Pour yourself a cup of something warm. Settle into a comfortable chair, and enjoy some of these recent food and farming stories you may have missed:
A Salute to Irish Food and Farms
Just in time for Saint Patrick’s Day, we present an armchair tour of Ireland’s farming and food traditions. There are Irish resources, delicious recipes and knowledgeable experts, including Dr. Niamh Quinn of UC ANR, who tells us:
“Farming obviously goes way back…it’s an old tradition in Ireland. Ireland was originally almost covered in forests and was converted to agriculture. Large farms are not really a thing in Ireland; it’s very much family-based and family-run. You wouldn’t get your hundreds of acres of land operations there…that’s unheard of in Ireland.”
Learn much more about Ireland’s farming and food system. We even give recommendations for Irish experts to follow on Twitter.
Read this story and enjoy this rich culture at any time of year.
National Nutrition Month
What steps are you taking this month towards a healthier life? Learn about this popular annual event organized by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Hear why this month is so important from experts, such as Lorrene Ritchie, director and cooperative extension specialist of UC Nutrition Policy Institute. She says:
“’You are what you eat,’ while an oversimplification, sums up the importance of nutrition for all of us every day. National Nutrition Month is an excellent way to remind us to pay attention to what we eat and drink.”
Read this story and find out why better health begins with a single step. #NNM17
New Climate Change Research
Can eating a healthier diet help reduce greenhouse gas emissions? That may be the case, according to recent UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) research.
“To my knowledge, this is the first time anyone has done this,” said study director David Cleveland, a research professor in UCSB’s environmental studies program and geography department. “People have looked at what effect diets have both on climate and on health, but they’ve never examined the potential to mitigate climate change through the food system and the health care system together.”
Read this story for more information on the UCSB research. You’ll also find expert 2017 climate forecasts and scientific resources.
From Farmerettes to Soil Sisters
In honor of Women’s History Month, we pay tribute to the hardworking female farmers from World War I to present day.
Lisa Kivirist, a nationally known advocate for women farmers, told us:
“Amplifying the voices of women farmers adds up to a win-win for all of us. As this new crop of female farmers prioritizes organic and healthy growing practices along with diversified, local agriculture, we hold the power to truly start shifting the industrial paradigm currently dominating our food system.”
Read this story and learn more about innovative female farmers in the United States.
Farm Labor, Braceros and Trump
Today’s immigration debate dates back more than 50 years. Will there be enough farm workers to handle the workload this year?
Learn more about Braceros in the United States from several sources, including Dr. Mario Sifuentez of UC Merced. This professor comes from a Bracero family, and was the first in his family to attend college.
He tells us students’ interest in the food system is particularly high this year:
“My office hours are busier and class is livelier. We haven’t even started talking about immigration and labor and with a room full of first-generation kids I imagine class is going to get even livelier.”
Read this story and learn more about this important issue.
A Chat with Tom Tomich
Meet Tom Tomich, the sustainable agriculture and food systems expert for UC Davis. A while back, he talked to us about the challenges of integrating complex ideas into action. He says:
“… there are plenty of places that train people to be managers for agribusiness-as-usual. Our idea is to change the world in good ways and we don’t even know how that may play out.”
Read this story and learn about the constantly evolving world of sustainable agriculture and food systems.
And, A Hat Tip To… Lucky Peach
Word on the street is that the May issue of this indie food publication is the last. Eater reports:
“The magazine won nine James Beard awards — including Publication of the Year in 2016 — and a National Magazine Award for General Excellence.”
RIP, Lucky Peach. You will be missed.
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