Last weeks show on Fairtrade generated so much interest we thought we would delve a bit deeper and discover more about what is happening and the benefits of fair-trade.
As we heard last week – hot off the press – Cadbury in the UK expects to receive Fairtrade certification for its U.K. and Irish Cadbury Dairy Milk products by the end of the (northern hemisphere) summer, a change that will triple the sales of Fairtrade cocoa for farmers in the African country Ghana. Cadbury plans to eventually seek Fairtrade certification for other products and for Cadbury operations elsewhere in the world. Unfortunately Cadbury Australia are not quite there yet – but they are talking to the fairtrade people – so it will be a while before we can eat guilt free mainstream chocolate in Australia. For totally guilt free (oh, except for the calorie count!!) go to the World Vision campaign website for a list of fairtrade chocolate at: http://www.donttradelives.com.au/dtl/Issues/Chocolate/files/pdf/ChocolateGuide.pdf
The flipside of you buying a chocolate bar that isn’t fairtrade is that some cocoa farmer has been royally screwed over. So we talk to Susan Mizrahi from World Vision who is the Campaign Leader for Human Trafficking who can tell us about the real benefits to 3rd world farmers and their communities when they get a fair price for their cocoa. These people are the ones that are impacted by our purchase decisions.
We also hear back from Ali’s week of shopping ethically – did she starve? Or did she discover that shopping sustainably and ethically is a breeze – and helps her sleep better at night! (and did she continue WHINGING as she tried to eat ethically, or did she get over it!!)
Check out the podcasts for all the details.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Urban food & gardens
Food security is a new buzz word around. With the recent hikes in oil price, leading to large increases in the price of commodity grains (such as corn and soybeans) the world has seen riots over the price of food. Australian agriculture is going to be hit hard by climate change and what we grow and where we grow it, along with how we grow it is all going to be affected. Modern agriculture relies on oil – for the use of fertilizers and transport – so what happen when we run out of oil, or as oil gets so expensive we can no longer afford the fertilizers for our crops? Are there other ways to operate?
We will talk with Peta Christensen from ‘Cultivating Communities’ who has traveled the world looking at urban food solutions, as well as seeing the benefits of community gardens. And we will also talk with Martin Pritchard who has been on a guerilla gardening project as well as helping to organize the supermarket of the future the Eco-Market, a sustainable alternative to the one-stop shop.
We have also seen a rise in urban gardens – from community gardens, individual plot and even guerilla gardening. So we will talk urban gardens and urban food and see if we can inspire you to get out and grow some of your own! Unfortunately Ali is not with us tonight otherwise we would have heard an update on her Envrio-lution to keep her home grown tomatoes alive……but we believe the tomatoes are still alive and actually producing fruit. Photographic proof will be appearing on this blog soon– so stay tuned!
We will talk with Peta Christensen from ‘Cultivating Communities’ who has traveled the world looking at urban food solutions, as well as seeing the benefits of community gardens. And we will also talk with Martin Pritchard who has been on a guerilla gardening project as well as helping to organize the supermarket of the future the Eco-Market, a sustainable alternative to the one-stop shop.
We have also seen a rise in urban gardens – from community gardens, individual plot and even guerilla gardening. So we will talk urban gardens and urban food and see if we can inspire you to get out and grow some of your own! Unfortunately Ali is not with us tonight otherwise we would have heard an update on her Envrio-lution to keep her home grown tomatoes alive……but we believe the tomatoes are still alive and actually producing fruit. Photographic proof will be appearing on this blog soon– so stay tuned!
Big Bad Agrilculture
So what are the issues with modern agriculture? The biggest looming one (excluding GM) is probably the shortage of oil which is going to hit us sometime. Experts predict around 2012, but no-one is really sure. Oil is used to make fertilizer and a large percentage of the world’s food is now grown in mono-culture farms (ie only one product) and heavily reliant on the use of oil based fertilizers. Take for example one of the worlds biggest crops – corn. When I think of corn I think of those bright yellow corn cobs, slathered in butter. But corn is in just about every processed food you can think of from soft drink to biscuits to bread! Good old corn is everywhere (usually in the form of high-fructose corn syrup). Take for example your McDonalds meal of the ‘carbon’ (ie non-water, organic stuff in the item) in the meals the following %* comes from corn:
Soft drink 100%
Milk shake 78%
Salad dressing 65%
Chicken nuggets 56%
Cheeseburger 52%
French Fries 23%
So there is loads more corn in a chicken nugget than chicken!!!
(*these figures come from “The Omnivore’s dilemma” by Michael Polan)
Corn is grown using a large amount of fertilizer and then the processing of corn into the myriad of products on our supermarket and fast food shelves also takes oil. So that by the time you eat your McDonalds meal 10 times as much calories of oil have been used to make the meal than you consumed – very energy intensive.
And then there is the environmental pollution from using excessive amounts of fertilizer. The fertilizer used on corn contains large amounts of nitrogen, which when the excess runs off into water ways it creates ‘dead zones’ of algae where nothing grows. Some of it also evaporates into the air where it acidifies the rain and contributes to global warming (via ammonium nitrate turning into nitrous oxide – an intensive ghg).
So what are there alternatives? Obviously eating less processed food helps the energy balance, but also supporting farmers that use no ‘man-made’ fertilizers such as organic & biodynamic farmers. There is also the ‘grow your own’ option, which while unlikely to supply all your vegetable & fruit needs can supply some. And you can also trade the excess. Across Melbourne there are a number of ‘food swaps’ where people meet regularly and swap there excess produce for other home grown stuff, So if your tomato trees are growing excessive amounts, you can take the excess down to CERES park in Brunswick every Saturday, and swap your tomatoes for some one else’s beans or zucchinis! Very cool! It is called the Urban Orchard and they are popping up all over Melbourne. Another one is:
Westside urban orchard swap
10-11.30am : first saturday of every month
211 Nicholson St, Footscray
Some definitions:
Organic Framing
"A production system which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically compounded fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators and livestock feed additives. To the maximum extent feasible organic farming systems rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, legumes, green manures, off-farm organic wastes, mechanical cultivation, mineral bearing rocks, and aspects of biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and tilth, to supply plant nutrients and to control insects, weeds and other pests."
Biodynamic Framing
Takes organic farming one step further
Biodynamic farming is a system of farming based on the teachings of German philosopher Rudolph Steiner. Initially developed in Germany in the 1920s, its use is now world wide including Australia. Biodynamic farms strive to be a self-sustaining organism within the surrounding ecosystem and is generally stricter than organic standards and emphasizes farm animals, soil and plant sprays and compost preparations which enhance and regulate plant growth and fertility.
Permaculture
"Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way". (Mollison, 1988, Design Manual IX).
Soft drink 100%
Milk shake 78%
Salad dressing 65%
Chicken nuggets 56%
Cheeseburger 52%
French Fries 23%
So there is loads more corn in a chicken nugget than chicken!!!
(*these figures come from “The Omnivore’s dilemma” by Michael Polan)
Corn is grown using a large amount of fertilizer and then the processing of corn into the myriad of products on our supermarket and fast food shelves also takes oil. So that by the time you eat your McDonalds meal 10 times as much calories of oil have been used to make the meal than you consumed – very energy intensive.
And then there is the environmental pollution from using excessive amounts of fertilizer. The fertilizer used on corn contains large amounts of nitrogen, which when the excess runs off into water ways it creates ‘dead zones’ of algae where nothing grows. Some of it also evaporates into the air where it acidifies the rain and contributes to global warming (via ammonium nitrate turning into nitrous oxide – an intensive ghg).
So what are there alternatives? Obviously eating less processed food helps the energy balance, but also supporting farmers that use no ‘man-made’ fertilizers such as organic & biodynamic farmers. There is also the ‘grow your own’ option, which while unlikely to supply all your vegetable & fruit needs can supply some. And you can also trade the excess. Across Melbourne there are a number of ‘food swaps’ where people meet regularly and swap there excess produce for other home grown stuff, So if your tomato trees are growing excessive amounts, you can take the excess down to CERES park in Brunswick every Saturday, and swap your tomatoes for some one else’s beans or zucchinis! Very cool! It is called the Urban Orchard and they are popping up all over Melbourne. Another one is:
Westside urban orchard swap
10-11.30am : first saturday of every month
211 Nicholson St, Footscray
Some definitions:
Organic Framing
"A production system which avoids or largely excludes the use of synthetically compounded fertilizers, pesticides, growth regulators and livestock feed additives. To the maximum extent feasible organic farming systems rely upon crop rotations, crop residues, animal manures, legumes, green manures, off-farm organic wastes, mechanical cultivation, mineral bearing rocks, and aspects of biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and tilth, to supply plant nutrients and to control insects, weeds and other pests."
Biodynamic Framing
Takes organic farming one step further
Biodynamic farming is a system of farming based on the teachings of German philosopher Rudolph Steiner. Initially developed in Germany in the 1920s, its use is now world wide including Australia. Biodynamic farms strive to be a self-sustaining organism within the surrounding ecosystem and is generally stricter than organic standards and emphasizes farm animals, soil and plant sprays and compost preparations which enhance and regulate plant growth and fertility.
Permaculture
"Permaculture is the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way". (Mollison, 1988, Design Manual IX).
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