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Mushrooms save the day (with Paul Stamets) (audio)
Crop to Cuisine via Global Public Media
On this episode of Crop To Cuisine we delve into the life and times of the Mushroom. We discuss the importance of this organism to the health of the planet with renowned Mycologist Paul Stamets. Stamets is one the leading scientists in the country, researching the medicinal, environmental, and culinary applications and significance of fungi.
We are also joined by Chef Randall Mack of Bookcliff Winery in Boulder, Colorado. Chef Mack has been working with the mushroom for years, and shares some tips when selecting mushrooms for a dish. He also provides a great recipe for Mushroom Mac N’ Cheese. And last but not least, Jim Hammond makes an appearance on the show. Jim started in the mushroom farming business over 25 years ago, and runs Hazel Dell Mushrooms in Fort Collins. He shares some words of wisdom as a farmer of this delectable member of the kingdoms of life.
To get more information on the pueblo chile, or how to support your local food system, go to www.croptocuisine.org. I’d like to know how you experience your food.
(1 December 2008)
Nearly a billion people worldwide are starving, UN agency warns
Julian Borger and Juliette Jowitt, The Guardian
Almost a billion people go hungry each day after food price rises pushed 40 million more people around the world into the ranks of the undernourished, the UN food agency reported yesterday…
According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), food prices have more than halved from their historic peaks a few months ago, but the cost of basic staples measured by an FAO index is still high: 28% higher on average than two years ago.
(10 December 2008)
Supermarkets? No, thanks
Tom Moggach, The Guardian
It’s a bizarre sight: rows of polished church pews, each dotted with neat piles of fruit or veg. Shoppers scoop heaps into baskets, trolleys, or crumpled plastic bags saved from previous trips to Tesco.
This is a weekly food shop, cooperative style – a model of food distribution where neighbours work together to take control of their local supply chain. The system is simple: find a supplier, buy in bulk and collectively cover the costs. Smaller co-ops will only buy what participants have ordered, whereas larger organisations operate as markets or even set up their own shops. Some of these “community” co-ops invite customers to become members. You pay a nominal fee to be able to shop from it, or have a say in how it is run. Others are more informal and open to all. There are also “workers'” co-ops, which are often much larger organisations, where paid employees share all key business decisions…
(10 December 2008)
