Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Meeting Your Dinner


I see sustainable farming as the practice of finding the ultimate balance between maximum food output, conservation of the natural resources and land needed for farming, and maximum financial benefit for our farmers. Many methods of this have an ecological focus and the word “organic” has become quite the fad among those seeking implied health benefits, and those with strong moral and political views (vegans etc…). I do purchase a fair amount of organic products but mainly due to the health benefits and the fact that I avoid gluten, egg whites, and most processed foods in my diet. I try to buy fresh vegetables, quinoa, oatmeal, nuts, cereals, and many other products that are organic but meat is so expensive that I can’t afford it. After our lecture in class, I decided as my final project, to start a small organic garden in my back yard for vegetables. It has been a learning experience for me thus far and I can’t wait to see how everything turns out. I also planted an avocado tree, a mango tree, some corn, and some eggplant around the rest of my property. I think there is a disconnect between us and our food. Sometimes I joke with people about putting a cow or some goats on my property so I can have meat and I receive all sorts of horrified responses. The most common is “I don’t want to meet my dinner”. Where do people think their burger came from? Because of technology (Characterized in the 3rd Frontier readings) we have evolved to the point where we can drive up to Chic-fill-a and magically produce a chicken in a matter of minutes. We have totally lost our connection with nature in this regard. Imagine the anarchy that would ensue if a new law was passed that you must only eat what you can grow or process yourself. Below are some pics of my garden project. (the video wouldn't load)


Pictured: Various herbs on outsides, cherry tomatoes, strawberries, green bell pepper, cajun bell pepper, more to come...



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