Agriculture
Chair: Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)
- Max Baucus (D-MT)
- Michael Bennet (D-CO)
- Sherrod Brown (D-OH)
- Bob Casey (D-PA)
- Kent Conrad (D-ND)
- Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)
- Tom Harkin (D-IA)
- Amy Klobuchar (D-MN)
- Pat Leahy (D-VT)
- Ben Nelson (D-NE)
- Debbie Stabenow (D-MI)
- Saxby Chambliss (R-GA)
- Thad Cochran (R-MS)
- John Cornyn (R-TX)
- Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
- Mike Johanns (R-NE)
- Dick Lugar (R-IN)
- Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Pat Roberts (R-KS)
- John R. Thune (R-SD)
Appropriations
Chair: Daniel Inouye (D-HI) Ag Sub-Committee
Chair: Herb Kohl (D-WI)
- Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
- Dick Durbin (D-IL)
- Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
- Tom Harkin (D-IA)
- Tim Johnson (D-SD)
- Ben Nelson (D-NE)
- Jack Reed (D-RI)
- Robert Bennett (R-UT)
- Christopher Bond (R-MO)
- Sam Brownback (R-KS)
- Thad Cochran (R-MS)
- Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
- Arlen Specter (R-PA)
Health, Education, Labor, & Pensions
- Chris Dodd (D-CT)
Agriculture
Chair: B Collin Peterson (D-MN)
V. Chair: B Tim Holden (D-PA)
B Joe Baca (D-CA)
- John Boccieri (D-OH)
B* Leonard Boswell (D-IA)
- Bobby Bright (D-AL)
B* Dennis Cardoza (D-CA)
- Travis Childers (D-MS)
B Jim Costa (D-CA)
- Henry Cuellar (D-TX)
- Kathy Dahlkemper (D-PA)
B Brad Ellsworth (D-IN)
- Debbie Halvorson (D-IL)
B Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD)
- Steve Kagen (D-WI)
- Larry Kissell (D-NC)
B Frank Kratovil (D-MD)
- Betsy Markey (D-CO)
B Jim Marshall (D-GA)
P Eric Massa (D-NY)
B Mike McIntyre (D-NC)
- Walt Minnick (D-ID)
B Earl Pomeroy (D-ND)
- Mark Schauer (D-MI)
- Kurt Schrader (D-OR)
B David Scott (D-GA)
B Zachary Space (D-OH)
- Timothy Walz (D-MN)
- Frank Lucas (R-OK)
- Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
- K. Michael Conaway (R-TX)
- Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE)
- Virginia Foxx (R-NC)
- Bob Goodlatte (R-VA)
- Sam Graves (R-MO)
- Timothy Johnson (R-IL)
- Steve King (R-IA)
- Robert Latta (R-OH)
- Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO)
- Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)
- Jerry Moran (R-KS)
- Randy Neugebauer (R-TX)
- Phil Roe (R-TN)
- Mike Rogers (R-AL)
- Jean Schmidt (R-OH)
- Adrian Smith (R-NE)
- Glenn Thompson (R-PA) *=House Organic Caucus member B=Blue Dog Democrat
Appropriations
Chair: Dave Obey (D-WI) Ag Sub-Committee
Chair: P Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)
- Sanford Bishop (D-GA)
* Allen Boyd (D-FL)
- Lincoln Davis (D-TN)
*P Sam Farr (D-CA)
*P Maurice D. Hinchey (D-NY)
P Jesse L. Jackson, Jr. (D-IL)
P Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)
- Jack Kingston (R-GA)
- Rodney Alexander (R-LA)
- Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO)
* Tom Latham (R-IA) *=House Organic Caucus member
P=Congressional Progressive Caucus
Education and Labor
P Chair: George Miller (D-CA)
- Jason Altmire (D-PA)
- Robert Andrews (D-NJ)
- Timothy Bishop (D-NY)
P Yvette Clarke (D-NY)
- Joe Courtney (D-CT)
- Susan Davis (D-CA)
P Marcia Fudge (D-OH)
P Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
P Phil Hare (D-IL)
- Ruben Hinojosa (D-TX)
P Mazie Hirono (D-HI)
- Rush Holt (D-NJ)
- Dale Kildee (D-MI)
P Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)
P Dave Loebsack (D-IA)
- Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY)
P Donald Payne (D-NJ)
- Jared Polis (D-CO)
- Robert Scott (D-VA)
- Joe Sestak (D-PA)
- Carol Shea-Porter (D-NH)
P John Tierney (D-MA)
- Dina Titus (D-NV)
- Paul Tonko (D-NY)
P Lynn Woolsey (D-CA)
- David Wu (D-OR)
- Buck McKeon (R-CA)
- Judy Biggert (R-IL)
- Rob Bishop (R-UT)
- Bill Cassidy (R-LA)
- Michael Castle (R-DE)
- Vernon Ehlers (R-MI)
- Luis F Fortuno (R-PR)
- Brett Guthrie (R-KY)
- Peter Hoekstra (R-MI)
- Duncan D. Hunter (R-CA)
- John Kline (R-MN)
- Kenny Marchant (R-TX)
- Tom McClintock (R-CA)
- Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
- Thomas Petri (R-WI)
- Phil Roe (R-TN)
- Todd Russell Platts (R-PA)
- Tom Price (R-GA)
- Mark Souder (R-IN)
- GT Thompson (R-PA)
- Joe Wilson (R-SC) P=Congressional Progressive Caucus
A meeting is going on as I write this. It's in Fallbrook, an agricultural area of San Diego county. While the meeting was advertised by the local Farm Bureau, it's being run by CDFA (the California Department of Food and Agriculture) and the USDA. We, in San Diego, are being quarantined.
The reason? The light brown apple moth, or LBAM. It's an invasive pest from Australia that the CDFA and USDA have been going bonkers over for the past few years, despite assertions from entomologists specializing in invasive pests that the government is using science from the 1960's and its tactics are, more or less, stupid and worthless. To date, quarantines by the government have harmed farmers in our state much more than the pest itself has. I've posted the specific rules of the quarantine below. Here's what the Farm Bureau website says about the impending quarantine:
As feared, another light brown apple moth discovery has occurred in the county. Instead of just one moth as was found in Bonsall, this time four were found in one trap, which exceeds the quarantine trigger of two. The site is near the intersection of the 805 and 15 freeways in the City of San Diego. Additional traps have been set to determine the intensity of the infestation and those traps will be read on Thursday.
Sometime next week the state will set the boundaries of the State Interior Quarantine, which will extend out 1.5 miles from the find sites and at this point doesn't appear to capture any commercial producers. However, after the state quarantine is declared, there will be the declaration of a federal quarantine and the feds are leaning towards placing the entire county under quarantine. Timing on that declaration is still unknown. County, state, and federal officials are currently working through the situation. 35 additional inspectors are currently en route to San Diego from other parts of the state and country to assist with the project.
San Diego's got a new up-and-coming restaurant with a farm-to-table concept and a Mexican twist: El Take It Easy. I feel like this is the second generation of farm-to-table restaurants that occurs in a city. For the first few restaurants that source food locally, that alone is a novelty. Then when it catches on, you start getting sustainable seafood, Italian food, French food, Japanese food, etc. And since El Take It Easy is in the experienced, wonderful hands of Jay Porter, I feel confident it's going to be a smash hit. Jay's other restaurant, The Linkery, specializes in local, sustainable meats, and specifically house-cured sausages. (You get links of sausage, but you also get a link to the source of your food as the farms where they buy from are all listed on the menu.)
Yesterday I had the privilege of hearing Raj Patel (yes, the Messiah) speak in San Diego. I'm always attracted to a man with a big brain, so of course I had to go hear him speak. And his speech was so great that I felt it was worth taking the time to transcribe the whole thing - with links to cite various references he made throughout the talk. This post does not contain the entire speech, mainly because it's just an awful lot to read at any one time. So here's the first 15 minutes, and I'll transcribe the rest soon.
Michelle Obama visited a community garden in San Diego last week and she was featured on the front page of the local paper, the Union Tribune, the next day. I sent in a letter to the editor and urged others to do the same. Ultimately, three letters were published, mine and two others. I was the only food justice advocate who wrote in. The other writers had very different perspectives.
One refers to the case of John Gardner, a convicted sex offender who confessed to murdering 2 teenage girls in San Diego. He murdered them in February but only just confessed. Yet the newspaper put Michelle O on the cover, presumably instead of the murderer.
The same letter refers to the farmers at New Roots (the community farm Obama visited) as immigrants who hardly speak English in a rather derogatory way. That makes me mad, to be honest. These folks are refugees. They aren't people who crossed the border illegally. They came here legally with the help of the International Rescue Committee. No doubt many would rather be in their own countries, which are likely too war-torn to raise children in. And they should certainly be commended for growing their own food to provide their children with healthy diets.
The other letter is just plain insulting. Why does Michelle Obama need a staff with aides? Well if you think her job as First Lady is to stay home and to cook and clean at the White House and look pretty in photo ops, perhaps she wouldn't need aides. But that's not the role of the First Lady these days. Hillary Clinton took on health care. Michelle Obama has worked with military families and now she's focusing on children's health. If you want to look at a waste of taxpayer dollars, look to the Pentagon, not at the First Lady.
See the original article here and the letters that were published below.
Michelle Obama is visiting San Diego to promote her campaign against childhood obesity.
The first lady will tour the New Roots Community Farm on Thursday afternoon as she promotes her campaign to encourage healthy eating for youngsters.
New Roots is the project of The IRC (International Rescue Committee), which is staffed by local heroes like Amy Lint and Ellee Igoe. They had to work like dogs to get this farm started and it's now the subject of a coordinated grassroots campaign to reform the city's laws around urban ag and community farms. You see, it cost tens of thousands of dollars to start this farm before spending any money on tools, seeds, or anything else. All that money was just to get through the various permitting processes required by the City of San Diego.
I don't have the details exactly, but it sounded to me that you need a good $10,000 or so to get a water meter installed, and then after that, you have to deal with various regulations that were not made with urban ag in mind at all. If you want to put up a structure, the city's laws were made for someone developing a condo building, not a tool shed. If you say you're doing agriculture, the city's laws worry about pesticide and fertilizer run-off, which isn't an issue if you're using sustainable methods. And so on and so on. At one point, San Diego even called a moratorium on new community gardens due to our water shortage - even though swimming pools, golf courses, and green lawns are all a-OK.
Despite this, the IRC still created New Roots Community Farm, which I believe is about 2 1/2 acres located in the City Heights neighborhood (an area with lots of immigrants from diverse backgrounds). I believe all of the folks who farm at New Roots are immigrants, often from Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
In another project, The IRC teamed up with Tierra Miguel (an absolutely amazing local farm) to provide Somali Bantu immigrants with a few acres at Tierra Miguel where they can farm. Tierra Miguel isn't as close to home as New Roots (it's quite a drive from San Diego actually), but the program's a huge success. From what I hear, quite a few of the elderly Somali Bantu immigrants had farming backgrounds and, without land to farm, felt lonely and depressed in their new country, surrounded by a new culture. Tierra Miguel offers them an escape from isolation and depression, and it also allows them to pass down their farming skills to their grandchildren and to provide their families with healthy food.
So I don't know what Michelle Obama will see or talk about when she's here, but I hope she learns a little about the background of the farm. The folks who made New Roots happen deserve the recognition they are getting today, and so do the farmers at New Roots. Now maybe the city government will pay attention to the First Lady, and get their heads out of their asses and fix local policies. (Last I heard, the city was saying that they've streamlined the urban ag permitting process and now all they need is a guinea pig with several thousand bucks to try it out and see if it is indeed better.)
The Association for the Advancement of Science is converging in San Diego this week, including a Monsanto Vice President who will be speaking. The San Diego Union-Tribune printed a (mostly) rah-rah biotech piece called "Bioengineering to crop up when science group meets." It's impossible to say all that needs to be said in one 150-word Letter to the Editor, but here's what I came up with:
The "titans of agribusiness" have delivered up decades of diet-related illness and unprecedented environmental destruction, not to mention a record number of hungry people (despite a simultaneous increase in the per capita amount of food produced), so why would we trust what they say now? We've had 30 years of biotech promises with little to show for it besides herbicide-tolerant and insecticide-producing traits that result in an overall increase in pesticide spraying and don't even increase crop yield. A 2008 UN/World Bank sponsored report written by over 400 scientists (the IAASTD report) found that biotech was incompatible with the needs of smallholder farmers who make up the majority of the world's hungry. Their recommendation for feeding the world was going organic, which would increase developing world crop yields by an estimated 80 percent. Yet, for some reason, even the U.S. government continues to listen only to the biotech industry and not to independent scientists who raise concerns about biotechnology.
I'd also like to rebut the idea in the article that we need a soybean with extra omega-3s. Our problem is not a lack of plants with omega-3s. Flax seed has plenty. But omega-3s are not very shelf-stable. Flax oil has to be kept in a dark bottle in the fridge and it still has a short shelf-life. THAT is why we don't get enough omega-3s in our diet. A GM soybean won't solve the problem, as any omega-3 added to a crop will make the crop less shelf-stable and thus less attractive to food manufacturers. Of course, omega-3's and shelflife are trade offs with one another that must be balanced, but there's nothing a GMO will accomplish that existing plants don't already do.
If other folks in San Diego want to submit letters to Letters at Uniontrib dot com, please CC me and I will publish them on this blog in a future post. Remember to keep your letters under 150 words and include your full name, address, and phone.
For months (if not years) I've heard great things about the San Diego Unified School District's food service director, Gary Petill. Now I've finally had the chance to meet him (over the phone and soon in person). And... wow!!!! San Diego school mean programs are not perfect - which he readily admits - but his heart and mind are in the right place, and he's doing all he can given the budgetary and logistical constraints facing him. And some of the schools are up for a school lunch makeover beginning with a visit by Ann Cooper next month, so it's only going to get better from here.
Here are some of the great things going on in San Diego's schools...
San Diego Roots held an AMAZING event this past Saturday. We called our celebratory blending of art, music, and food "Growing Places." The afternoon, which was a fundraiser for an educational farm that doesn't exist yet but may soon, began at 3pm with urban homesteading workshops. Participants learned to make sauerkraut, cheese, wheat flour, hot sauce, and ginger ale. At 5:30, we convened together for a discussion with community leaders about food policy and challenges and successes in our food system. At 7pm, local bands began playing and local, sustainable food was served. (The food was made by YUM! Super Foods Co and all of the food and cooking was donated.) Throughout the night, attendees bid on food-themed art in a silent auction.
So, without further adieu, please enjoy the pictures from Growing Places...
Growing the vegetables and flowers is the easy part. But just ask Meekins what the group went through to build a simple greenhouse with donated materials.
It's a three-year tale of permits, reviews, site plan requirements and endless rounds of meetings with the city Planning Commission...
It's not that Flint officials are opposed to residents growing their own food in backyards or on nearly 2,800 vacant residential lots within the city limits (a list that's still growing to the tune of about 500 vacant lots per year).
The problem is the laws on the books simply predate the city's new urban reality.
"The zoning ordinance hasn't been revised since 1968, when we were a booming industrial city and didn't have to think about agriculture as part of city planning," said Erin Caudell, a technical assistant for the urban agriculture collaborative and the outreach coordinator for the Ruth Mott Foundation's Applewood program.
The entire article is a fascinating and worthy read. I'm thrilled Flint is addressing this, and I wish San Diego would too. I don't know the extent of the difficulties in San Diego, but I know they exist. You can spend a lot of money on all of the necessary permits and whatnot before you even plant a seed. Regulations here are not intended for community gardens and that's why they are so unsuitable and difficult for them. The question is how do we fix the laws so that we can meet our needs?
Friday and Saturday, San Diego held its second Cultivating Food Justice conference. I went to the first one two years ago and it was spectacular. When talk started about doing a second one, I wondered how the hell we could pull off something as fantastic as the last one. It was a HUGE undertaking. And yet... it happened.
I was on the periphery of the planning, occasionally chatting with the main organizers but not really doing any of the work myself. It's really not a large group of people, and yet, the conference itself was intended to be BIG. And it was. My jaw totally dropped as I walked in the first night and saw what they had in store. Details below.
Want to make sure your citizens don't participate in food stamps even though they are eligible? It's a dumb idea because food stamps add so much to the economy, but apparently that's what San Diego wants to do. So, in addition to fingerprinting food stamp applicants they also check your home to ensure eligibility.
The San Diego district attorney adopted a policy in 1997 under which applicants for welfare benefits must agree to a "walk through" of their residence while they are present. The inspectors check on whether the applicant has an eligible dependent child and has the amount of assets claimed. They also check on whether a supposedly "absent" parent lives at the residence. If residents refuse to permit a home visit, they can lose their benefits.
So that's how you get the distinguished title of "lowest food stamp participation rate" in the U.S. And a judge ruled that this is legal because they aren't searching for evidence of a crime. Legal, perhaps - but smart? Definitely not. How many kids are going hungry because of this insane policy?
A local San Diego writer examined one of the lamest school lunches I've heard of yet: one in which many of the kids don't even get to eat! You read that right. San Diego High School has ONE lunch period. The lines are so long that either you bring your food from home or you risk getting nothing at all.
"Kids don't eat the lunch because of the lines," said junior Joseph Kemp, who bought a bag of Baked Cheetos from a student store, poured nacho cheese on top, and ate it with a plastic spoon alongside his friend David Gutierrez. Kemp estimates that he skips lunch entirely two or three times a week. "I don't even like to eat this stuff. But I'm hungry."
"Sometimes you get food late and you can't even eat," Gutierrez added.
So if you have enough money to bring a lunch, you can. And if you want to buy the "competitive foods" (food other than the federally reimbursable school lunch) and you have the cash, you can - although in that case you're probably eating junk like Cheetos with nacho "cheese." But if you're broke and you qualify for free lunches: get in line and risk it.
San Diego Unified students are far less likely to eat the hot meals dished out by school cafeterias than are students in other urban school districts, according to an outside consultant. Less than 30 percent of San Diego Unified students eat the lunches that are guaranteed free for poor students and that meet minimum nutritional standards set by the government, compared to nearly 60 percent of students in other urban districts including Chicago, New York and Miami. The trend is consistent across all income groups and all but one high school in the district.
A solution to the problem is having more than one lunch period. Simple? Yes. My large public high school did it. But since it hasn't been done here before, it's controversial, according to the article. I'm a newbie to dealing with local issues but if the article represented the situation correctly - that kids are going without food because of long lunch lines - then I think it's a no-brainer. Sure kids might get split up from their friends if there's more than one lunch period, but what's more important? Your right to sit with your best friend during lunch or your right to eat?
Interested in studying gastronomy in Italy? You get to gorge yourself on fine wines and cheese in Italy and get a college degree for it. Nice! Last week I met up with the university's David Szanto while he was in L.A. I have to admit, I might not be ready to pack my bags for Italia but I sure am jealous!
Sustainable Table gives instructions to make your own yogurt. OK, now I am seriously sad I don't know of any local dairies near me. Homemade yogurt looks yummy. Hat tip to Natasha Chart for this.
Marion Nestle went to see Food, Inc and she gives it two thumbs up. I've only seen clips and heard a talk by the director and stars Eric Schlosser and Michael Pollan about the making of the movie. It's going to be a BIG DEAL when this comes out.
Grist answers the question "Can you compost tainted food?" Their answer, in short, is NO. If you've got food that's been recalled due to salmonella or other toxic microbes, throw that shit away!
Chef Kurt Michael Friese isn't done yet picking on KFC's cheap chicken ads. He says they hide the true cost of the food. It's a pretty funny take on the ad, especially when he goes into the fine print and translates it from lawyer into English. "The chicken is fresh, except for when it's not." Yum. (Here's his previous commentary on KFC ads.)
The Ethicurean tells about volunteering at a free lunch program in New England. It's a really well-written and touching story from a first-person point of view. I definitely recommend taking a look, especially if you've ever considered volunteering yourself.
When you look at food stamp (now called SNAP) participation rates, California as a state ranks 4th from the bottom. And if you look at the food stamp participation rates of the 24 largest metropolitan areas in the nation, San Diego ranks dead last. This means hungry people don't eat, but it also means that San Diego county loses $144 million annually. And that's $144 million in the form of the very best economic stimulus the government can give us - each dollar of food stamps generates about $1.80 in economic activity.
Let's take a look at San Diego as a case study: Why aren't San Diegoans getting food stamps? And what can we learn from San Diego that might help us increase the participation rate nationally.
(How's this for a Friday night happy story!! - promoted by Jill Richardson)
Slow Food has been criticized for catering to a wealthier group of people. Think of all the $125 fundraisers that you've heard about, but didn't actually go to. Recently, a group of Slow Food people in San Diego decided to change that by starting "Slow Food Urban San Diego" (or something close to that wording). They are organizing low cost events so that more people can learn about and enjoy local and sustainable foods.
On Wednesday (Nov 19th), we hosted their mixer at Sea Rocket Bistro. About 250 people mixed over the course of the evening, as well as lots of great local people who bring us our food.
* Dave from Da-Le Ranch brought local, naturally raised pork, chicken, and lamb. You can find him at the Little Italy Farmer's market.
* Romolo Ghio, a local fisherman, brought one heck of a good time! He didn't bring any fish though since it's lobster season and he doesn't do that.
* Phil Noble from Sage Mountain Farm has become quite the local celebrity with such a great personality and wonderful produce! Sea Rocket is now a drop off / pick up place for Phil's CSA.
* Peter & Mitch, local sea urchin divers, served fresh sea urchin they had caught themselves that same day. Interview part 1 and interview part 2
* Cid da Silva owns a farm called Bella Vado and makes avocado oil that he gave samples of.
* Peter Zien brought goat cheese that he made from raw goat's milk fed with the spent grain from AleSmith Brewery which he happens to own. He can't sell the goat cheese though because of USDA laws.
* Joanne brought lots of bread from her bakery, Cardamom, which is on the same corner as us in North Park.
Here are some pics of the party. And for more reasonably priced local food, check out our movie nights. Slow Food will be doing more events at other restaurants and I'll be sure to keep you posted on the searocket website!
