It’s easy enough to eat local in spring and summer. Your garden is booming, CSA’s are in full effect, and farmers markets abound! So how can you make that bounty last into the winter, when fresh produce is a little more scarce? Here are some DIY solutions!

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General Motors has revealed that it is still on-track to bring a hydrogen fuel-cell car to market, within the next three years.

Industry insiders had speculated that the imminent retirement of existing boss Larry Burns would lead to the fuel-cell program being mothballed, but according to new R&D chief Alan Taub, GM will continue with its development of the technology.

“Technology leadership is one of the pillars of the company,” said Taub. “That is going to remain, and it will probably be emphasised as part of the brand of GM.”

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Nissan has announced plans to sell compact hybrid vehicles based on its own technology in Japan, starting from 2011.

The Japanese outfit intends to make a low-cost, compact powertrain featuring an integrated electric motor providing supplemental power to the main gasoline engine. Energy will be provided by high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

According to Nissan the hybrids should be more than twice as fuel efficient as the equivalent gas-powered offerings.

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Since the Environmental Working Group came out with their list of the “Dirty Dozen“, I’m more selective about our produce purchases. We even grew a few rows of kale in our raised bed gardens because we eat copious amounts of greens.

But just because a favorite veggie didn’t end up on EWG’s list doesn’t mean that it’s free and clear. Certainly not organic, in most cases!

An average American child gets 5+ servings of pesticides in their food and water per day.

Yikes! That’s why this frightening educational new database is so helpful.

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36 vegetables now have the freedom to be ugly, reports the Times Online:

The intention is to lower the price of fresh food and to cut red tape for growers and importers.

Retailers estimate that prices for misshapen and blemished produce will be about 40 per cent lower.

Now, even in a recession, no one has an excuse to refuse when asked to “Eat your vegetables!”

However, some produce must still adhere to strict rules.

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Nissan has announced plans to launch the large-scale production of electric cars and batteries in the United States, with a massive 50 billion Yen ($516 million) facility in Smyrna, Tennessee.

The site will be capable of knocking-out an impressive 50,000 to 100,000 EVs by 2012, with investment possibly DOUBLING to 100 billion Yen (more than $1 Billion).

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My favorite Bayview corner sandwich shop, Upper Crust Deli on Third Street in San Francisco, has just started carrying fresh seasonal produce. They are now selling a variety of melons, potatoes, apples, bananas and many other healthy fruit and vegetable options.

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Prolonged inflammation causes the immune system to become off balance, and can result in damage to healthy tissue.

Poor diet is a main contributor to chronic inflammation, but several lifestyle factors such as lack of exercise, and excessive stress can promote inflammation as well.

Many health and nutrition experts are now starting to emphasize the importance of following an anti-inflammatory diet.

Here are a few tips to get you started on your way to less inflammation and better health:

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Vegetables today are larger, but contain more “dry matter” which dilutes the concentrations of minerals.  This results in 5% to 40% less magnesium, iron, calcium, and zinc.

Selective breeding to increase crop yields has let to genetic dilution, which has also in turn caused declines in protein and amino acid levels in produce.

Because of the increased use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, crops are now harvested so quickly that the plant has less time to absorb nutrients either from synthesis or the soil.

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Despite recent rains throughout the state, California has recently instituted water restrictions to many farms in the San Joaquin Valley, the agricultural epicenter of the nation.  In fact drought conditions are already so severe that they have forced authorities to eliminate all water for agriculture in California’s San Joaquin Valley for three weeks beginning March 1st.  This might not be troubling if it wasn’t happening so early in the year.

The impact on the people and economy of the state could also be severe.  The Department of Water Resources has stated in relation to the water crisis in California.

“The drought could cause an estimated $1.15 billion dollar loss in agriculture-related wages and eliminate as many as 40,000 jobs in farm-related industries in the San Joaquin Valley alone, where most of the nation’s produce and nuts are grown.”

Read here for the full Associated Press article on the anticipated drought and its effects.

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Just over a year ago, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Roxanne Christensen, co-founder and President of the Institute for Innovations in Local Farming. The Institute promotes Small Plot Intensive (SPIN) farming techniques first codified by Wally Satzewich, a farmer from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

The idea behind SPIN farming is to give step-by-step instructions for creating a profitable farm on an acre or less of land in order to promote the development of local, organic food supplies. Through their method, even a 1/8th acre part time hobby farm can generate $10,000 – $20,000 a year with a full 1 acre farm bringing in $50,000 – $65,000 a year.

This year, they have come out with a SPIN gardening guide for the home gardener. It is not just for those with large backyards, either. Like the SPIN farming guide, it can be used to help organize community gardens and neighborhood produce co-ops. The original SPIN farm, run by Wally and his wife, is spread out over 25 neighborhood backyards.

The idea of the SPIN garden is to turn your home garden or neighborhood land into a significant, valued food source. The guide helps you understand how to grow high value crops – those that retail for more than $50 per harvest per short bed - and calculate the value of your harvest, so you know exactly what you are saving by growing your own organic produce. At the same time, it gives you a list of equipment you will need, and estimated costs, so you can garden like a pro. High value crops include heirloom varieties of carrots, tomatoes and potatoes, salad and mesclun mixes, onions, shallots and scallions, fresh herbs and more.

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When it comes to organic dairy, make friends at the supermarket. A short conversation will leave you in the know regarding markdowns. I learned that our market slashes prices when dairy is five days prior to its sell by date. I also learned that these markdowns occur around 2pm daily. Now I hit the store in the late afternoon and check for future dates while I’m there so I know in advance when the new markdowns will arrive. Also, watch in store nutrition magazines and circular for coupons. I just found a $2.00 off 2 organic dairy items, when combined with our store markdowns, I can get two gallons of milk for $1.79 each!

(Image from Angela Vetu at Dreamstime under RF-LL)

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To emphasize this, researchers at Saint Louis University have determined that families who eat out often are more likely to skimp on fresh fruits and vegetables compared to those who eat more meals at home.

After focusing their study on young families in southeastern Missouri, it was found that close to 73% of parents don’t consume the minimum recommended amount of fruits and vegetables each day.

Researchers also discovered that families who eat out frequently are less likely to have fresh produce on hand at home.

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Harnessing the Earth’s Heat for Food and Power

As the rumbling temblors beneath Yellowstone National Park continue (over 900 hundred such weak quakes in 2008), media attention shifts to two topics: the possibility of a super-volcanic eruption (not likely, according to most geologists), and secondly, the harnessing of geothermal energy.

This latter consideration is all the more fashionable these days as America struggles to embrace an alternative and sustainable energy future.

Geothermal energy offers the promise of a virtually unlimited source of power. Although less energetic in terms  of total constant power output compared to the sun, harnessing the geothermal venting from a single, sufficiently high-grade, hot-spring could conceivably provide power for a population of tens of thousands, and it’s not weather dependent.  But there are also plenty of “lower grade” springs that can be put to other uses, such as growing hothouse produce (and the spring water is also used for watering the plants) and  naturally warming water for fish farming (the Talipia species, a popular dinner fish, is one species farmed this way). Not all animals that are farmed this way are used for food, some, like the farmed alligators in Mosca, CO (see photo), are raised for their skins primarily (though some do eat the meat).

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In public schools all over the United States children are at the mercy of the National School Lunch Program.  The NSLP was started back in 1946, with the purpose of providing affordable nutritious meals to kids.  Don’t get me wrong, it’s wonderful that this program provides lunches to children no matter what their family’s financial situation is, but the quality of the food being served is very questionable.  (In the 1980’s the Reagan Administration declared ketchup a vegetable for use in school lunches.)  According to a 1993 survey, the USDA found the nutritional quality of most school lunches to be mediocre at best.  In this day and age, with childhood obesity at an all time high, and overly processed foods being the norm, is “mediocre” good enough for our children?

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These farms, or CSAs, provide fresh produce, and sometimes meat and dairy. For a fee, you get baskets of fresh food once a week. One well-known CSA in LA is the Tierra Miguel Foundation, which drops off batches of organic produce at designated spots around town. All you do is swing by and pick it up. Or, if you’re feeling adventurous, you can visit the North San Diego farm in person the first Saturday of each month. The farm is also a charitable foundation that supports education in sustainable agriculture.

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US Scientists have figured out a way to mass produce the nanomaterial graphene, opening the door to significant advances in the storage of hydrogen, as well as the electricity produced by solar and wind energy.

Graphene, produced by reducing graphite down to a sheet only one atom thick, is one of the strongest materials known to man. It has been shown to have huge potential for hydrogen and renewable energy storage, but up until now has been held back by a lack of supply. Now the team, based at the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) at UCLA, have discovered a method of producing graphene sheets in large quantities.

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American scientists have discovered a fungus deep in the Patagonian rainforest that makes biodiesel as part of its natural lifecycle. The fungus is the only organism that has ever been shown to produce such an important combination of fuel sources.

According to team member Prof. Gary Strobel of Montana State University, “The fungus can even make these diesel compounds from cellulose, which would make it a better source of biofuel than anything we use at the moment.”

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Researchers at Khon Kaen University (KKU) in Thailand have discovered a new species of algae, which could be used for the commercial production of biodiesel as early as April 2009.

The species, unimaginatively labelled KKU-S2, was found on the surface of a freshwater pond at the university, and was quickly identified as a promising source of alternative fuel. Speaking about the discovery, team-leader Dr Ratanaporn Leesing said, “We can extract oil from this species. Its properties are fit for biodiesel production. Within two days, the number of this alga can double, and within a week or two we can extract oil from it”

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Speaking at last weeks Paris Motor Show, Audi management board member, Peter Schwarzenbauer, said, “we will offer a pure electric car.” He also revealed that the electric Audi “will not be based on the A1,” the firm’s premium supermini.

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