Monday

Toast with jam and cheese for breakfast with a cup of tea
Sushi and a smoothie for lunch
Steak and ratatouille from the cafeteria

Jan 28 tuesday

2 fried eggs with cheese and 2 banana pancakes for breakfast
Sushi and a smoothie for lunch
Chicken and spinach and mashed potatoes for dinner

Jan 29 Wednesday

Toast with jam and cheese for breakfast with a cup of tea
Poke bowl
Salmon with ginger and lemon, roasted potatoes and spinach salad for dinner

3 common food items: toast, sushi, spinach salad

Toast

What is the main ingredient of the food item? Note: If one of your foods is raisin bran, please look at the ingredients list on the box of cereal. The dominant ingredient is always listed first (in this case, wheat).
- Organic wheat flour
Research the most common production practices used to grow/raise this ingredient. What resources (energy, chemical, environmental, human) are required in its production?
- Wheat gets planted in the fall
- It is difficult to produce entirely organic wheat due to the need for high nitrogen levels in the soil
- Once harvested the wheat is cleaned and bagged
- For control against pests freezing is an option if you can’t mill it all right away. This prevents pests from invading the areas where the wheat is stored
In what geographical location is this ingredient most commonly grown?
- Montana, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Wyoming represent half of all organic grain acreage
- Grown in the plains states and in the west
Identify and describe significant social and environmental impacts resulting from production, procurement, distribution, and consumption.
- Requires lots of machinery and manpower to harvest and process wheat, specifically organic wheat free from pesticides
- There is currently a rise in demand for organic wheat and grains but it is difficult for farmers to switch from conventional to organic
- Farmers say a large benefit of growing organic wheat is not having to handle dangerous chemicals and pesticides
- Organic farms produce much less than conventional ones because they can’t use synthetic pesticides or fertilizer
- There is an increasing trend for artisanal bread in the grocery stores
- Bread is quite perishable so there have to be a lot of distribution centers
Calculate the average miles each ingredient traveled in order to end up on your plate, bowl or cup.
- Organic wheat flour probably traveled around 1500 miles from Kansas to Pennsylvania where I bought the bread

Sushi

What is the main ingredient of the food item? Note: If one of your foods is raisin bran, please look at the ingredients list on the box of cereal. The dominant ingredient is always listed first (in this case, wheat).
- Rice
Research the most common production practices used to grow/raise this ingredient. What resources (energy, chemical, environmental, human) are required in its production?
- Produced in irrigated fields
- Producers seed their fields aerially in dry or flooded fields
- After harvesting rice it has to be milled to remove the husk
- Rice is then dried and in the case of white rice the hull is removed and it is polished
- White rice is enriched to replenish vitamins and nutrients lost during milling
In what geographical location is this ingredient most commonly grown?
- Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Texas account for almost all of the rice production in the US
Identify and describe significant social and environmental impacts resulting from production, procurement, distribution, and consumption.
- Rice cultivation originated in China and then spread
- History of rice production in the US is rooted in slavery, once slavery ended the production costs of rice rose significantly because it is a laborious crop
- Lots of technology goes into modern rice production
- In order to irrigate the fields machinery is required to create uniform fields for flooding and controlled draining
Calculate the average miles each ingredient traveled in order to end up on your plate, bowl or cup.
- Sacramento valley: 2,700 miles

Spinach salad

What is the main ingredient of the food item? Note: If one of your foods is raisin bran, please look at the ingredients list on the box of cereal. The dominant ingredient is always listed first (in this case, wheat).
- Spinach
Research the most common production practices used to grow/raise this ingredient. What resources (energy, chemical, environmental, human) are required in its production?
- Needs full sun and well drained soil
- Organic spinach needs to be maintained by hand which requires weeding, cutting it during harvest, washing the product and bagging it
- Thinning and weeding is the only cultivation required
- Spinach can survive in the cold so can be grown late into the season
In what geographical location is this ingredient most commonly grown?
- Most spinach in the US is grown in California
Identify and describe significant social and environmental impacts resulting from production, procurement, distribution, and consumption.
- Water is required to grow spinach
- The spinach I consume is from the Dickinson College farm usually
  - Students and apprentices care for and harvest the spinach, the packing house manager cleans and bags the spinach to prepare for distribution
  - Typically the farm managers run the deliveries to the college where the spinach is distributed between dining locations
  - Students then can all have access to the spinach for consumption
Calculate the average miles each ingredient traveled in order to end up on your plate, bowl or cup.
- About 6 miles away

A major takeaway I had from this activity was recognizing the complexity of the foods we eat. I try hard not to eat super processed foods however this activity showed me that even what I consider “simple” foods still have a long life before they reach my plate. Even the spinach I eat from the Dickinson College farm has to undergo many steps before it reaches the cafeteria.

You and The Food System

January 31, 2020 / pouline / 0 Comments

Bagels: During this three-day timeframe, one thing I ate everyday was a bagel. The first ingredient listed on the plain bagel package is enriched wheat flour. This type of flour is called enriched flour, because it goes through an enrichment process. During the milling process the natural nutrients from wheat are lost. This process adds several nutrients, such as minerals and vitamins, to back into the refined flour. These nutrients are niacin, thiamin, riboflavin, folic acid, and iron. Enriched wheat flour starts off as wheat. Since China is the largest producer of wheat, for this product I’ve made the assumption the wheat was grown in China. Other areas wheat is commonly grown in are India, Russia, and the United States, to name a few. Once the wheat is cultivated it is either transported by barge, rail, or truck. From there it is stored, separated and put through a thorough process. This process consists of removing unnecessary material, removal of impurities, and eventually the grinding, purifying, and sifting into different flours. My assumption is that the cultivation of the wheat creates large environmental impacts in the process. The cultivation of wheat involves fertilizers that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. I also think that the tilling of the soil and irrigation create other environmental problems as well. Another energy-intensive aspect in order to create this ingredient is the electricity and power for the production facilities. In order to calculate the food miles to get a bagel on my plate, I found a food miles’ calculator. This calculated roughly how many miles it took for enriched flour to arrive in the US. After this calculation I think the food miles for my bagel would be roughly 7500 miles. However, this is an estimate that mainly take into account the miles from China.

Baby Carrots: Another food I ate every day and more than once each day was carrots, usually baby carrots. Carrots only consist of one ingredient, and that’s carrots. I was surprised to discover that most of the US grown carrots are grown in California. The process of producing baby carrots is by first harvesting full-sized carrots from the fields. Once they are harvested they are washed, sorted, sized, cut, peeled, and polished. Smaller carrots are processed, shaped, and packaged. The pesticides used on carrots crops, like other crops, cause damage to the environment. The production process of the carrots is energy intensive, thus adding to harmful environmental impacts. However, baby carrots have the flexibility to use more of the carrot resulting in wasting less carrots. Carrots can be sold locally, but are often packaged in many different ways. Most commonly seen in stores are the bags of baby carrots, other products are snack size ranch with baby carrots or thrown into a plastic to-go snack kit. After comparing a few different food mile websites for carrots, I am thinking roughly 2000 miles to reach my refrigerator. Similarly, to the bagel this estimate doesn’t include the miles that the carrots gain during the processing and packing process.

Dried Mangos: The last food item I choose from my list was dried mango slices. These dried mangos don’t have any added ingredients; they are just dried mangos. I bought these dried mangos from Trader Joe’s and the package claims the mangos are a product of Mexico, which makes sense since they are one of the top producers of Mangos. Once the Mangos are grown and picked from their trees, they are carefully selected. The mangoes used for drying purposes are the ones without damage, pests, and have a good overall appearance. From there the mangos are trimmed and washed. Once they have been cleaned well, each mango is peeled and cored. Out of these steps, from my understanding, there isn’t too much human involvement. However, the cutting of the mangos is sometimes performed by many people. Finally, the mangos go on to blanching, to be sterilized, drying, and packing. These steps can be pretty energy intensive, resulting in the release of greenhouse gases into the environment. The online calculation I found for dried mangos was roughly 5500 miles.

What I ate for three days

January 31, 2020 / Giuseppe Collia / 0 Comments

Giuseppe Collia
31 January 2020
FDST 400
Assignment 1

What I ate for three days:
Jan 27
Breakfast: skipped
Lunch: 1 bun, 3 slices breaded eggplant, lettuce, tomato, applesauce, another bun, applesauce, 2 more slices of eggplant, seasoned chickpeas, asparagus, 2 glasses of water
Snack: M&Ms with peanuts
Dinner: yogurt (some greek, some vanilla), granola, raisins, sunflower seeds, honey, quinoa cake, tomato sauce, ½ glass of lemonade
Snack: A few banana chips, a raisin, 2 pieces of toblerone, 2 Dove milk chocolate, 1 candy cane kiss

Jan 28
Breakfast: frosted mini wheats, soy milk, glass of water, blueberry muffin, a coffee, sugar, oatmilk
Lunch: beet burger, brioche, frisee, peas, fries, ketchup, 1 half strawberry, 2 glasses of water
Dinner: 2.5 quinoa meatballs, vegan chili, omelet, spinach, muenster cheese, 1 slice of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and honey, 1 glass of water
Snack: 1 small red banana, 1 dove chocolates, 100 cal pretzels

Jan 29
Breakfast: 1 red banana, handful of nuts and cranberries
Lunch: beet burger, 2 slices white bread, bbq sauce, chana masala, cous cous, 3 rugelach
Snack: chocolate chip cookie, iced mocha
Dinner: BBQ tofu, bun, lemon pie, ¼ waffle with honey

Ingredients that stand out:
Wheat – bread, muffin, waffle, buns
- Worldwide, most production is industrial. This includes seed drilling, large swaths of lands in monoculture, combines for harvesting and threshing, and crop rotation with other staple crops.
- Wheat production is worldwide, significant production in North America, Europe and across Asia, with other smaller but often growing swaths in Africa, South America, and Australia. This represents significant growing on every continent but Antarctica.
- Industrial ag, including that which grows wheat, is a main cause of deforestation worldwide. It also contributes to air and water pollution. Consuming wheat supports demand for this process.
- Miles: Probably from within the USA, because we export it.
Chocolate – chocolates, hot chocolate, coffee, cookie
- Cocoa, in its various forms, are the main ingredient in chocolate.
- Cocoa beans are grown in agroindustrial fields and by millions of small-holding farmers, the majority coming from small plots. A tree takes 4 to 5 years to come into production. Once in production, it may have up to 6000 flowers per year, but usually just about 20 bear fruit annually. 40 pods are needed to make 1 kg of cocoa paste. Hershey’s, Nestle, and Mars are major procurers and source from various sources.
- Cocoa’s native range is Mesoamerica. Today’s largest producers of cocoa are these countries in descending order: Ivory Coast, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Brazil, Ecuador, others – note: most cocoa is grown outside of its native range which represents a replacement of native ecosystems with this crop.
- Displacement of native ecosystems, exploitation of cheap labor in lesser developed countries, exporting of raw materials from lesser developed countries, commodities that represent the majority of the economies of these countries are some sustainability challenges related to cocoa production
- Miles: avg between Ivory Coast, Ghana, and Indonesia: 6666 miles
Chickpeas – chana masala, sides
- Chickpeas can be planted and harvested mechanically like other legumes. It is considered a specialty crop in the US, but its production method does not vary significantly from that of soy.
- Likely originally from the Middle East. Important in Indian, Mediterranean, and Middle Eastern cuisines. In 2017, 67% of chickpeas were grown in India.
- Machines contribute to soil disturbance, and water and air pollution.
- Miles: Average between Montana and India: 4000
Water – I drink mainly water
- Comes from the Conodoguinet, needs processing, mostly electricity uses – the majority of our electricity comes from fossil fuel sources.
  Comes from close.
BBQ sauce – tofu, beet burger, dipping for most things
Sugar – in a ton of stuff, including some of the things I listed above
More fruit than I had expected, to be completely honest

My diet is primarily plant-based, which significantly reducing my carbon footprint, nevertheless food production, not unlike any other activity, has an impact on the world around us.

Week 2 Assignment: You and the Food System

January 31, 2020 / Hannah Findling / 0 Comments

Keswick Creamery Milk and Cheeses – main ingredient: Milk

http://keswickcreamery.com/

I have lived full-time in Carlisle since December of 2018. One of my major goals in 2019 was to patronize local businesses whenever possible in favor of shopping at Walmart or Giant. Currently, my household gets our cheeses and milk from Keswick Creamery, a dairy located just outside of Newburg, PA. I pick up cheese and milk each week at the Farmers on the Square Market.

Keswick grazes their herds of dairy cattle on grass pastures, and does not treat with rBST or other artificial growth hormones. Sara Kelley, a personal friend since we were coworkers at the Juice Box in the Kline back in 2016, raises milking goats and sells their milk to Keswick, which she incorporates into their cheeses as one of their cheesemakers. Operating as a small local business allows Keswick to minimize environmental externalities, as well as to work alongside local environmental organizations to ensure sustainable dairy practices in an environment which is well-acquainted with mega-dairy production. On average, my milk and cheeses travel about 25 miles to reach my refrigerator.

2. Nasoya Extra-Firm Organic Tofu – main ingredient: Soybeans

Nasoya Extra-Firm Organic Tofu

My second staple food this week was Nasoya extra-firm organic tofu, the primary ingredient of this product is soybeans. Nasoya sources their soybeans from Vitasoy-USA, located in Ayer, Massachusetts. Vitasoy and Nasoya are both branches of the same parent company, Pulmuone Foods USA. Soybeans are a crop which requires high irrigation and careful management to avoid pests in an organic system. Large combine harvesters are utilized in the harvest of the crop, which contributes to increased carbon outputs.

Although I do not currently identify as vegetarian or vegan, I endeavor to be a conscious consumer, both in the retail sense and in terms of the foods I eat. Organic tofu is a great alternative to eating meats, as the carbon inputs required to grow soybeans and process the soy into tofu are significantly less than the inputs required for the production of commercial animal products. Given, significant human labor and carbon is still required to produce and harvest the soybeans, clean them, ship the beans to production, press and ferment them into tofu, and then package and ship the products to supermarkets. On average, my tofu has travelled about 450 miles to arrive on my plate.

3. Basmati Rice

Full Circle Organic Long-Grain Basmati Rice

The third food that is a major staple of my diet is long-grain basmati rice. I prefer to purchase organic products when I can afford them, and currently have the Full-Circle brand. I store my dry goods in glass mason jars, so unfortunately I do not have the packaging in order to reference wether the product was produced in the USA or abroad. India is the primary exporter of rice worldwide, but the United States does produce rice domestically, particularly in Texas, Mississippi, and California.

Rice is the most intensive in terms of inputs in both labor required and water usage for production of the three main staples in my diet this week. Rice is grown in a semi-submerged environment, so water usage is quite high. Rice must be harvested from the paddies, transported to processing facilities, hulled and washed, packaged, and finally shipped worldwide to grocery stores. Human labor in rice production is grueling, and extremely tedious. Assuming my rice was produced in the southwestern US or abroad, it is likely that my rice travelled over 1,000 miles to reach my bowl.

Week 2

January 31, 2020 / cohenhe / 0 Comments

As college students, many of us are forced to be creatures of habit. All Dickinsonians with a palette know that most of the food served in the caf is bland, repetitive, and often leaves you having quite the experience in the HUB underground bathroom the next morning. Even for those, like myself, who have some access to fresh produce through the farm, time becomes a barrier in cooking and eating mindfully. I noticed that the majority of meals I cook for myself at home consist of my pantry staples. I’ve actually eaten either bean, an egg, or a tortilla almost every day since beginning to track my diet. These ingredients are very versatile and can pack a flavorful punch when combined with what’s in my spice cabinet.

Beans: It takes an immense amount of energy and water to grow beans on a large scale, along with the human power required to cultivate, harvest, process, transport, sell, cook, and consume. Beans are a commodity crop, the markets dominated by GOYA and other household names. Farms that grow beans are often monocrop, which means that the soil they utilize often decreases in biodiversity over time. Additionally, due to the nature of the bean, it is necessary to rotate crops, or a farmer risks the development of mold in the field. Most large-scale farms skirt this possibility with chemical treatments. North Dakota grows 32% of all dry beans in the United States (US Dry Bean Council), but many beans are products of Mexico and parts of South and Central America. I estimate that each bean I consume has traveled roughly 1500 miles to my kitchen

Eggs: We all know that eggs come from chickens. Most of the egg production in the U.S. is factory style livestock farming, which as Food Inc. showed, is some pretty messed up stuff. Chickens mainly feed on corn and soy bi product, and actually consume an amount of corn on par with humans. Chickens are raised all over the United States, especially on small scale family operations. The environmental impact of chickens is large. They consume a lot of energy through the feed they eat, the transport between farm and slaughterhouse, in packaging, sanitizing, and transportation to grocery stores. It is best to eat local chicken, as it has been dead for less time. I am iffy about the consumption of meat, as I do find it cruel, however I still eat it. I am obviously an imperfect and immoral human being. I assume that the chicken I eat travels roughly 100-300 miles on average.

Corn Tortillas: The main ingredient is corn! As mentioned before, monocropping is bad for the ecosystem, and corn is one of the largest commodity crops in the U.S. Most corn is grown on large scale corporate farms using conventional methods. Each plant is grown 6 inches apart from the next, and most farms use pesticides to avoid worm damage. About 75 percent of organic corn will have some worm damage in Pennsylvania. Corn is grown all over the place, but dominates states like Iowa and Nebraska. Corn travels a lot, as it is an additive in countless food products. I estimate that the corn in my tortilla travels an average of 1000-1500 miles.

Am I surprised by this? Not really, I am pretty conscious of my food consumption and the environmental impacts of shopping from large scale suppliers, who draw pretty much exclusively from large scale corporate farm operations. Do I want to reduce my food carbon footprint and mitigate the soil degradation caused by monocropping? Hell yes, but it is expensive. Our system is set up in a way that favors large scale agriculture and punishes small farmers. It also punishes consumers, making more nutritious, organic produce the more expensive option.

Assignment #1: You and the Food System – Adam Fine

January 30, 2020 / finead / 0 Comments

Learn how to make FRIED EGGS 4 ways -- sunny-side-up, over-easy, over-medium, over-hard -- with this video tutorial and easy recipe! | gimmesomeoven.com

Eggs: The eggs that I consume on a daily basis are usually chicken eggs that are prepared fried or in an omelet form. Considering I get my eggs from the school cafeteria, I am not necessarily sure where the eggs come from, but I would hope they are not coming from more than 100 miles away. Hens are often kept in a very controlled environment and fed a mix of feed made of corn, soybeans, and vitamins. Most eggs are now collected with automated machines now rather than by hand. The eggs are then washed before they are graded when workers essentially look inside the egg to view the quality. After grading, eggs are eventually packaged most often in groups of dozens by size and color and shipped in refrigerated trucks to distributors. Eggs are typically produced in areas that have enough open space to house hundreds of thousands of chickens. Chicken farming both of meat and for eggs has been almost taken over by a few major companies that have put most chicken farmers under the thumb of these major companies, such as those mentioned in Food Inc. Considering I do not know where the schools eggs come from, I would hope that there travel distance is not far but I have no way of knowing.

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Salad: On the average day, I will likely have at least two salads of various types. Sometimes I make a smaller side salad and other times the salad itself is the overall meal. My typical salads usually include items that the school offers but such ingredients as: romaine lettuce, spinach, sliced tomatoes, quinoa, cucumbers, cranberries, and usually some sort of crumbled cheese such as feta. Dickinson attempts to use as many vegetables as possible that the college farm produces or to buy from local producers considering Carlisle is located in a particularly rural area where there is plenty of open space to farm. In the United States, states such as California and Arizona produce the most romaine lettuce and spinach considering the environments that the geographic areas have are conducive to growing and agriculture scientists have figured out how to manipulate the crop to grow in a chosen area, rather than the land in some cases. Cheap labor is often used in the production and collection of lettuce and spinach and the large corporations that own these farms often use undocumented immigrants to get away with paying their workers as little as possible. Considering many of the workers are undocumented, there are also numerous issues with employee safety and treatment that the farming industry has been guilty of especially in the U.S. Realistically, the lettuce and spinach that I consume is either coming from less than 50 miles away (local) or thousands of miles away on the opposite coast.

This image may contain Potato Plant Food and Vegetable

Potatoes: I consume potatoes in various forms every day whether it is in French fries, roasted potatoes, or a few various other forms. Potatoes can be produced in various temperate climates which makes it a cash crop. Potatoes are a root vegetable, meaning that they grow below ground in the dirt, which can protect them from airborne diseases or pests, yet means they must be washed even more thoroughly. They can be grown in relatively loose soil that provides good aeration and drainage for the plants. Potatoes are very resilient plants themselves because they are adaptable which means that they can often grow even without optimum conditions such as soil quality. The average food miles for potatoes in the U.S. is approximately 940 miles which is a considerable distance, yet not as bad when you remember that potatoes store very easily.

Assignment #1: You and the Food System

January 30, 2020 / snyderju / 0 Comments

Oatmeal: rolled oats

Oatmeal manufacturing involves harvesting, washing, steaming, and hulling the oats. Quick-cooking oats are rolled between cylinders to produce a flatter flake. Once flaked, the oats are roasted and packaged for consumption. Energy, environmental, and human power are all required for this production.

Oats are best grown in geographical areas with cool, wet summers, such as Northwest Europe and even Iceland.

Oats provide excellent soil erosion control because of their dense coat. These outer coats also help prevent buildup of many destructive organisms (disease and pests) which reduces the need for the use of expensive herbicides. Oats also require less tillage/plowing for seedbed preparation, which further helps prevent soil erosion. For humans and animals, oats are a heart healthy, whole grain food that lowers risks for heart disease.

It takes approximately 5,000 miles for rolled oats to end up in my oatmeal bowl in the morning for breakfast.

Chocolate: sugar

Processing raw sugar into refined sugar involves a highly energy-intensive process, specifically with the use of boilers that use large amounts of heat to break down sugar cane juice.

Sugarcane is best grown in tropical and subtropical climates like Brazil, India, Thailand, and China which are located in the Northern hemisphere.

The cultivation and processing of sugar produces negative environmental impacts through the loss of natural habitats, intensive use of water, heavy use of agro-chemicals, discharge and air pollution. All of which leads to the decline of healthy wildlife, soil, air, and water in areas where sugar is produced. However, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is currently working with a wide range of stakeholders (farmers, processors, food and beverage producers, traders, investors, and industry specialists) to develop sustainable sugarcane cultivation and processing. Like WWF, General Mills is also dedicated to the sustainability of sugar production. Since 2014, they have slowly switched over to using sugar beets instead of sugarcane, and by the end of 2020 they hope to solely use sugar beets to sweeten their products. Sugar beets are resource sensitive and environmentally friendly in comparison to sugarcane. This switch will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve water quality, and contribute in positive ways to climate change. And the best contribution is that you can’t taste or see the difference.

It takes approximately 4,500 miles for sugar to end up in my afternoon chocolate bar.

BBQ Chips: potatoes 

Potatoes are harvested using a spading fork, plow, or commercial potato harvester that digs into the earth, grabs hold of the plant, and shakes off the access soil. This process requires energy and human resources. In addition, in order to store the potatoes, refrigeration is required using more energy.

Potatoes are most commonly grown in the state of Idaho, followed by Washington. They seem to grow better in light soil, like volcanic ash because of its rich supply of minerals. Idaho’s rich volcanic soil is ideal for growing potatoes.

The production of potatoes involves a harvesting process called tilling or plowing. This process has great potential to damage the earths’ soil. The primary purpose of plowing is to turn over the upper layer of the soil so that fresh nutrients can be dispersed throughout the ground. However, plowing increases soil erosion and impairs water infiltration and soil health, ultimately impacting the environment.

It takes approximately 2, 294 miles  for potatoes to end up in my BBQ chips at lunch.

The bottom line

January 30, 2020 / wernern / 0 Comments

Joel Salatin from Poliface Farms shares a crucial point in the film “Food Inc”.

Cashew

Cashew was my number one consumption item. It is an external seed and a household favorite.
But I learned that the shell is toxic, containing an acid that causes an allergic skin rash on contact.
This clip gives a look in on what goes on during harvest and the cashew processing.

Grapes from Peru

The grapes I consumed, were purchased at Aldi’s (German based grocer) and came from Piura in the north of Peru.

The distance grapes travel

A grape producer from Agricola Andrea speaks about his business and product exportation.

Nidia Werner

January 26, 2020 / wernern / 0 Comments

I am originally from São Paulo, Brazil and have been deeply interested in multiculturalism and acculturation all my life. My love for ethnic foods can be verified in my kitchen pantry anytime and is consistently reflected in unique dishes I have the pleasure to make and share with family and friends. The effect and contributions from divers cultures can be partially influential or largely dominant and what is cooked is often an expression of who we are and where we come from. Cooking and sharing food promote connections with others. The partaking of food is a literal and symbolic way of integration and can be used as a tool for mutual understanding.

It will be a challenge to think, research and organize this Capstone Seminar project, but here is an inspiring exhibit I had the chance to visit last August. It exemplifies the powerful way a multimedia project can display the many facets and roles food has in our lives.