Lettuce and biodiesel too, that’s the plan of Glen Kertz, CEO of Valcent Products of El Paso, TX. Kertz, who has worked in the greenhouse business for nearly two decades, believes the time has come to localize and simplify food production, and he says his Vertigro system will do just that. I spoke with Glen while he was attending an Orchid growers convention in Miami FL. We talked about his High Density […]
This post is by Leslie Valentine, Online Writer and Editor at Environmental Defense.
Rank of shrimp in popularity among all types of seafood Americans eat
Pounds of shrimp the average American consumed in 2006
Share of shrimp sold in the U.S. that comes from the Southeast U.S. (Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Ocean), where fisheries and farms are held to stricter standards
Share of shrimp sold in the U.S. that comes largely from Southeast Asia
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Today let’s talk about the merits of turnips, rutabagas, and kohlrabi. Not to mention bok choy and burdock root. Hello? Anyone out there? Please don’t panic and run away at the mention of vegetables that don’t fall into the standard pre-cut, ready for stir-fry frozen bag you see at the supermarket.
As environmental stewards, we’re used to taking the path less traveled to make a difference: pulling out the
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Americans eat more than a ton of corn every year. Literally, a ton. Right now, you’re thinking, "There’s no way. No one eats that much corn, even in August." Well, that ton is not really corn in its unsullied, fresh-from-the-field, bought-at-a roadside-stand form. Nor is it in its canned-creamed-or-not form. Most of the corn we eat is in the form of processed additives and sweetners. Green Options’
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We may live on an organic farm powered by renewable energy, but our son, Liam, requested standard kiddie supper fare for his recent sixth birthday party: macaroni and cheese. No problem, said his parents, and we made a few casserole dishes of the mac and cheese recipe you see below. Both kids and parents ate heartily and were satisfied — and no cheese sauce came in a powdered form out
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Leeks fall into that same food group as rhubarb: nutrition and flavor powerhouses that, sadly, wilt away in the produce aisle because we no longer know how to use them in cooking. But, unlike rhubarb, leeks don’t need gobs of sugar or other ingredients to make them palatable. Historically, leeks appeared on Fall harvest tables throughout Western Civilization, from Roman to European times. The Welsh placed leeks on a revered pedestal
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Sustainability is making its way into mainstream periodicals. It seems like almost every magazine in the past year has featured a "green" issue, some credible, some not. My friend just gave me the green issue of a magazine targeted at the marketing industry. So it’s no surprise that Edutopia, an education magazine for teachers and administrators published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, used sustainability as a theme for their
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Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate. The word is music to my ears, while the thing itself – when it is a bittersweet pearl of cocoa, or a spicy hazelnut praline, or again the warm melting heart of a rich gateau – why, no words can describe it! No wonder the famed Azetec Emperor Montezuma drank 50 cups of chocolate a day. No wonder the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus chose the name "Theobroma cacao" or "food of
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It looks like ethanol subsidies may impede efforts to reduce the size of the Dead Zone in the Gulf of Mexico. A draft report from the EPA Science Advisory Board says that ethanol subsidies could lead to a dramatic increase in nutrient loading in the Mississippi river basin, due to diverting cropland to corn production.
Recent energy policies, combined with pre-existing crop subsidies, tax policies, global market conditions and trade barriers all provide economic
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With an increasing proportion of the American food dollar going to restaurant fare, no wonder we’re complaining about the high cost of food. Paying someone else to grow, harvest, pack, repackage, ship, distribute, prepare, cook, serve, and clean up adds up to pricey fare. Convenience now ranks the motivator to eat out: I don’t have enough time to cook or eat at home. Talk about a double whammy: We’re paying more and enjoying our […]
The author of today’s post, Sheryl Canter, is an Online Writer and Editorial Manager for the Climate 411 blog.at Environmental Defense.
When it’s apple season here in New York and the green markets are overflowing, for a store to ship in apples from Washington State or New Zealand burns fuel for no good reason. Local food is fresher, tastes better, and supports the community. And locally produced food often results in lower
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