Food Policy vs. Food Apathy

By contributing writer Laurie Neverman
August 25, 2008

Recently I attended a food policy workshop hosted by the Oneida Nation. The featured presenter was Mark Winne, food activist and author of Closing the Food Gap:  Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty.  The attendees, coming from the Oneida Nation, UW Green Bay and UW Extension, the Eastern Wisconsin Sustainable Farmer’s Network, Sustainable Greater Green Bay, the Lakeshore Natural Resource Partnership and others, all contributed to the opening dialogue of an effort will hopefully lead to positive changes in our local food system.

The workshop opened with a discussion of the positives and negatives of our local food system.  Among the positives, participants cited the wide availability of farm markets, chain stores purchasing local produce, resources such as the Oneida cannery and the Algoma Farm Market kitchen for food processing, a close knit, generally supportive community, and an increased awareness of “good” versus “bad” food.  On the negative side - unhealthy, highly processed food still dominates many people’s diets; even with education efforts, many people are still unaware of the close connection between food and health; downtown Green Bay is a “food desert” in terms of availability of fresh, healthy food; connections between local food producers and retailers need work and even with all the food that’s available, some people are still going hungry.  There’s obviously room for improvement.

There are a lot of great grass roots efforts in the works, and this meeting will help them to help each other, but their toughest obstacle will be overcoming the general public’s food apathy.  Our “nation on the go” wants food that lasts a long time on the shelf, is served up fast (often by someone else) and has a “magic nutrition formula” that will provide everything we need in one handy package.  A lot of people don’t even know how to prepare fresh produce anymore.  On the plus side, rising food prices, plus food safety and security scares may just provide the wakeup call that’s needed to make people more aware.  Good luck to all my fellow workshop participants on your efforts to help the world eat healthier and greener.

Please contact me at laurieneverman@hotmail.com with your green questions and comments.

Common Sense Home Recipes

Garlic Green Beans and Eggs
This recipe comes from our Chinese exchange student, Rachel, who stayed with us several years ago for the school year.  Ideally, the recipe uses Chinese Yard Long beans, which grow thinner so the pieces can be cut a little longer, but regular green beans work just fine, too.  It’s great for a light summer meal when beans are coming fast and furious in the garden.

INGREDIENTS:

Two handfuls of fresh green beans (you want to end up with roughly the same amount of beans and eggs)
5-6 eggs, whisked
1 teaspoon of minced garlic (more or less to taste)
Oil for cooking, preferably sesame or canola
Salt and pepper, to taste
White or brown rice, cooked (I usually make around 4 cups)

PREPARATION:

Finely chop green beans into uniform pieces less than ¼ inch long (small, roughly square pieces are best).  Pour about 1 tablespoon of oil into a large fry pan or wok, heat gently.  Add green bean pieces to pan and cook until crisp tender (about five to ten minutes, depending on heat levels and size of bean bits).  Add garlic near end of cooking time – don’t scorch the garlic, it tastes nasty, trust me.  Pour in eggs and cook through, mixing gently near end of cooking.  Do not overcook the eggs; they should be a little moist, not rubbery.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve over a bed of white or brown rice.  Serves 4-5.

Salsa Rojo Diablo
Rojo Diablo means Red Devil — the name is fitting as this recipe definitely packs a kick! A great way to use fresh produce from your homegrown harvest. If you don't have the peppers shown, substitute them with a comparable variety. Try this for a little extra kick on your beans and eggs. Contributed by the FOX 11 web staff.

INGREDIENTS: 

3 fresh, large tomatoes (or 8-10 Romas)
1 small spanish onion - minced
2-3 jalapeño peppers
2 cayenne peppers
1 hungarian yellow wax pepper
2 cloves fresh minced garlic (a clove is 1 section of the whole bulb)
1/4 cup washed cilantro leaves - finely chopped
dash of lemon or lime juice
1/2-1 tbs. salt

PREPARATION:

Roma or Beefmaster tomatoes are preferred.

Fine chop the tomatoes and place in bowl. Add the fine chopped peppers and other ingredients. Go easy on the salt, and taste often, keeping in mind that the ingredients will blend together over time - so do not overcompensate. Generally, the mix will become more spicy if left to stand a bit.

Stir ingredients well and let stand for 1/2 hour. If the water content of the tomatoes separate out in the bowl, drain the salsa by placing it in a fine screen basket or colander and then place back into bowl. This is normal. The water content will vary with different types of tomatoes. Romas on average have the lowest water ratio.

Salsa best if used within two days. If you must put it in the fridge after use, let it warm up to room temperature again before serving to bring out the flavor.

Minty Melon Salad
To cool down after the flaming eggs, try this simple fruit salad that has been a favorite at family gatherings for years. 

INGREDIENTS:

Assorted fruits, cut into bite sized pieces (we typically use a mix of melons, grapes, apples, berries or whatever’s in season)
Small amount of honey or corn syrup (around ¼ cup or less)
1-2 drops peppermint flavoring

DIRECTIONS: 

The honey or corn syrup is used as a dressing to prevent browning and extend the shelf life of the fruit (sugar acts a preservative).  Pour a little honey in a small bowl, add the mint and mix thoroughly, pour the mix over the fruit and toss to coat.  Our batches typically involve about a one to two gallons of fruit and ½ cup sugar syrup, so you don’t need much sweetener – don’t overdo it.