In the past couple of weeks, we've been bombarded with articles across all kinds of mainstream media talking about how bad salt, fat, and sugar - the three key components of "junk food" - are for us. But no one seems to be willing to point out what we can do to eat healthier and better food.   

The First Lady, Michelle Obama, has just celebrated the third anniversary of her "Let's Move!" campaign. Good stuff, but where does she have it? At Walmart - where you can find aisles and aisles of unhealthy food in oversize containers... Come ON, who's idea was that?  

So what CAN we do about eating better? We suggest eat organic, cook for yourself, and grow your own if you have the space. Time to learn more about organic seeds, local vegetables, and the sources of the food you eat. 

Swapping Organic Seeds

Last month we attended an inspiring event: Organicology - a "portmanteau word" meaning the study of organics. It is the biggest conference/trade show focused entirely on organic seeds and produce in the country. This year more than 700 people attended the three-day conference that included a trilogy of key note speakers, five daylong intensive sessions, 15 workshops, an educational (and practical) "seed swap," winter vegetable tasting, and a trade event showcasing nearly 60 vendors.

All of this in uber-cool Portland, where the hotel is Green Seal Certified; all printed material was printed on recycled paper using non-toxic inks; all food service incorporated real flatware, glasses, mugs, and cloth napkins and linens; and "sustainable gleaning services" were provided by B-Line Sustainable Urban [Bicycle] Delivery. Shades of Portlandia! Read more and "attend" the show - virtually - here.

Getting inspired to dig in the dirt and plant a few greens, root veggies, or even tomatoes of your own? Now is the time to get out those seed catalogs and make your list. It's just as much fun as Christmas!

But have you taken a good look at your tools lately? When your seeds and plants arrive (we love to order strawberry roots), are your tools ready for the job? Whether you are a farmer, an orchardist, or a home gardener, good tools make the job; and you can't do a quality job without quality tools.  

It has become harder and harder to find well-made, long-lasting tools. After gathering up a collection of nearly a half-dozen hand clipper "bodies" over the years, we certainly know exactly how long a poor quality tool lasts. Every year we try to find a better quality pair and by the end of the season they have completely come apart: springs sprung, locking loops broken, coated handles worn through...

In a stroke of good luck, we discovered Lowell's Tools at this year's Tilth Producer's Conference. Here's more about Lowell Cordas and how he backed into the business of making and selling high quality garden tools: The Right Tool For The Job. 

Salmonberry

Wild Strawberry

Wild strawberries are easy - tuck them in, water them a little, and soon they will give you the daintiest, sweetest strawberries you've ever tasted. Plant them near your door and grab a handful for your breakfast cereal! Arthur Lee Jacobson, Puget Sound's edible plant expert, provides us with comments on growing the Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca).

Salt Sugar Fat, Michael Moss

Here it is at last, well-documented investigation that shows how we have all been manipulated into bad health by the food industry; people who have literally made a killing off of us by getting us hooked on synthetic food.  

Moss takes us inside the labs where food scientists use cutting-edge technology to calculate the "bliss point" of sugary beverages or enhance the "mouthfeel" of fat by manipulating its chemical structure. He unearths marketing campaigns designed - in a technique adapted from tobacco companies - to redirect concerns about the health risks of their products: Dial back on one ingredient, pump up the other two, and tout the new line as "fat-free" or "low-salt." Read more here. 

There are more books on GoodFood World and more coming every week. Read, learn, and enjoy!