Column As the farm-to-table movement grows, so does farmwashing. What can we do about it?

I have always been pulled to restaurants that promote a farm-to-table ethos. What’s better than making a connection between the food that you are eating and the people who produced it?

So when Vanity Fair recently ran an article titled “Is It Time to Table Farm-to-Table?” I immediately thought, “of course not!” But as I read the article, I realized that journalist Corby Kummer was talking about tabling farm-to-table not because of the concept behind it, but because of how it’s currently practiced. Kummer writes, “It feels particularly misleading when excessive earnestness is a cover for fatally unimaginative, formulaic food.”

Personally, I would rather take unimaginative food that is made from seasonal, local ingredients than a crazy meal made with ingredients sourced from all ends of the earth. However, if a chef can’t take those seasonal, local ingredients and do them justice, it’s disrespect for the producer that took time and energy into growing them in the first place. The ingredients deserve to be valued. But the point here is that the branding and marketing value of declaring a farm-to-table operation is more valuable than actually making good food. “It’s time, then, to retire ‘farm-to-table,'” writes Kummer. “The term has been drained of any real meaning it may have once had.”

He’s right. Farm-to-table has gone the way of other terms that have become so popular that the things they definitions seek to separate themselves from end up appropriating them. Like Domino’s and “artisan pizza.” Kummer gives a nod to “farmwashing” which nowadays can be found in a variety of supermarkets and fast food chains. Like greenwashing, farmwashing is companies focusing on a marketing message that implies that they are small scale, environmentally minded, and really care about the people who grew their food. You’ve seen the huge posters in the grocery aisle, the happy farmer with a big smile, holding a bundle of kale or whatever the trendy green du jour is. McDonald’s nailed this one with their “From Here” campaign. Because fast food is the new locavore frontier, right?

There’s one thing that we tend to overlook: farm-to-table isn’t a modern concept. It’s how we used to eat. As such, farm-to-table as a trend is a response to an over industrialized system that has made mass-produced food from far away the norm, and real food from close to home a luxury. Farm-to-table shouldn’t be a trend, it should just be how we live, in fact, it’s exactly what we used to do only a few generations ago.

We need farm-to-table, in the sense that we need more direct relationships between consumers, chefs and producers, ensuring that we put value on independent production and ensure that we support a sustainable food system. But what we don’t need is farm-t0-table in the trendy sense, as a concept that larger, industrial scale stores and restaurant chains can appropriate and make their own, entirely diluting the message in the process.

When you buy your vegetables from a farmer, or take part in a CSA, take that produce home and make a meal, you too are technically doing a farm-to-table meal. But you don’t need to call it that. It’s simply eating and preparing real food.

Some of the best “farm-to-table” restaurants that I have ever been to are the ones that haven’t flaunted it. They just sourced good ingredients and cooked it well, because that was the right thing to do. The same goes for eating at home. Real ingredients, real food. No processed microwavable dinners, no fast food. Because as many marketing dollars as the fast food chain puts into telling you that your French fry was made from a locally sourced potato, we do not need to be going in the direction of more French fries.

We need to be going in the direction of a more sustainable, and just food system. One that makes real food accessible to everyone, not just the 1 percent.

Related on EcoSalon

How Much Power do We Have to Change the Food World? Foodie Underground

Real Food Shouldn’t Be Fashionable: Foodie Underground

10 Boring Foods That Should Be Trendy: Foodie Underground

Image: Andrew Malone

The post Do We Need Farm-to-Table? Foodie Underground appeared first on EcoSalon.

ColumnWhy eating locally isn’t just smart. It’s the socially just thing to do.

We all know the benefits of locavorism: eat food that comes from close to where you live and you not only support the local economy, but you have better access to the people that produce your food.

But unfortunately, the infrastructure of growing local food hasn’t necessarily caught up with the increase in demand and awareness, and while the popularity of farmers markets may be on the rise, that doesn’t mean that the lives of farmers are getting any easier.

An NPR story last week highlighted the difficulties that some of these small-scale, independent farmers face. Farming in Illinois, Amy Cloud and her husband produce all those things we crave to put in our weekend farmers market basket: kale, broccoli, onions, Swiss chard. But while we’re busy sauteing a luxurious assortment of greens for dinner and pondering what organic, artisan cheese to pair with it, the Clouds are working hard to simple scrape by, living off a combined annual income of $25,000 – $30,000.

As Cloud told NPR, “Both my husband and I live off of an income that any normal person would consider to be just enough for one person, certainly not for a whole couple. We don’t have health insurance.”

Why does this discrepancy still exist and how do we fix it?

That is a complicated question with a multifaceted answer, but let’s start with this simple fact: we live in a globalized system where processed food and profit margins reign, no matter the cost to the environment, the local economy or an individual’s health. This is a world of Monsantos, and no matter where you turn, it’s hard – even impossible – to live a lifestyle where you are 100 percent removed from the powers of big agribusiness.

No matter how conscious we are, we consume more and more processed foods and chemicals, from high fructose corn syrup to residual pesticides. On the health side, food companies are fully aware of the effects that this has, but again, profits win out over public health. As former Executive Vice President at Kraft Foods stated in a New York Times Op-ed: “… executives who run these companies like to say they don’t create demand, they try only to satisfy it. “We’re just giving people what they want. We’re not putting a gun to their heads,” the refrain goes.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Over the years, relentless efforts were made to increase the number of “eating occasions” people indulged in and the amount of food they consumed at each.

To think that we have a certain level of choice when we head to the grocery store is to live in a dream world; we are inundated with products that are meant to create an addiction, and many of those products require cheaply produced ingredients like corn. Corporate agribusiness has a tight grip on the food system, and in it, there’s certainly no room for the independent farmer.

To exist in a world where independent farming can succeed, we have to therefore think about an entire restructuring of the system, from individual consumer habits, to how grocery stores operate to the transportation of goods, and that’s why it’s going to take more than just expanding farmers markets across the country. The solution is a combination of changing personal habits and change that comes from the top down. We need a system that better supports independent agriculture; one that aims to protect food culture instead of slowly losing it.

We can all vote with our forks, but to do so, we have to really do it, not just some of the time. “Buy local” shouldn’t just be a mantra for your apples and kale, it should be a mantra for everything. Until we as consumers start really demanding locally produced goods from independent sources, we won’t get the amount of government support that we need to ensure that these products continue to exist on the shelves, and we will continue to go down a path where we have less and less say over what we are eating.

There are many things that are part of our everyday consumption habits that are difficult to change. (If you find a local farmer in North America growing coffee beans, please tell me about it.) But there’s a lot that we can change, and if we are in an economic position to shop locally, we have the obligation to do so. Not just for our own health, but for the health of our local economies and our neighbors.

If we want to keep eating freshly grown kale, we better do something to ensure that the farmers down the road can continue to grow it, and that starts with buying from them every single time. Not just once a week, but changing our shopping habits so that we really are consuming locally every chance that we get. Only when we start showing that we are serious about our demands will industry follow suit. Support local not because it’s a trend, but because it’s the socially just thing to do.

This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’ weekly column at EcoSalon: Foodie Underground, an exploration of what’s new and different in the underground movement, and how we make the topic of good food more accessible to everyone. More musings on the topic can be found at www.foodieunderground.com.

Image: ianmalcm

The post Foodie Underground: Food, Farmers and Choice appeared first on EcoSalon.

Can digital platforms open up the booming farmers market category for easier access to local foods and goods?

Using online services to live a more local lifestyle is a concept that seems like a paradox – it’s the worldwide web after all – but in the food realm, the digital world is helping to bring more local producers and consumers together.

Much like some grocery stores have implemented online shopping capabilities for their customers, farmers markets are the next frontier. In fact, when it comes to supporting a more local economy, the digital space can be an excellent platform for facilitating exchanges between producers and customers.

Many farmers markets are implementing online platforms which allow their customers to shop from home; this is an ideal set up for smaller scale co-ops that allow members to peruse the selection online, make an order and then collect it at the designated pick up. Even in my small hometown in Western Washington my parents shop local goods online thanks to the platform that their co-op Fresh Food Revolution uses, Local Food Marketplace, which hosts online farmers markets, CSAs, wholesalers, and buying clubs across the US. Local farmers use it to update what they have available, co-op members make their orders, and pick up day is Wednesday afternoon, and you better be sure to put it on your calendar.

It goes without saying that we live busy lives, and the ability to have a bit more flexibility when it comes to grocery shopping is a good thing. Farmigo is tapping into that exact idea. One of the key missions of the online platform is to “bring better quality food to everyone across the nation by giving them access to local, sustainable food directly from farmer.” Working with over 300 farms in 25 states, Farmigo accomplishes this by providing an online marketplace where farmers can better manage their CSA programs, and in turn have allowed farmers to directly interact with large companies like Google and Twitter.

Farmigo also recently launched its community-based initiative, tapping into the power of individuals who want to bring more local food to their own communities. The website allows for coordinating an online farmers market specifically for the community in question, and then a community center becomes the delivery site for local farms to deliver food that has traveled fewer than 100 miles. Shoppers order online and pick up their food within 48 hours of its harvest. Currently Farmigo has community initiatives going in California and New York.

Based in the Bay Area in California, GoodEggs is born out of a similar concept: create a hub to bring people and food closer together. Customers shop on the online marketplace, which features not only local produce, but harder to find products like locally baked gluten free muffins, granola and homemade soups. Think of it as the best of an underground market except with the ease of clicking and then picking up your entire purchase at one pick up location. What may have once been a hole-in-the-wall operation that people would only know about via word of mouth, these are the kind of digital tools that help farmers and food makers sell directly, in turn reaching a wider market.

But these digital applications aren’t just serving the individual consumer. If you want to change the food industry you have to attack it from all levels. FoodHub is doing just that by connecting professional food buyers, wholesale producers, distributors and industry suppliers in one community. Which means when the restaurateur wants a locally grown bunch of kale for the month’s salad special, he or she has a website that will tell them exactly where to get it.

Selling in an online space is also good for the farmers, not only because it expands their market, but because it lets them know how much they are going to sell, eliminating waste. Pitch a tent at farmers market over the weekend and you have to do some serious calculating for how many heads of cabbage and rutabagas to bring. An online system streamlines that process, which means farmers know exactly how much they are selling and where it’s going.

All these tools do however beg the question: while online platforms give us better access, are they discouraging us from engaging. The “Bowling Alone” social phenomenon is much discussed in political science circles, the idea that with the rise of internet and technology we spend more time alone than in community settings and in turn political involvement. The point of a farmers market after all isn’t just to get access to local food, it’s to engage in a discussion, and in a world where we already separate ourselves from society because of online channels, it’s important to keep in mind that even if we can make our purchases online, it shouldn’t stop us from interacting with the people that are producing what we’re buying. Conversation is just as much part of buying local as the actual products are – that’s something you simply don’t get when you shop at big box stores.

Ultimately, we can hope that platforms like these will not only provide greater access to good and local food, but also inspire us to engage more, talking about what we eat with those around us and seeking out new producers within our communities, all of which is part of the process of creating a more sustainable food system.

Images: Anna Brones

The post Going Local Online: The Rise of the Online Farmers Market appeared first on EcoSalon.

A creative way to date. 

Wish you had time to date but are always too busy in the garden? Tired of people looking at you funny when you bring up organic farming methods over drinks? Can’t seem to find anyone to share your undying passion for weeding?

You’re not alone. Now, thanks to a very creative farm in Idaho, farm-loving singles can meet up for some good old-fashioned speed — we mean, weeddating. The concept is like speed dating, only instead of playing musical chairs in a bar, romance-seeking singles are picking weeds side-by-side in hopes of hitting it off with their fellow farmhands.

The matchmaking farm in Boise, called Earthly Delights Farm, hosts its “weed dating” event once a year in hopes of bringing at least a few garden-loving folks together — and as a bonus, they get a freshly weeded farm. On their Facebook page, the farm requested that participants BYOT (bring your own tool!) for weeding during this year’s courtshipping event at the end of June.

It’s not a bad idea, really, meeting your potential future Mrs./Mr. while reaching for a weed in between two rows of almost-ripe zucchini. You both reach for the same dandelion, hands touch, flushed smiles. . . and a budding romance begins among freshly blossoming zucchini flowers. . . . Sure beats the awkward “we met on an online dating site” story.

READ MORE: 

Green Date Ideas

Green Online Dating Sites 

Veggie Dating Site filled with Carnivores

Allison Montroy is an editorial intern for Sierra and a journalism student at California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo.

Image: USDAgov

The post Weed Dating: Helping Farmers Find Love appeared first on EcoSalon.

Understanding the organic behind the wool.

Technically wool is organic, but the processes involved in turning the fiber into soft sweaters, mittens and heavy winter coats renders it a far cry from the original plush coats of fluffy sheep. Unfortunately, a large percentage of wool fiber comes from farms where pesticides, insecticides and chemical inputs have become the norm that are depended on.

Conventional wool farming also often involves a toxic and cruel procedure called “dipping,” in which sheep are submerged in pools of chemical parasiticides. Not only does dipping have severely negative effects on the health of the sheep, but studies have found that these parasiticides can cause changes in human nervous systems. Disposal of the dipping liquids can also contaminate ground water, looping right back into the entire process.

H Fredriksson

Wool production is classified as livestock production, and organic wool farming requires strict adherence to a set of rules and standards. This means farmers cannot use any chemical inputs on their fields or their feed crops and must steer clear of chemical based insecticides and pesticides. The fiber bearing animals can only be fed 100% organic grains, graze on organic pastures, cannot be vaccinated with anything synthetic, and should be well-managed and cared for.

Wool farmers must therefore control parasites without chemicals, keep pastures clean and provide good nutrition for their livestock in order to keep them as happy and healthy as possible. Sustainability is also practiced through organic wool farming, as stocking ratios are set so that the land can regenerate itself and sustain its environment and the animals grazing on it. Mills that process the wool must also be free of synthetic chemicals and demonstrate water consciousness, methods that are not deemed viable in the world of fast fashion.

However, thanks to the efforts of farmers, textile producers and designers that understand the importance of sustainable livestock management and production, organic wool can make its way into our closets. Wool is an extremely versatile option for apparel, since its natural cell structure allows it breathable qualities that can be applied for warming or cooling effects, especially when blended with other fibers.

Jasco is a fabric producer that has noticed this and has been providing fashion designers with eco fabrics made in the USA since 2005. One of their most popular products is their range of organic wool, which is sourced by the likes of Carrie Parry, Helena Fredriksson, Rolando Santana, Nicole Bridger and Araks. New York City based designer Eviana Hartman of Bodkin has also favored organic wool in her contemporary designs, featuring it in her fall collection for German label Hessnatur.

Bodkin

The Fibershed Project in Northern California fully integrates the concepts of organic livestock management and fiber production. Three of the farmers in Fibershed produce wool through sustainable methods and a high level of animal care. Farmers Jean Muir and Sally Fox raise Merino sheep that produce extremely beautiful, fine gauge wool in a range of natural colors, while Julie Rosenfeld keeps a very healthy flock of alpaca and Alisson Arnold obtains fluffy fleece from her angora rabbits.

Their wool can be purchased either as raw fiber, yarn or finished garments online at the Fibershed Marketplace. These farmers demonstrate the versatility in wool types that even one breed of sheep can produce, as everything from the rainfall to the grass quality and food type in a certain area will affect the type of wool that the animals offer.

Imperial Knits in northeastern Oregon produces wool by considering the impact of each part of their production process. Although not certified organic, their methods are often more sustainable and considerate of the land than what certification guidelines require. They have integrated a no plow method that has improved soil tilth and radically reduced their use of fossil fuels.

Imperial Knits transports their wool to a family-owned mill in Alberta that uses no sulfuric acid, chemicals or extreme heating in processing the wool, nonetheless producing beautiful, fine quality wool. Imperial Knits yarn can be purchased online and in yarn shops nationwide alongside creative director Anna Cohen’s gorgeous patterns. Make sure to check out her next runway show at Portland Fashion Week in October.

The post Pulling the Wool Off Our Eyes appeared first on EcoSalon.

Because life is sexier with fresh, organic produce.

1. Mmm, these honey samples are so mouthwatering.
2. I forgot my reusable bag, can I borrow one of yours?
3. Have you ever frolicked in the fields of [name of your favorite farm]?
4. What do you do in your off season?
5. I’d love to do a vegetable wash for you.
6. Are you still looking for seasonal labor?
7. Can I offer you a slice of my pie?
8. Can I help you pitch your stand?
9. It sure is hot under this tent.
10. These plums are so soft.
11. What’s your favorite way to eat rhubarb? [Wait for answer] I’d love to make it for you.
12. So, how long have you been pickling these cucumbers?
13. This bushel is so dry, let’s change that.
14. I know you make artisan cheese, but what else can you do with your hands?
15. How long does it take for your bread to rise?
16. If you were a bouquet of fresh cut flowers, I would take you home.
17. Let’s get dirty.
18. Isn’t it tuber time?
19. These bags of organic spinach would make some great pillows don’t you think?
20. Want to show me how to make steamy greens?
21. It’s funny how slippery this jam is!
22. Want to melt my beeswax candles tonight?
23. I hear lavender makes underwear drawers smell nice, does it?
24. I’ve always wanted to be a farmer’s wife.
25. That hand spun sweater looks big enough for two to get cozy in.
26. These Heirloom tomatoes are so firm and juicy.
27. I like baby carrots because they totally fit in your mouth.
28. Want to come over later and help me shuck?
29. I hear spices like cayenne can act as an aphrodisiac? Do you know?
30. You sure have big baguettes!
31. These two quail eggs just fit in my hand perfectly.
32. Do you need helping seeding your flower garden for next season?
33. How early do you rise?
34. I like my men like my homemade bread, dense.
35. I see you’re pretty skilled at churning your butter.
36. This beer has a very sensual taste. What were you thinking of when you brewed it?
37. Can I be your next varietal?
38. You’re so cute I’d add you to my woven basket.
39. How do you like your organic, free range eggs?
40. Those Carhartt overalls would look even better on my floor.
41. Want to cross pollinate?
42. Your hands seem to be full. I have big panniers you can borrow to bike all that produce home.
43. Do you prefer organic or local? Because I’m both.
44. I’d love a taste of that [insert name of product] before I commit to buying.
45. What a huge eggplant.
46. Can I wear your plaid flannel when I make you breakfast tomorrow morning?
47. Are you as spicy as your artisan hot sauce?
48. What else can you pickle?
49. Oh, you’re out of eggs? That’s ok, you can have mine.
50. I’d like to see your full farmer’s tan.

ALSO CHECK OUT:

Pick Up Lines for Jetsetters

Pick Up Lines for the Backyard Homesteader

Pick Up Lines for Foodies

Image: jazzylolo 

The post 50 Pick Up Lines for Farmers Market appeared first on EcoSalon.

The future of the quintessential French farmers market is facing big challenges.

If you followed shoppers at Joël Thiébault’s stand at the Marché President Wilson home, you could find yourself in any number of places; a neighboring posh apartment in the swanky 16th arrondissement, a hidden kitchen in the trendy Northern Marais neighborhood, or even an afternoon picnic aside the canal St. Martin. No matter where you ended up, you would be sure to eat well because Joël Thiébault sells some of the best produce you can find in a city of over 80 open-air markets.

Thiébault’s heirloom veggie varieties have rocketed him to super-stardom among French foodies who flock to his stand at the market every week. But Thiébault’s resuscitation of forgotten vegetables is not the only thing that makes him extraordinary at this Parisian market. An independent producer, Thiébault is a part of a shrinking community of farmers who bring their  locally grown produce to market.

Paris’ open-air markets, which closely resemble what which we call farmers markets in the states, have increasingly become centers where wholesale food is resold to shoppers. Middle men have edged out independent producers and local produce has been replaced by ersatz apples and oranges. The authenticity of the “farmers” market in France – a country that cherishes both its culinary tradition and artisan culture – is increasingly compromised by industrial agriculture and its unfortunate byproducts.

“There are less and less small producers,” Earl Martinet told me when I visited his stand at the Marché Cours de Vincennes. For Martinet, the extinction of local growers is due to multiple factors. For one, the price of land is constantly rising and for many farmers it seems more advantageous to sell their terrain to developers rather than continue to cultivate it. This decision is likely influenced by another threat to independent farms – the fact that the younger generation is less and less interested in taking over the family farm. Many of the independent farmers at these markets represent the last generation to continue in the family’s farming tradition. Once these vendors hang up their hoe for good, it is unlikely that their stand will be replaced by another representative of local agriculture.

Producers such as Martinet come to the market hoping to reach – and expand – an audience of Parisian locavores and ethical eaters, but even this investment of time is a threat to their business. The teams working the farms at home are often small and suffer from the absence of their colleagues who spend anywhere from one to four times a week at various markets around the city.

“It makes my days very long,” Marc Mascetti explained to me, while looking over his crates of carrots, potatoes, and salad varieties, “I have to go home after this and make up for the work that I missed while I was here.”

Mascetti, whose farm is located 34 km from Paris, explained that the most pervasive menace to local farmers is the fact that, “now the vegetables come from Spain, Italy, Belgium, Holland – even Argentina!” At his market, Marché Place Monge, he is the only independent, local farmer to have a stand, tout seul in a sea of industrial food resell outlets.

But where besides abroad do these squeaky-clean zucchinis and individually wrapped watermelons come from? The source is often Rungis, a huge food and flower market located 7 km south of Paris. Wholesale goods at this large-scale market offer an easier option for vendors who want to pull an easy profit from the open-air market scene.

Even many of the organic food vendors avail themselves of the Rungis option, stocking up on organically grown foods from around Europe and cashing in on the growing trend of favoring bio (organic) foods in France. The city’s two all-organic markets, the Marché Raspail and the Marché Batignolles are both full of such stands, where non-seasonal organic produce abounds. Even here, local farmers are not in the majority.

The victims of this mark-it-up-and-sell-it mentality aren’t only the independent producers, but the shoppers, as well. Many don’t realize that what they think is farm-fresh produce at the market may very well have been shipped in from Spain a week ago. While the concept of the open-air market in France has stayed the same, the content has drastically changed, and the evolution may have been slow enough that many market-goers haven’t noticed that the farmer has been taken out of the market.

If you visit an open-air market on a trip to Paris, here are some things to look out for to be sure that you are supporting local growers:

• Key words. Look for words such as maraîcher, producteur, ferme, and Ile-de-France, which signify that the produce was grown by a producer on a farm in the vicinity of Paris. Local vendors will also usually put their name and location of the farm, so look out for that, as well.
• Dirty, seasonal produce. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it is easy to get seduced by all the lovely looking vegetables on display at the market. But if you want the real deal, be ready to dust some dirt off your carrot before biting into it. Take a tour around the market to see what’s out there and try to determine what seems to be in season, and what seems to be airbrushed and a little too perfect.
• Chatty Vendors. French markets are not just centers of commerce, but also lively social scenes. Local vendors especially like to take advantage of the opportunity to have an exchange with their customers while they are in town. Look for animated discussions over white asparagus and new potatoes – that’s where you want to be.

The post The Decline of the French Farmers Market appeared first on EcoSalon.

Because life is sexier when you grow things yourself.

Looking for that perfect mate to beekeep and raise chickens with? Kick things off with one of these pick up lines and you might be co-homesteading before you know it.

1. Your eggs are so big.
2. So what CAN you feed your chickens and better yet, what can you hand feed me?
3. Those wood shavings look so soft and comfortable, like a bed.
4. Are you as loud as your chickens?
5. Speaking of raised beds…
6. Your broccoli heads are so big!
7. So roosters are also called cocks? That’s funny.
8. I’ve never seen a Standard so big. Impressive.
9. That honey is thick and runny on your fingers. Mmmmm…
10. These mason jars fit perfectly in my hand. I bet you would too.
11. This compost soil is so dark and rich… like I like my men.
12. I’d like to raise your barn.
13. Can I interest you in some of my compost?
14. No one installs a fence post quite like you.
15. You smell as good as a bundle of lavender tied with twine.
16. I love making pickles, do you?
17. I bet we would brew good beer together.
18. Do you prefer Merlot or Cabernet? Because I think we should start making our own wine.
19. Is this farm table sturdy enough for me to throw you down on?
20. If you were a pea, I would gladly shell you on the back porch.
21. Do these plums feel ripe to you?
22. Can I strum my banjo and sing you to sleep?
23. Want to help me germinate my seeds?
24. That white linen summer dress you sewed yourself would look great on my floor.
25. If you were a berry, I would bottle you up as jam and enjoy you all winter long.
26. Want to make pies together?
27. My cast-iron skillet could really use some love. Can you help?
28. I’d like to make you my backyard bounty.
29. Your heirloom tomatoes are the juiciest I have ever tasted.
30. What’s your ideal harvest season?
31. You would be the perfect fruit of my labor.
32. I can only imagine what’s underneath that bee suit.
33. You just made me as red as a beet!
34. Why drive when you could ride on my handlebars to the farmer’s market?
35. What do you say to a little foraging in the woods?
36. I’d love to preserve this moment.
37. I’ll trade you a juicy cantaloupe for some of your cucumbers.
38. I want to LEED certify you!
39. I wish I could harvest you at peak season.
40. Your organic garden or mine?
41. You don’t look so baaaad standing there with all those goats.
42. When I’m canning with you, this urban blight just fades away.
43. I know this might sound cheesy, but I love everything artisan about you.
44. You’re like a sweet honeybee stinging my heart.
45. Our love could be like heirloom vegetable strong.
46. What do you say we get out of here and free range somewhere green?
47. You sure do know how to handle your chicken coop wire.
48. How about I wear these Carhartts and we plant seeds together?
49. Would you like to be served warm home baked bread with hand churned butter in the morning?
50. How big does your squash grow?

ALSO CHECK OUT:

Pick Up Lines for Jetsetters

Pick Up Lines for Minimalists

Pick Up Lines for Foodies

Image: Zimbio 

The post Pick Up Lines for the Backyard Homesteader appeared first on EcoSalon.

Column“Local” is the new “global” and fancy is put on the back burner for simpler, more laid back food.

It’s time to rejoice foodie undergroundists: fancy fusion with unintelligible names that make you feel self-conscious about your culinary prowess are out and simple, fun foods are back in.

You may have noticed the rise of hole-in-the-wall joints in your town, and the increasing use of farmers market produce in local menus, both out at restaurants and at home dinner parties, but our transition from haute cuisine to something a little more democratized is now official. According to the recent San Pellegrino Top 50 Restaurant Awards, local is the new global and these days we’re much more apt to opt for fun and informal food than anything with à la in the title.

Some of that success might be equated to the down economy, but fortunately it looks like the trend is sticking no matter what the size of people’s pocket books.

But the expansion of this more relaxed gastro scene does not seem to have slowed down as the economy has bounced back; quite the reverse in fact. Casual, fun dining, with a genuine focus on good and exciting food, is simply too successful.

If the study holds true, this means serious changes to the dining industry. Fancy, Michelin 5 star will always stick around, but an increased obsession with local and low-key could mean great things for budding culinary crafts-men and women. To get the opinion of the new generation of chefs, The Wall Street Journal asked acclaimed 25-year-old chef Stevie Parle of Dock Kitchen in London what he thought.

“People no longer enjoy themselves very much in posh restaurants, where it feels like you are eating with your grandfather. One good trend is that people no longer associate an expensive meal with a posh one. People can come to my restaurant and spend £80 a head on good wine and the like but they don’t expect it to look super fancy or all the dishes being miniature and perfectly laid out on the plate.”

Of course 20-somethings aren’t dictating the future of cuisine, but the growth in food interest from the younger generation is certainly having an impact. This crowd, not necessarily raised in the pantries of fine dining establishments, has a genuine love for good food, and semi-broke 20-somethings are just the type to come up with the innovation and ingenuity that the food world is currently craving.

There are plenty of 20-something foodie blogs out there, proving that it is possible to enjoy, and create good food, without a traditional training. Ultimately, they represent the growing group of “real people that love real food.”

And that’s just what might change the food industry.

It’s empowering to know that food change could come from the ground up. No longer dictated by big restaurants, it’s the smaller, more local operations that are making a difference and the rest of the world is taking notice.

Trading haute cuisine for fun cuisine doesn’t have to mean that the quality will change. Fun food isn’t all hot dogs and cupcakes, it’s simply more about dishes that don’t take themselves to seriously. Food for the sake of food, where a salad is a salad – preferably grown on the restaurant roof top – and ordering a burrito can be done with 0% guilt because the taco truck uses all organic, locally sourced ingredients.

Look out for food that continues to push the envelope, and if you think being a food lover is equated with pretentiousness, think again, because as it turns out, the most popular stuff coming out of the food world might just be coming out of your own backyard.

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s weekly column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground, discovering what’s new and different in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to the culinary avant garde.

Images: Wootang01, Ed Yourdon, Anna Brones

The post Foodie Underground: Haute is Out, Fun is In appeared first on EcoSalon.

ColumnCelebrate all things local with NYC’s Eat Drink Local Week.

Who says you need a bucolic setting to eat locally? Urban metropolises are showing that they too can provide sustenance for their inhabitants in new and creative ways, and this week New York City takes the crown.

Eat Drink Local Week (EDL) kicked off in New York City over the weekend, a collaboration between the Edible magazines of New York State and partners from the entire food chain. The idea is to get people all over the city excited about local food and during the 7-day festivities challenge them to take part in the “lip-smacking locavore lineup.”

Some of our favorite from the list of 20 challenges:

-Drink like a local! Swig libations from New York breweries and wineries. Bonus: make a farmy cocktail starring local herbs or produce.

-Cook your cast-offs! Think corn cob stock, sauteed beet tops, and pickled watermelon rinds.

-Shuck your own clams, mussels, scallops or oysters.

-Drink only local water—it’s called “tap,“ people.

EDL has also identified the seven ingredients of the week, and if you can manage to pull all of these into one recipe we’ll be highly impressed:

1. Strawberries
2. Peas
3. Chives and Green Garlic
4. Rhubarb
5. Lamb
6. Oysters
7. Yogurt

This list means that there are a whole lot of chic restaurants around town serving up prix fixe menus that put those ingredients to creative use, like Marinated Mackerel with Pickled Rhubarb, Cucumber, Fava Beans, and Watercress at Aquavit and Peas, Bacon, Sweet shrimp Risotto with Liberty Garden Arugula at Print.

And beyond just eating, there are plenty of chances to learn about food and drink, as well as interact with the people that make it.

• Bring Something Win Something: Take part in Union Square Greenmarket’s interactive campaign that encourages foraging, happening all week long.
• Watch Urban Roots: Check out the free screening of this film about city farming in Detroit, July 27th, 6:30 p.m.
• Meet Your Maker: Throw down with the good brewers at Brooklyn Brewery as well as other local food businesses, June 29th, 6-9 p.m.

EDL runs through Thursday, June 30, 2011. If you don’t live in New York City, these events make you wish you had a round-trip ticket there doesn’t it?

Want to check out some of our locavore faves in NYC? Check out our Locavore Guide to Manhattan on Foodspotting.

Editor’s note: This is the latest installment of Anna Brones’s weekly column at EcoSalon, Foodie Underground, discovering what’s new and different in the underground food movement, from supper clubs to mini markets to the culinary avant garde.

Image: Edible Manhattan

The post Foodie Underground: Eat Drink Local Week in NYC appeared first on EcoSalon.