Movie for your weekend

While scrolling through Youtube, I came across a trailer for a Japanese movie called Little Forest: Summer/ Autumn (2014). I encountered it as part of a Youtube series called "Healing Movies Through Food." While watching the trailer, I became interested and started watching the movie with English subtitles. Directed by Junichi Mori, the movie follows the journey of Ichiko, who left the big city to lead a self-sufficient life in the countryside. She starts growing her own rice and vegetables, and spends significant amount of time walking around in the forest to harvest necessary ingredients. This movie definitely does not romanticize farming nor the self-sufficient life like Farmer Boy does. Instead, it shows the physical and mental toil that Ichiko experiences in having to provide food for herself.

The beauty of this movie is not by its content (e.g. Ichiko farming rice, harvesting, etc.) nor the message of the movie (e.g. appreciate farmers, etc.). But, the beauty is found in the silent - and sometimes dull - atmosphere of the movie. In modern cinema, the main purpose of a movie is to tell a dramatized story. "Violent" stimuli (e.g. car crashing, screaming, fighting) in these stories often overload our senses, making us mentally tired. However, Ichiko's story gives us a mental break through a story about food. There are no dramatic moments. There are no "violent" stimuli. Instead, this movie gives audience a chance to "meditate" through our day-to-day encounter with food.

In this stressful time of finals, it is very important for us to avoid "violent" stimuli that may make us even more tired. Instead, take a two hour break during the week to watch this movie. It will not only make you appreciate every part of your food, but also provide a time for your brain to relax.

The Drinkable Book

Every year 3.4 million people die unknowingly from water related disease.  WATERisLIFE is a social advocacy group for clean water has partnered with engineers at Carnegie Melon and UVA in order to develop a solution to combat this catastrophic issue.

The Drinkable Book is a book that is printed on advanced printer paper that effectively acts like a coffee filter in order to kill water borne diseases.  The technology behind the Drinkable Book was created by Dr. Theresa Dankovich of Carnegie Melon.  Dankovich is passionate about her technology as it is the "first ever manual that provides safe water, sanitation and hygiene education and serves as a tool to kill deadly waterborne diseases by providing the reader with an opportunity to create clean, drinkable water from each page."  The paper reduces more than 99.9% in bacteria account after the water has been filtered through the paper.  The key to the technology is the silver nano-particles, which can kill bacteria associated with typhoid and cholera.      

As seen above the book works in three very simple steps allowing for ease of use across language barriers.  Additionally, the content on each page is printed in food grade ink and educates the consumers about safe water habits, which we take for granted.  The filter paper is expected to revolutionize water purification, and remarkably costs only pennies to produce.  The book is also extremely sustainable as each page could be used for thirty days of filtering.  The book can provide readers with drinkable water for up to four years!    

The WATERisLIFE plans to work on a partnership with pAge Drinking Paper on the book's research, and production, and to begin distribution of the book in 2016.

http://waterislife.com/donate

How Genetically Modified Pigs Might Ease the Organ Shortage

As discussed in class there is a great deal of debate surrounding the genetically modified movement all throughout the world.  It is clear that there are both benefits and drawbacks to genetically modified food; however, genetic modification may have implications in other areas, namely turning livestock into organ donors.

Today there are 120,000 people in the United States waiting for an organ transplant, while the number of donors is significantly lower.  Therefore, scientists are experimenting with a transplant process called Xenotransplantation, where animal organs are transplanted into humans.  In particular, pigs are the most promising donors as their vital organs are similar in size to humans.

Scientists can use the gene-editing technology called Crispr-Cas9 in order to modify gene expression to increase compatibility with humans.  A segment of RNA is modified to form an excising RNA protein called Cas9.  The Cas9 protein then searches the DNA double helix for a complementary base pair as in the translation process.  Once the Cas9 complex finds the complementary base the complex cuts the double helix in order to add the new genetic material.  This technique can be used on different chromosome loci to cause pigs and humans to be more compatible.

The technique is fairly new coming out of Harvard just last year, and speeds up the process allowing for multiple simultaneous changes at once.  Head of the study and company EGenesis Bio, Luhan Yang has already used the pioneering Crispr method to create pig embryos that inactivate pig retroviruses, a huge obstacle for Xenotransplantation in the past.  The company seeks to have genetically modified pigs to begin trials just next year.  Although not discussed in the article, it is important to think about concerns of animal cruelty as well as whether these genetically grown or modified embryos are in fact pigs.
   
Source: http://www.wsj.com/articles/potent-fix-for-transplant-shortage-genetically-modified-pigs-1480604400

The Irony of hired farm hands and their related health

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/23/us/in-a-california-valley-healthy-food-everywhere-but-on-the-table.html?rref=collection%2Fsectioncollection%2Fhealth&action=click&contentCollection=health&region=stream&module=stream_unit&version=latest&contentPlacement=6&pgtype=sectionfront

In relation to our discussions of migrant labor supporting many agricultural industries, the NY Times published an article related to the food security, health and overall quality of life for migrant laborers that work on California farms.

The Salinas Valley provides most of the vegetables that Americans consume in the United States. From lettuce to broccoli to brussel sprouts, the produce that you consume most likely came from this region of California. It is a very fertile region, located deep within the valley. The NY Times states that this region has more than doubled its production output and provides the United States with more than half of the lettuce that we see in our grocery stores. However, most of these healthy foods are not consumed by the laborers who harvest them.

According to the article, 91% of California's farm labor come from workers who are 'foreign born.' However, the quality of life for the workers and their families are quite poor. In the Salinas City Elementary School, 33% of the students that attend are homeless. Diabetes rates are rising, and 85% of the laborers are overweight to obese. The sad part is, the food that these workers harvest are not affordable to the workers who harvest them, according to a professor at the University of California, Davis. In addition to the poor diets, treatment for various diseases related to the diets is low as well. Many of the workers in this region are not legal citizens, and cannot afford health insurance. With the appeal of affordable, unhealthy food and no health insurance, these two factors contribute significantly to the poor health of the migrant laborers. California is also known for its high housing costs, so some workers find homes in abandoned buildings, tents, or various other shelters. Couple that with low wages, and healthy foods are not an option for many of the workers. Not only do the farm workers get affected, but the children of the farm workers as well. 72% of children under the age of 10 in Salinas' county drank soda at least once per day. 83% of teenagers in the same county drank soda once a day. Adolescents in this county drank 4.5 times more sugary drinks than water.

When thinking about a revolution in our farm industry, how can we better support the workers who cannot afford healthy foods? Corporations and industrial agriculture are making it very difficult for CSAs and farmers markets to operate in this region so the change to locavore dining is quite difficult. The balance between supporting farms and providing workers with healthy foods is quite conflicting.

Seafood: Be Careful With What You Eat!

http://time.com/4480426/fish-fraud-is-absolutely-rampant-new-report/

Seafood is one of my favorite types of protein to consume. From most types of fish to crab, lobster, and shrimp, I love seafood. With that being said, a recent news article from TIME has suggested that the seafood we think we are consuming (mostly fish) may not be what we think it is.

Fish itself is a high protein, low-fat food that can provide a ton of benefits to those who eat it in moderation. The most helpful aspect of fish is the omega-3 fatty acids that contributes to a healthy heart, and may even be helpful for pre/post natal development. From salmon to anchovies, and many types of fish in between, this type of protein is very beneficial in ones diet and have less negative impacts ecologically. Even some farm-based fish are considered very good in diets.

The benefits of fish are great, especially if you know what you are buying and consuming, but what if the fish you buy is not exactly what you think it is? According to the TIME's article (link provided above), a recent study from 55 different countries found that 1 in 5 fish samples from around the world are mislabeled (25,000 samples tested). That is 20% of the samples tested! When looking at the United States by itself, that number jumps to a 30% fraud rate. Of that 30%, over half of those samples (58%) were found to potentially cause health complications. Because of seafood regulation, certain types of fish have to be screened for toxins and other allergens that could have a negative impact on human health (such as Mercury). With mislabeling, these fish are not being screened at all. In other countries, the numbers jump even higher. In Italy for example, 82% of Grouper, Perch and Swordfish samples that were tested were found to be fraudulent. In Brussels restaurants, 98% of bluefin tuna (one of the nore expensive tunas out there, fisherman being able to sell these fish for $5000-7000 a piece). In the end, from mislabeling practices, the consumers are paying more to eat something that is worth much less.

Recently, President Obama has mentioned that he would address seafood fraud through a trace-ability system. The EU, through increased transparency between suppliers and consumers, has reduced seafood fraud from 23% to 8% in a four year span (2011-2015).

All in all, becareful and mindful with the seafood you purchase and consume!

Thanksgiving Dinner

            My family always hosts Thanksgiving at our house, which is good in that we do not need to travel anywhere, but it also means there is a lot of cooking to do.  While it varies from year to year on how may relatives come, this year we totaled 14.  For a while, Thanksgiving has not been a big holiday in my family.  When my brother and I were younger we use to have family over to our house, as we do now.  However, from the age of around ten until only a couple of years ago my immediate family was always away on Thanksgiving Day.  My brother and I ski raced, and as is typical of many alpine race teams, there was always an early season training week in Colorado, which always fell over Thanksgiving break.  Therefore most of the Thanksgivings that I can actually remember were not traditional at all.  There were some years when my parents did not come to Colorado so my brother and I had Thanksgiving dinner with our entire team.  This typically involved going out to dinner; sometimes for a traditional turkey dinner, but often it was to whatever restaurant would seat thirty kids and coaches on Thanksgiving Day. 

            A few years my parents came to Colorado and my brother and I spent Thanksgiving with them.  With them we would forgo turkey all together.  One year was bison burgers, another was sushi, and my all time favorite one was fondue at a mountain top restaurant.  Even though we did not have the traditional dinner, (which is my favorite of holiday meals) these were still some of my favorite Thanksgivings.  Spending it with my immediate family is what was really important to me, and these types of meals meant that there was no stress over cooking and preparation or any frustration, which inevitably comes when my extended family is over.  This year though we were not skiing and it was back to tradition.

            After not being home last year for Thanksgiving I was actually excited for a turkey dinner.  Hosting usually meant that we ended up cooking the whole meal.  My mom does not cook often and I rarely do, so Thanksgiving dinner is a true test of our abilities.  All in all, I would say that this year was a success.  Disaster almost struck Thursday morning, which derailed our plans for a few hours, but it was nothing that could not be fixed.  My mom put the turkey in the oven before we all left to go run a 5k.  We took our time at the race, catching up with friends after, then grabbing coffee and breakfast.  When we got back three hours later we realized that my mom put the turkey in the oven that was off, not the one that had been preheating.  With a still completely raw turkey, and guests arriving in a couple of hours, we panicked.  We had no choice but to postpone dinner for a few hours.  We set out more appetizers, opened a few more bottles of wine and in the end no one seemed to mind much. 

            The dinner itself was excellent.  I have never really enjoyed the actual turkey on Thanksgiving but I love the side dishes; Brussels sprouts being my all time favorite.  And no Thanksgiving is complete, in my opinion, without pumpkin pie, which I ended up having for lunch for the next two days.  Even with the hours spent in the kitchen cooking and the endless questions about “what are you doing after graduation?” from my family, it was an enjoyable Thanksgiving and I had a great time with family, eating delicious food.       

This is what our Thanksgiving dinner menu looked like this year:

Turkey, gravy, butternut squash roasted with spinach and cranberries, mashed sweet potato and mashed potato, Brussels sprouts roasted with pancetta, cranberry sauce, stuffing, green beans, and for dessert, pumpkin and apple pie.  (It was way more food than any person would be able finish, but it was too hard to decide what to exclude so we cooked it all)    

  

The reason I always forget to preheat the oven

An AGA is a quintessential British, cast iron stove run on propane. It usually has two burners and four compartments that store heat of different temperatures. It was invented in the early 20's and was originally coal powered, which meant it had to constantly be stoked, similar to a wood burning stove. What is unique about the AGA is that it is continuously running, which means the stove is always on. I was introduced to AGAs by my dad, who is Welsh and grew up with one in his house. When our house was being renovated (it was originally built in 1745 so things are constantly crumbling), we decided to put an Aga in our kitchen instead of an electric or gas powered stove. They certainly are not the most fuel efficient and can be widely pricey, but for my dad, who had moved permanently to the States twenty years earlier was persistent. I was in first grade at the time and I certainly wasn't the one cooking dinner every night, so it didn't really matter to me. However, I never would have known at the time that, to put it grandly, the AGA stove would come to define who I am today and have an integral role in defining home for me.

As my dad was British, and the stove was British, and my dad loved to cook and I wanted to learn how to cook, the AGA fostered a space and medium for my dad and I to spend time together. As I grew up, I learned cook on the Aga, and because it is always on, I never had to preheat an oven in my life, until I came to college that is. Because it is always on, it always emits heat. There were countless winter days and nights spent curled up with a book and hot drink at the base of the stove, usually with one of the cats or dogs sleeping next to you. The warmth from the oven attracted all members of the household, and often the rug space at the base of the stove was occupied by more than one pet. On top of the stove there is a warming plate, which often times in the winter, a person would be perched on top of with some tea. The kitchen was always a cozy and warm space, which would draw people in and start conversation. So many people and pets, including hamsters, have enjoyed the warmth of the AGA.

While I can cook perfectly fine on electric and gas powered stoves (at least I think), they just don't create the same experience for me that an AGA does, one that fosters coziness, comfort, conversation, creation, and love. And I am realizing the less time I am able to spend at home, especially after graduation, the less time I have with the AGA, to cook, to sit, to savor. Maybe there will be another one in my future.

This is a picture of my dad and I cooking over Thanksgiving, with the infamous AGA in the background.