I was reading an article on the recent egg recall and was shocked to find out that the egg industry estimates that Americans consume 220 million eggs a day. Wow! With roughly 307 million people in the U.S. that's around 260 eggs a year for…
I found this 10 minute "How Cooking Made Us Human" talk from Harvard's Richard Wrangham very eye opening. He challenges the notion that raw foods are healthier for human consumption and describes the role of cooking in human evolution. h/t Andrew Sullivan.
I see today that the ever expanding egg recall has reached Washington State. To date 380 million eggs have been recalled as part of the current concern over people being sick from Salmonella. Here's the lowdown on Salmonella bacteria; This comes via the "You Can…
I came across two newish Spokane food blogs this week. I'm always eager to see new blogs popping up in the Spokane area, especially food related blogs. Make sure to stop by Spokarnivore and Ethical Eating and say hi. I'm especially intrigued by the Ethical…
It's peak season for watermelon and I can't get enough of it. Anderson Farm has some of the most unique melons I've seen. Last week we bought an orange watermelon from them and it was fantastic. Anderson Farm sells at the Millwood Market today, 3-7pm,…
The first year of the Pumpkin Patch Community Garden has far surpassed my expectations. Here are a couple before and after pictures. Go here for more posts on community gardens. Thanks to everyone who has made it come together in such a short time.
As if we need one more reason to be worried about the supply of beef and milk in the US food chain, this article from BBC News explains that not only are cattle being cloned to maximize production, but some of the cattle are cloned…
Sunflowers are another favorite flower in the garden. The red Autumn variety I planted this year are especially pretty.
The Santa Cruz news reports on a possible next wave in the ever evolving food and sustainability movement; Eating bugs just makes sense, so much so that the U.N. is giving consideration to the matter. In February 2008, the Food and Agriculture Organization hosted a…
I started these Prairie Coneflower (Ratibida columnifera) from seed in the greenhouse this year and they are beautiful. Of course the Purple Coneflower remains my all time favorite.
For the last five years we have entered items in the Spokane County Fair. Mostly vegetables, last year we entered our chickens, this year I'll try some photographs. The deadline for getting in your entry forms is tomorrow, August 10. Entry forms must be postmarked…
I'm spending a lot of time with family during these prime vacation weeks. I offer these pics from the "Crap at My Parents' House" web tumblr as lighthearted therapeutic fodder for everyone spending time with family.
McDonald's is getting on the local food bandwagon in the state of Washington with what they are calling the "We Buy Local" campaign. If you go to their nifty website with a map of the state of Washington you'll find a picture of a potato,…
Hi all. Back from vacation and settling back into blogging routines.I wanted to follow up on my two previous posts regarding the recent discovery of high arsenic levels in children from the eggs they were eating from their flock of backyard chickens. I reported previously…
Here's a video of our efforts to remove a giant squirrel from the fireplace last night. That's our neighbor with the fishing net. I'm the one screaming like a banshee. He is lurking somewhere upstairs in the house as I type. Nancy is bravely sleeping…
My recent provocative proposal to have the folks from the Rocket Market run the business side of the Main Market Food Co-op received as strong a reaction as any recent post in memory. Between the two sites there were over a dozen comments and the…
The San Francisco Commission on Animal Control and Welfare has created quite a stir by considering a proposal that would outlaw the sale of all pets in the city.Here's how the S.F. Chronicle reported it earlier in the month. The ban would include;...dogs, cats, hamsters,…
I missed this article on picky eating from the Wall Street Journal earlier in the month.Doctors once thought only kids were picky eaters, and that they would grow out of it. Now, however, a task force studying how to categorize eating disorders for the new…
For the first time we decided to mulch the pathways of our garden to make managing the weeds easier. We should have done this long ago. The technique is to put down a thick layer of newspapers and cover it with straw. It should kill…
Gary Angel, a veteran chicken farmer from Rocky Ridge Ranch, has chimed in on how to respond to the issue of arsenic in chicken feed. I thought it was worth sharing in a post.Not all feeds contain antibiotic or arsenic. Just like human food better…
On the scale of "horrific environmental disasters" the Gulf Spill is already a 10 in my book. Reports like this one on how the oil and dispersant is likely to move it's way up the food chain have got me thinking we need a new…
Some kids in Utah were found to have high levels of arsenic in their bodies and they traced the source to the eggs they were eating from their backyard chickens. Apparently the feed contained roxarsone, an arsenic based additive common in chicken feed. Grist has…
USA Today has an article on the efforts of farmers (especially dairy farmers), to share their side of the story;Growers aren't usually thought of as a wired, social-networking bunch. But frustration at being the targets of tech-wise environmental or animal rights groups has inspired them…
USDA economists have just released a report that says a tax on high calorie soda pop will take a chunk out of America's flabby belly. They report;A tax-induced 20-percent price increase on caloric sweetened beverages could cause an average reduction of 37 calories per day,…
Foodista,the aspiring wikipedia of cooking, is featuring Food In Jars as their food blog of the moment. I recommend it as a good one to go to and learn about the experience of home canning, with one caveat - don't use the site's recipes unless…
The Year of Plenty blog was created by Craig Goodwin in the winter of 2008 to chronicle the experiences of his family as they sought to consume everything local, used, homegrown or homemade. That journey was a wonderful introduction to people and movements in the Spokane area who are seeking the welfare of the community through local foods, farmers markets, community gardens, sustainable transportation, and more fulfilling and just patterns of consumption. In 2009 and beyond the blog will continue to report on these relationships and practices, all through the eyes of a family with young children. Craig manages the Millwood Farmers' Market, is a Master Food Preserver and Pastor at Millwood Presbyterian Church. Craig can be reached at goody2230@gmail.com
