Happy Monday everyone, I hope that all is fine and dandy.
So, I'm not sure if many of you noticed last week, but a bill passed congress that was a near overhaul of child nutrition as we currently know it. Personally, I am very pleased to see this as I feel that it has been long overdue. Here is a link to the New York Times article on the passage of the bill if you would like to read it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/03/us/politics/03child.html
The bill, which was largely a Democratic effort, has essentially set required nutritional guidelines for school lunches while providing more funding in this area. This includes an increased focus on the prominence of fruits and vegetables in school lunches, aspects of the meals that have been seriously lacking. Also, outside vendors will be forced to comply with nutritional standards, further shielding our children from the draw of flashy advertisements and empty calories. Another wonderful aspect to this bill is increased access for children to free/reduced lunches. Finally, more money, which is imperative because we all know that nothing in politics gets accomplished without it.
While I know there are some who will see this as another piece of misguided legislation or a waste of government money, and there are those who are perplexed at the contradiction of cutting funding for SNAP to pay for school lunches, this bill is a good thing, despite all of its quirks and compromises. Child nutrition, especially in low budget public schools, has been in dire straits for decades. With lobbyists for agribusiness and the fast food industry molding policies in Washington that allow them access into the schools, it's no wonder that child obesity, and hunger, are prominent social issues in this country today. At the same time, and for the same reason, it is no wonder that these are two of the most overlooked issues in our country as well. Opponents of this legislation may see this as an encroachment on our children's freedom of choice, but the reality is that supermarkets and the food industry destroyed that freedom years ago. And with the absence of health food options in low income communities(which is another often overlooked issue), these children are fighting a losing battle for their health from birth. School is a place of learning, holistic learning, and this should include a teaching of food and the role it plays in a healthy lifestyle. Without these lessons learned, children are doomed to a lifestyle of malnutrition, obesity, and an overall lack of health while furthering the disconnect between consumers and their food, it's nutritional value, its effects, and its origins. You truly are what you eat. So, I commend the Senate, the House, and Michelle Obama, who championed this issue, for their efforts in improving child nutrition before it deteriorated even further at the expense of this and future generations.
Healthy Eating Everyone,
Jordan
Monday, December 6, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Go Vegan Or Die
Good morning my friends! Welcome to my first December blog...
"Go Vegan Or Die!" These words are scraped into the sidewalk at the corner of Gilman & San Pablo in Berkeley, CA. Seriously. Right in front of the Chinese place. Go check it out if you want. While I applaud the author's enthusiasm, it could be a bit frightening to those who are still in the dark on this issue. So, as your culinary tour guide, I figured that I may attempt to shed a little light on the subject.
Firstly, who are vegans? Well, vegans aren't fanatics in the wilderness sharing a lingering embrace with an oak tree. Vegans are much like you and I. They are individuals with a strong system of beliefs that have made life choices based on those beliefs. So what is veganism? Veganism is a sustainable lifestyle that is based on getting all that we, as people, need from the earth through plants and such. It's largely characterized by the absence of using animals or animal byproducts as a means for food, clothing, cosmetics, etc.
So then why all the animosity toward vegans? Most people view vegans as left-wing liberal, environmentalist, tree hugging fanatics on the fringe of society and, while this may be true of some, most aren't. In fact, they're regular people just like us who have decided not to consume animal products. And I support that notion, though I have tried and have miserably failed at a vegan lifestyle. However, at the root of most of the public distaste for veganism lies two things: ignorance and unease. This post should help with the misunderstanding of it, but the reason we are uncomfortable around vegans speaks to something deeper. It is not the intent of these individuals to make us feel guilty about what and how much we consume. Instead they choose this lifestyle out of a concerted effort to conserve and to save. Or because their favorite celebrity is vegan, but I digress. Veganism is fundamentally about sustainability, which is an end that we should all strive toward in any way that we can. Whether that be through veganism or through consuming only sustainably raised products, we should take steps toward being more concious of our consumption. And I mean a holistic awareness. Not just how it effects the earth but how we effect one another through what we consume. Veganism isn't for everyone, but sustainability is. And if we can make the effort to understand one another, then we could learn how to live and eat more responsibly.
Eating responsibly one day at a time,
Jordan
"Go Vegan Or Die!" These words are scraped into the sidewalk at the corner of Gilman & San Pablo in Berkeley, CA. Seriously. Right in front of the Chinese place. Go check it out if you want. While I applaud the author's enthusiasm, it could be a bit frightening to those who are still in the dark on this issue. So, as your culinary tour guide, I figured that I may attempt to shed a little light on the subject.
Firstly, who are vegans? Well, vegans aren't fanatics in the wilderness sharing a lingering embrace with an oak tree. Vegans are much like you and I. They are individuals with a strong system of beliefs that have made life choices based on those beliefs. So what is veganism? Veganism is a sustainable lifestyle that is based on getting all that we, as people, need from the earth through plants and such. It's largely characterized by the absence of using animals or animal byproducts as a means for food, clothing, cosmetics, etc.
So then why all the animosity toward vegans? Most people view vegans as left-wing liberal, environmentalist, tree hugging fanatics on the fringe of society and, while this may be true of some, most aren't. In fact, they're regular people just like us who have decided not to consume animal products. And I support that notion, though I have tried and have miserably failed at a vegan lifestyle. However, at the root of most of the public distaste for veganism lies two things: ignorance and unease. This post should help with the misunderstanding of it, but the reason we are uncomfortable around vegans speaks to something deeper. It is not the intent of these individuals to make us feel guilty about what and how much we consume. Instead they choose this lifestyle out of a concerted effort to conserve and to save. Or because their favorite celebrity is vegan, but I digress. Veganism is fundamentally about sustainability, which is an end that we should all strive toward in any way that we can. Whether that be through veganism or through consuming only sustainably raised products, we should take steps toward being more concious of our consumption. And I mean a holistic awareness. Not just how it effects the earth but how we effect one another through what we consume. Veganism isn't for everyone, but sustainability is. And if we can make the effort to understand one another, then we could learn how to live and eat more responsibly.
Eating responsibly one day at a time,
Jordan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)