From the category archives:

Grassroots

Farms, local food and thoughtful commerce

Pesticide, organic and other dirty words

May 20, 2010

“Organic” was an early word in my now 6-year-old’s vocabulary. (She pronounced it “ga-nan-ic.” Tell me that’s not adorable.) It’s also one of the first words she learned to spell, which is why we have progressively more readable versions written on random bits of paper and newsprint. So when we go grocery shopping, Tess takes pride in pointing [...]

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The art of local food: kindergartners, Kahlo and kale

April 15, 2010

It’s April. Not exactly high time for local foods in western New York. But there we were with my daughter’s kindergarten class at the public market, counting dollars (five each) and loading up on produce for an art project later that afternoon. I’d stumbled across a contest called Be Aware of New York Agriculture, which asks kids [...]

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Color me annoyed

April 9, 2010

I’m working with my daughter’s school on a project about local food, so Wednesday I stopped in for a little show-and-tell about the sort of food that grows in New York vs. elsewhere. (Apples and grapes, natch. Pineapples and mangoes, nada.) I’ll admit I had visions of doing my own Jamie Oliver-style Q&A, complete with a dramatic reveal and confused kids. But thankfully my 5- [...]

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“You can’t tell that to a kid”

March 29, 2010

Can kids handle the truth about industrial meat? We have a great living-history museum nearby. One of those places with relocated old buildings and re-enactors who make you feel like you’ve slipped back to the 19th century. During a visit last year, I was in the kitchen of one of the homes churning butter with [...]

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Maple syrup: natural and sweet. Just like our kids.

March 25, 2010

I’ll say up front that I don’t like fake maple syrup. And not only because it doesn’t contain any maple. (Most brands are a mix of high-fructose corn syrup, preservatives and artificial flavors.) It’s because maple syrup is perfect just the way it is. Naturally sweet, it also contains trace vitamins and minerals. A study released this week even [...]

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Yes, we are going to Ben & Jerry’s today

March 23, 2010

Today is that happy day known as Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day. And yes, we will be waiting in line with the rest of the sweet-and-freebie-loving masses. Here’s why: 1. Ben & Jerry’s is a socially conscious and sustainable company that buys milk and cream from a cooperative of farmers who’ve pledged to not use artificial growth [...]

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Blue no more. I’m blogging it.

March 15, 2010

A year ago I e-mailed friends with the idea for this blog. I was already bouncing around names, and I wanted input. But none of the names clicked. Then life got busy and paying work took priority. Still, the blog was always there, nagging at me, tempting me, taking shape in my head if not [...]

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