The Return of Nutrition, or does your tomato splat and split when it falls?

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Last week, blogger Ryan Harb, a budding permaculturist, posted an article on The Return of Nutrition (pdf file). The article begins: Did you ever wonder why today's supermarket-purchased fruits taste like mostly water?

I know I have. I was fortunate during my daughters' early childhood to provide them with fresh, organic fruits and vegetables from our small garden. They may still have body memories of the rich flavors, textures and juice of the apples, pears, berries, tomatoes, and many vegetables we grew together. Thanks to their grandmother, who brought a seedling from her favorite peach tree shortly after their father and I married, every autumn we gathered more succulent, sweet, fragrant peaches than we could possibly eat. The juice ran down our arms when we bit into them, so good we licked it off shamelessly, rather than lose a drop.

Many children then and many more children now have no idea that a true peach is not hard and crunchy like an apple, but soft and squirty with juice. Nor do they know the acidic deliciousness of ripe tomato, nearly bursting from its thin skin. If a small child, gnoshing sun-heated tomatoes from the vine let one slip through her fingers when I was growing up, it split, spilling its seeds and fluid on impact, however soft the soil. How long has it been since you last dropped a tomato--supermarket-bought, organic, or farmer's market--only to watch it thump to the floor with nary a dent?

Bringing back good-tasting produce is more than a mission to satisfy the senses, according to The Return of Nutrition author. It's a mission to feed our bodies foods rich in the nutrients we need to thrive, fight disease and live long. The answer is in the soil.

You see, as Big Agriculture has co-opted ever larger tracts--square mile after square mile--of land to monoculture food-growing factories, fueled by petrochemical fertilizers, antibiotics and tons of pesticides, the soil in which the crops are grown has become merely a holding material, it's own rich nutrients systematically stripped away.

The people of the Real Food Campaign and Remineralize the Earth, both featured in The Return of Nutrition, seek to replenish our depleted soils that we may once again taste foods rich with vitamins and minerals, trace elements, bright colors and the flavors and juices some of us are fortunate enough to remember. I encourage you to take time to read the article.

Reclaiming our soils is a matter of survival for our species, and not only ours. Many of the animals with whom we share the planet are as dependent as we on the nutritive qualities of our soils. Without good soil their habitats, already diminished by ever-expanding human settlement, are less and less fertile, increasing their exposure to disease and possibly hastening extinction.

There's more, and it's good. Imagine simple fruits and vegetables so mouthwatering delicious that we don't need heavy sauces or sugary concoctions to make them palatable. Imagine food so satisfying that we experience no residual cravings and leave that post-dinner pint of ice cream in the freezer without regret or feeling of sacrifice. Imagine the colors, scents and textures of food so pleasurable that cooking and dining became a family affair again, the nightly meal a time of energetic discussion and creativity.

It is no accident that food is an integral part of the vision of the Village of Ordinary. Villagers take direct responsibility for their health and well-being, and much of that depends on the foods with which they fuel and nourish their bodies. More, they genuinely enjoy the time they spend together preparing and eating meals.

I'll be researching and posting my findings on food often in the coming weeks and months. Not only is a local, sustainable model important to the story, but some climate researchers feel that reclaiming our soils and returning to smaller, family-style agriculture may be the single most important way to slow global climate change and ensure plenty of fresh drinking water for generations to come. Our food source and supply is that important.

So important, in fact, is this issue that I urge you to delve deep and engage in dialogue with me, with your family and friends and with your elected officials. Some of our most foremost and respected scientists believe we need to solve these problems by 2020. That's just eleven short years from now. Others think that's an optimistic figure. One thing is certain. There is no time to waste, so please share your own food journey and resources in the comments section below.

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• "Food, Inc.": New documentary looks into the business of food (seattletimes.nwsource.com)

I'm going to make that audience rock

When Susan Boyle tells the fellows backstage at Britain's Got Talent that she's going to rock the audience, the eavesdropping crowd out front laughs. They're not laughing when she finishes her performance. Give a listen.

I'm going to make that audience rock!

Susan Boyle

Watch the full performance, including the touching before and after interviews (embedding was not permitted).

Despite their often condescending attitudes, I give gratitude to the producers and judges of the show for giving the world an opportunity to hear the voice of Susan Boyle, Paul Potts and others who have honed their talents quietly, with perhaps only secret hopes of one day performing in front of an audience.

In the world of Ordinary, every individual is valued for their unique abilities. One does not need to be nipped and tucked, pruned and peeled, toned and tanned, body-sculpted and blemish-covered to achieve success. All any one needs is to honor their gifts and, well, give them.

Most of us did not grow up with that kind of support and encouragement. It's up to us to trust our abilities, to find our true work (play), and to begin to share it with the world. It's never too late. No matter where you are in life, you have something of beauty to offer the rest of us. Who are you rocking?

My thanks and acknowledgement to AFelsinger, amyvernon and absolutelytrue for pointing me to this wonderfully inspiring and moving performance through their tweets and retweets.

Now that you've met your meat

How did you feel about the video in yesterday's post, Can you eat meat? If you're like me, you may find it difficult to swallow meat and dairy products.

Though my eggs, poultry, bacon, beef and milk come primarily from range-fed, grass-fed, organic, humanely raised and (oxymoronically) slaughtered animals, the images of the video are so deeply imprinted on my mind that I suspect I will not be able to swallow animal flesh again.

It's tough, even in a city like San Francisco, to eat organic, free-range all the time, but it is possible. Yes, it costs extra. I manage the extra cost four ways:

1. As a tithe;
2. As an investment in the future well-being of the Earth and her creatures;
3. As the humane, right thing to do;
4. As the best possible support for the small-scale farmers and ranchers who dare to buck the system and grow food that is good for us, good for the planet and good for the animals on whose lives we depend.

After watching yesterday's video, I will continue to buy the highest rated organic and free-range dairy products I can, though I'll be far less likely to dine in restaurants unless the menu clearly states they serve only organic.

But what if I weren't already on this path? What if that video was the catalyst for an entire lifestyle change? Where would I start?

Wendy Gabriel of the Minneapolis Green Living Examiner posted the final installment of her interview with Dr. Alan Greene, author of Raising Baby Green: The Earth-Friendly Guide to Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Baby Caretoday. She asked Dr. Greene, "If you were only going to choose a few organic foods, what would you choose?"

Dr. Green named three: milk, potatoes, peanut butter. I would add eggs, yogurt, butter and cream as well--all dairy products. To learn why Dr. Greene put those three at the top of the list, visit Gabriel's article on Examiner.com.

What to do if your local grocery store or supermarket does not carry organic produce and dairy? Local Harvest makes it easy to find a farmer's market or a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm near you, any where in the United States. Chances are there's one close enough.

Many farmers market vendors are certified organic producers or in the process of certification. They won't mind if you ask to see their certification. They need your support as much as you need their fresh, tasty food.

CSAs deliver freshly harvested, in-season fruits and vegetables, either to your doorstep or to a central location within a relatively short radius, so look for one near you and begin getting premium foods picked ripe, packed quickly and delivered almost immediately.

In the Village of Ordinary, some people are vegetarians and some are carnivores. All are raised with a deep respect and abiding love for the animals with whom they share the Earth and especially with the animals who help to feed them. For more ways to build that dynamic into our lives, subscribe to this blog or sign up for e-mail notifications in the right hand column.

See the three hundred year old food forest

For twenty-eight generations, this Vietnamese family has grown its food and medicinal supplies on two acres of land in what permaculture expert and trainer Geoff Lawton calls a three hundred year old food forest.




We can do this. A bountiful lifestyle like the one Rose, Cheyenne and the entire Village of Ordinary enjoy is possible for each of us now. We can eat healthier, preserve our precious water supply, and live in harmony with the Earth.

Over the next few days, I'll show you how Geoff Lawton trained a team of Jordanians to grow figs and citrus in the sandy desert, how urban gardeners are relaxing with permaculture gardens on their balconies and in their backyards, and how permaculture co-originator Bill Mollison got his start reclaiming overgrazed land and rebuilding the soil and local water resources.

You might be surprised how much of your own energy a permaculture lifestyle can save, because permaculture is not just about the food. It's about a way of life that gives back as much as it takes. Stay tuned. Learn how. And if you're already doing it, tell me about it in the comments section below. We can learn from each other.