Gettin' Down with the Farmy Folks

Hey ya'll!

There's an event on Saturday, November 13th at the Hattie Carthan Community Garden that would be really cool if you could attend. It's the "Farmy Folks Soiree" and it will review the harvest and all of the community enrichment workshops hosted at the Garden. They've done a women's conference that called for strong women all over New York to shed knowledge on survival through a spectrum of realities that women face alone normally. They've also hosted food education workshops for adults and children, having them learn about the life cylce of a plant and how to grow their own produce over time.

Really cool stuff, and the market has only been open for a year. Anywho, they'll be delving into folk culture and the spirit of harvest at this event with folk music and 'farmy' films so I'm definitely looking forward to it. Spread the word to those who might be interested.

Check out the splash for the event:
www.wix.com/frankness/forthefarmyfolks

Food Inc and King Corn

Hello all!!
So I just saw Food Inc last night and I saw King Corn on Wednesday. All I can say is GROSS and WHAT THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO EAT NOW!!!?!??!?! I was equally amazed by both films, if anything I went through the same stages I experienced while reading McKibben and Lappe. I now view the food industry in a whole new way. What are we supposed to do??? Its quite disheartening to feel like the business of food is no longer centered on sustaining and nourishing people- its about profit and mass production.

I mean who knew there is ethanol in lysol?? now all i can picture is spraying corn on everything while im "disinfecting" stuff. All I could think while watching King Corn was : we are the children of the gentically modified corn (like that movie,children of the corn-get it?) growing corn that isnt meant to be eaten and then feeding it to cows. Its ridiculous.

Have any of you seen these films yet?

Food Policy Forum

I was trying to tape as much I could from my iPhone. Needless to say, its in true bootleg quality. So I would really love to see that footage once you're done editing it. Some of the points that were made about food desserts really intregued me, and the notion of "preservationists". It's extremely ironic that people are given a place to live, with no access to REAL food to eat. And those who decide what goes on whose land, don't give a lick about that dynamic because they have their food prepared for them- and they want to "preserve" the land that they use aesthetically.

That footage would be the inciting argument to get people urged to push for changes in how corporations and businesses compete for the land.

With all that was said in the forum, the thing that hit home to me in every point that their are either not enough people to make a riot of things to light the fire under policy makers' asses, or those voices eventually begin to diminish- in the talk about politics and the bottom line.

But the truth is, the people the government decided to keep healthy and those they do, is extremely political. And the disheartening fact of the matter is that this inequality is the basis of Capitalism. It is the model that the world follows like relegion.
And in terms of our health, it is merely political. Who deserves to die of obsesity?

Any takers?

Food Policy Forum Last Night

As you know, last night was the Food Policy Forum that Professor Romer had informed us about. It was very exciting, informative and well-attended! I saw a few people from class in attendance, and for those who were unable to make it, I actually taped the nearly-two hour event :)

I should be putting it together and posting it on the Brooklyn Food Coalition website soon, and I am looking to see if I can get it aired on BCAT. I'll keep you posted!

Welcome!

Hi everyone!

I asked Professor Romer for your email addresses so that I could invite you all to join a blog where we can have discussions outside of class to supplement and enrich the ones we have in our short time together in class.

Feel free to post anything and everything related to class, including information about events, what is going on with your internship, thoughts about readings/films/policies/etc. Post topics you want to start discussions about!

Looking forward to some thought- (and, hopefully, action-) provoking conversation!