Good evening! This will be a short message because there will be more on the blog very shortly, but I just wanted to say how awesome this month has been for meetings!!!
We had 3 meetings; one on local food and eating local - Jessie did a fantastic job explaining the food system and why it costs more now to eat local - but it doesn't have to be that way forever. And for those who want to participate in the food action, here are some details and a link to the pledge form.
Have you ever wondered why it costs more to buy eggs at the farmers market, or whether you could do a 100 mile diet? Are you concerned about the distance food travels to get to our tables? Have you noticed that the good farmland surrounding Edmonton is being sold to developers? Did you know that we only have 3 days worth of food on the grocery store shelves? What does all this mean to you and your family?
These are questions some of us are thinking about as we become more aware of the role food plays in the health of our bodies, and our communities at large.
Remember at the very start of SAGE you told us that you wanted 3 things out of this group: networking, information, and ACTION. This is your chance to take action and make a difference!
SAGE has become a supporter of GEA's (Greater Edmonton Alliance) Shake the Hand that Feeds You local food action. We invite you to find out more about this simple plan to participate in improving the fabric of our community. If you weren't able to attend the meeting, you can still find out what is happening and take part by reading this document.
The basket pickup will happen on September 20 from 11-11:30 am at a local grocery store to be announced. We need to have money in by September 8, so if you have already filled in a sheet, we will be contacting you soon for payment. If you want to print out a sheet from the link above and send it in with payment to GEA, all the instructions are on the form itself. Thanks in advance for your thoughtfulness and support.
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The next meeting was for local independent business to start gathering people together so that we can all support and grow together. Did you know that a local independent business generates 3x as much economic benefit in a community than a global business? You can find out more details like this right here on the website, when we get the slide show from Jessie - it is very eye opening. Thanks to Jessie again for presenting this information to us. You can also visit her websites to find out more information.
www.keepedmontonoriginal.com
www.originalfare.com
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And last night, was Mark and Joey talking about co-creating a civilization of love and the fun of economics - who would ever believe there were so many people interested in these topics, but there were over 60 people last night, ranging from 8 to 80 years of age. It was truly magical and inspiring - thanks to everyone who came, and we hope to see you at our next meeting!
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The next community meeting will be Sept 29 at 7pm at the Village (10429-79 ave), and Ivor Mackay will be speaking about his experience doing the 100 mile diet and about local food.
Ivor would also like to know if anyone knows people who are interested in teaching learning, and developing traditional and "Primitive" skills. These skills would be everything from spinning and natural dying of wools, to making cordage, baskets, bow, arrows, tanning, pottery, preserving food and much more. There is a very wide variety of skills. We are not experts. We are keen to work with like minded people to create a wealth of knowledge.
If you can help in this project please contact Ivor or Lona at ivormack@telusplanet.net
You may also want to visit this website too http://paleoplanet69529.yuku.com/
And if anyone is interested in building an Apple press. Ivor has the plans and is looking for assistance. You can contact him at ivormack@telusplanet.net
Hmm, I guess that wasn't really short was it? Oh well, there will still be more on the blog next week, so check back then.
take care,
Maureen
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Sticky PLU Labels on Fruit Provide Useful Health Information
Hello all,
our meeting on local food is tonight, and I just got an email today that explains the stickers on fruit. If you don't already know this information it may be helpful to you.
Maureen
Sticky PLU Labels on Fruit Provide Useful Health Information
by Heidi Stevenson (see all articles by this author)
Originally published July 28 2008
(NaturalNews) Who would have imagined that those irritating little labels stuck on fruit would provide helpful information? Their purpose isn't, of course, to help the public. Nonetheless, the codes identify whether fruit is full of pesticides and grown with petroleum-based fertilizers or organic, and even when it's genetically modified.
When those stickies first started appearing on fruit, it seemed a tad strange. As if the supermarkets were determined to add another level of frustration to already-stressed lives. The aggravation of pulling a label off a perfect fruit, the embodiment of nature's bounty, only to have part of the peel come off too was... well, infuriating. And the fact that there was yet another code designed not to enlighten, but to obfuscate, to keep information from us simply added insult to injury.
Still, those disgustingly wasteful labels that end up in the landfills and take up your precious time to peel off do more than speed up the checkout process in the supermarket. They can help you avoid eating chemicals and genetically modified organisms.
The Labeling System
The codes are applied not only to fruit, but also to vegetables, herbs, and nuts, though labels are normally stuck only on fruit. They consist of four or five numbers. The system is quite simple. Fruit is divided into three classes: conventional, organic, and genetically modified.
All four-digit coded fruit is conventionally raised. So, if you don't see five digits, then it's safe to assume that the fruit is contaminated with pesticides and petroleum-based fertilizers, and is grown in depleted soils.
Five digit codes are simply the four digits with a single number added to the front: 8 or 9.
If the first of five numbers is 9, then it has been grown to the standards defined by the National Organic Standards Board. This is obviously preferable to conventionally-grown fruit.
If the first of five numbers is 8, the fruit is genetically modified. It means that it has been grown conventionally with poisons in depleted soil, from frankenseeds.
For example, let's take a simple Valencia orange. Its code is 4014. 84014 is the code of a small genetically modified Valencia orange. 94014 is the code of a small organic Valencia orange.
* 4 digits: The fruit likely comes with a burden of poisons and was grown in depleted soil.
* 5 digits, first is 8: This fruit is genetically modified, a GMO. It contains genes that were not put there by nature.
* 5 digits, first is 9: This fruit has been grown to an organic standard. Although the standard is not as strict as some produced by the most serious organic farmers, it is certainly superior to conventionally-grown or GMO fruit.
Who's Behind PLU Codes
It all started back in 1949. The Produce Marketing Association (PMA) was founded for the purpose of taking advantage of new packaging technologies and the developing style of self-service grocery shopping to promote the produce business. Since then, agribusiness has taken over most farming and PMA has grown accordingly. It has become the focal point of coordination in large-scale national and international produce marketing.
The International Federation for Produce Standards (IFPS) is associated with PMA. It assigns and administers Price Look Up (PLU) codes -- those numbers on sticky labels -- and keeps a database of them.
Originally intended to speed checkout in supermarkets, PLU codes are now being pushed as a means to provide quality accountability and to limit the costs involved in tracing bad products that have already been distributed.
More Info From PLU Numbers
If you're interested in finding out more about PLU numbers, simply go to the IFPS website, which provides the PLU database online (http://plucodes.com/search_wizard.aspx?s=1)
You must fill in four fields, but the information requested is not personal and cannot identify you. From there, you can find out what codes are used for particular types of produce and information associated with any code. Do not look for the first digit (8 or 9) of a five-digit code. Only four digits are included. (Keep in mind that the 8 or 9 is merely tacked onto the front of a four-digit code.)
For example, if you pick up an avocado with the code 4221 on it, you could look it up and find that it's classed as a small avocado that was grown in the eastern part of north America.
Every Little Bit Helps
Information available from PLU codes isn't as complete as shoppers should have. Nonetheless, it's nice to know that a tool intended only to provide information beneficial to agribusiness and supermarkets provides a real benefit to everyday consumers.
Remember: If the code is five digits in length, check out that first digit carefully. If it's an 8, put it back -- and consider making a complaint to the supermarket for stocking it.
About the author
* Heidi Stevenson, BSc, DIHom, FBIH
* Fellow, British Institute of Homeopathy
* Gaia Therapy (http://www.gaia-therapy.com/)
*
* The author is a homeopath who became concerned with medically-induced harm as a result of her own experiences and those of family members. She says that allopathic medicine is the arena that best describes the motto, "Buyer beware."
*
* Iatrogenic disease is illness, disability, and death caused by medical practice. It is common, resulting in huge costs to society and individuals. It's possible - even common - to suffer an iatrogenic illness without realizing its source.
*
* Heidi Stevenson provides information about medically-induced disease and disability, along with incisive well-researched articles on major issues in the modern world, so members of the public can protect themselves.
our meeting on local food is tonight, and I just got an email today that explains the stickers on fruit. If you don't already know this information it may be helpful to you.
Maureen
Sticky PLU Labels on Fruit Provide Useful Health Information
by Heidi Stevenson (see all articles by this author)
Originally published July 28 2008
(NaturalNews) Who would have imagined that those irritating little labels stuck on fruit would provide helpful information? Their purpose isn't, of course, to help the public. Nonetheless, the codes identify whether fruit is full of pesticides and grown with petroleum-based fertilizers or organic, and even when it's genetically modified.
When those stickies first started appearing on fruit, it seemed a tad strange. As if the supermarkets were determined to add another level of frustration to already-stressed lives. The aggravation of pulling a label off a perfect fruit, the embodiment of nature's bounty, only to have part of the peel come off too was... well, infuriating. And the fact that there was yet another code designed not to enlighten, but to obfuscate, to keep information from us simply added insult to injury.
Still, those disgustingly wasteful labels that end up in the landfills and take up your precious time to peel off do more than speed up the checkout process in the supermarket. They can help you avoid eating chemicals and genetically modified organisms.
The Labeling System
The codes are applied not only to fruit, but also to vegetables, herbs, and nuts, though labels are normally stuck only on fruit. They consist of four or five numbers. The system is quite simple. Fruit is divided into three classes: conventional, organic, and genetically modified.
All four-digit coded fruit is conventionally raised. So, if you don't see five digits, then it's safe to assume that the fruit is contaminated with pesticides and petroleum-based fertilizers, and is grown in depleted soils.
Five digit codes are simply the four digits with a single number added to the front: 8 or 9.
If the first of five numbers is 9, then it has been grown to the standards defined by the National Organic Standards Board. This is obviously preferable to conventionally-grown fruit.
If the first of five numbers is 8, the fruit is genetically modified. It means that it has been grown conventionally with poisons in depleted soil, from frankenseeds.
For example, let's take a simple Valencia orange. Its code is 4014. 84014 is the code of a small genetically modified Valencia orange. 94014 is the code of a small organic Valencia orange.
* 4 digits: The fruit likely comes with a burden of poisons and was grown in depleted soil.
* 5 digits, first is 8: This fruit is genetically modified, a GMO. It contains genes that were not put there by nature.
* 5 digits, first is 9: This fruit has been grown to an organic standard. Although the standard is not as strict as some produced by the most serious organic farmers, it is certainly superior to conventionally-grown or GMO fruit.
Who's Behind PLU Codes
It all started back in 1949. The Produce Marketing Association (PMA) was founded for the purpose of taking advantage of new packaging technologies and the developing style of self-service grocery shopping to promote the produce business. Since then, agribusiness has taken over most farming and PMA has grown accordingly. It has become the focal point of coordination in large-scale national and international produce marketing.
The International Federation for Produce Standards (IFPS) is associated with PMA. It assigns and administers Price Look Up (PLU) codes -- those numbers on sticky labels -- and keeps a database of them.
Originally intended to speed checkout in supermarkets, PLU codes are now being pushed as a means to provide quality accountability and to limit the costs involved in tracing bad products that have already been distributed.
More Info From PLU Numbers
If you're interested in finding out more about PLU numbers, simply go to the IFPS website, which provides the PLU database online (http://plucodes.com/search_wizard.aspx?s=1)
You must fill in four fields, but the information requested is not personal and cannot identify you. From there, you can find out what codes are used for particular types of produce and information associated with any code. Do not look for the first digit (8 or 9) of a five-digit code. Only four digits are included. (Keep in mind that the 8 or 9 is merely tacked onto the front of a four-digit code.)
For example, if you pick up an avocado with the code 4221 on it, you could look it up and find that it's classed as a small avocado that was grown in the eastern part of north America.
Every Little Bit Helps
Information available from PLU codes isn't as complete as shoppers should have. Nonetheless, it's nice to know that a tool intended only to provide information beneficial to agribusiness and supermarkets provides a real benefit to everyday consumers.
Remember: If the code is five digits in length, check out that first digit carefully. If it's an 8, put it back -- and consider making a complaint to the supermarket for stocking it.
About the author
* Heidi Stevenson, BSc, DIHom, FBIH
* Fellow, British Institute of Homeopathy
* Gaia Therapy (http://www.gaia-therapy.com/)
*
* The author is a homeopath who became concerned with medically-induced harm as a result of her own experiences and those of family members. She says that allopathic medicine is the arena that best describes the motto, "Buyer beware."
*
* Iatrogenic disease is illness, disability, and death caused by medical practice. It is common, resulting in huge costs to society and individuals. It's possible - even common - to suffer an iatrogenic illness without realizing its source.
*
* Heidi Stevenson provides information about medically-induced disease and disability, along with incisive well-researched articles on major issues in the modern world, so members of the public can protect themselves.
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