Fight anti-bacterial America with fresh food

Media is abuzz with talk this week about food bacteria.

First, updates about the Peanut Butter samonella outbreak recall foodstuffs nearly hourly.

Then, Jane Brody wrote in the New York Times about how eating a little dirt is actually good for you.  (The article also advocates pet ownership, something near to my heart.)

Cleveland food writer Michael Ruhlman's post connects the dots.  Processed food leads to elimination of good and bad bacteria leads to kids and adults with more allergies, digestive disorders, and diabetes.   He comes to the same conclusion I have - eat fresh whole foods, maybe with a tiny bit of dirt.  You will not be worried about recalls and you just might live a longer happier life!

How to Eat Homemade

Eating made from scratch meals is common in our house.  Most days we eat 3 meals of homemade food, mostly made from scratch. Many people we meet are stunned that we do this.  100 years ago everyone ate from home, but now many people are used to lunch out, and often breakfast and dinner on the run.

Yet research from dietitians and psychologists alike confirm that eating at home, and eating made from scratch food is healthier for our bodies and familial relationships.

So, how do you do it?

1) Make the commitment.  There are lots of reasons you might make homemade foods a priority.  We enjoy the food more than premade, like the culinary adventure, and feel closer as a family when we eat homemade foods.

2) Join a CSA, co-op, or herdshare.  This winter we have a weekly veggie CSA from Athens Hills, weekly milk /egg share from a farmer friend, a monthly meat CSA from 2Silos Farm, and monthly dry goods co-op from Frontier.  We've already paid for these items at the beginning of the season.  The pickups are closeby.  We can't stand to waste food, so once the groceries are in the house, we feel obligated to use them.

3) Plan.  Some people are meal planners who have a rotation of 21 dinners, or do a month in advance.  We are not such people.  We do try to write on a whiteboard on the fridge weekly our dinner plans.  That way we at least know how we will use most of the CSA foods and what we need to prep ahead.

4) Reduce trips to the grocery store.   When you have the right mix of planning and CSA/co-ops, grocery store trips become less needed, and the temptation to buy premade is reduced.

5) Take baby steps.  Slowly eliminate some of the processed food you eat and replace it with homemade.  You might start by baking bread once a week.  Or take a weekend day and make a big batch of jam, canning or freezing some for later.  Make double batches of soup, spice rubs, waffles, etc. and freeze or save the half you don't use for a quick meal later.  Much of the homemade food we eat is canned or frozen by us when we have time.  We all have things to work on: boxed crackers, corn chips, and cereal are still staples here, as is store bought kefir, cheese, and wine.

6) Lower your expectations.  Restaurant eating normalizes the experience of eating a meal with 4 or 5 components, often each with their own sauce.  Very often our homemade meals are much simpler.  Breakfast is yogurt and granola, oatmeal, or toast.  Lunch is usually packed for on the go eating: a simple protein (cheese, slice of meat, boiled egg), salad or veggie sticks, whole piece of fruit, and starch (chips, crackers, bread).  Dinner is protein (meat, beans, or meat substitute), starch (potato, rice, muffin), and veggie.  Here is a picture of tonight's dinner -fritatta with swiss chard, baked potato with leftover mushroom sauce from last night, and applesauce canned in the fall.

fritatta, potato, and applesauce

7) Enjoy the benefits!  If you make food from scratch more often, you might find yourself with a new friend in your CSA provider.  You will gain confidence in your cooking ability and your family will become closer.  You might even feel healthier.

What do you do to Eat Homemade?

How CPSIA will affect you, and me, and us all

Recently, Congress mandated that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lower lead and phthalate limits in children's products in a law called the Consumer Products Safety Information Act, or CPSIA. We 100% agree with the intent of the act: protect children from needless exposure to dangerous toxins.

It is the extent and unintended consequences of CPSIA that are troubling. Think about this. Do you:

Read books to children?

Shop thrift stores for products that might be used by kids under 12?

Enjoy handmade heirloom toys?

Donate old children's items to thrift stores?

Buy children's items from small manufacturers or retailers?

All of these actions are affected under current CPSIA rules. The legislation currently mandates that as of February 10, it is illegal to sell or give away items reasonably used by children under age 12 that do not carry a general certification of conformity. Penalties include jail time and fines; the maximums have not yet been established.

Handmade toys and clothing are two other industries threatened by CPSIA. Thousands of small in-home businesses make clothing and toys available on Etsy.com and at art fairs around the country. Many offer custom size and decor options.

The CPSIA regulations require testing of the final product (each product, that is the red truck, the blue truck, the yellow truck, etc.) to establish lead and phthalate content, at a rate of between $300 - $1000 per item. Component testing or pass through testing of materials is not currently allowable.

I foresee, then, a toy market that belongs wholly to mega manufacturers. Custom items including specially sized clothing, name puzzles, personalized chairs will be a thing of the past or only available at exorbitant prices. Families who relied on the income provided by sale of their handmade toys will have to find other work.

For used items, the CPSC issued a clarifying statement that is anything but clear. They say "The new law requires that domestic manufacturers and importers certify that children’s products made after February 10 meet all the new safety standards and the lead ban. Sellers of used children’s products, such as thrift stores and consignment stores, are not required to certify that those products meet the new lead limits, phthalates standard or new toy standards.

The new safety law does not require resellers to test children’s products in inventory for compliance with the lead limit before they are sold. However, resellers cannot sell children’s products that exceed the lead limit and therefore should avoid products that are likely to have lead content, unless they have testing or other information to indicate the products being sold have less than the new limit. Those resellers that do sell products in violation of the new limits could face civil and/or criminal penalties."

In my interpretation, this means that resellers can continue selling used items, but if they sell products in violation of the limits they can be held responsible. I forsee many thrift stores refusing to sell or accept donations, which means many used items will be thrown in a landfill instead of continuing their useful life.

Libraries and bookstores may be held accountable to the same testing standards for children's books as exist for toys, clothing, and other children's accessories. CPSC issued an opinion on books that affirms children's books must adhere to the lower lead limits. While I don't foresee libraries pulling all children's books off their shelves, it does appear that untested books will be considered a 'hazardous item'.

Here at Baying Hound, we have only a few items that fall into the 'primarily used by children under 12' category, namely the Klean Kanteen 12 ounce and sippy bottles. We have requested certification from the manufacturer. If we can not get certification we will stop selling these items.

I am more concerned about friends who make toys and clothing specifically for children, and how the potential loss of this whole industry will affect the American economy. Selfishly I am saddened that soon my choices for toys for my daughter will be limited to mega company junk or handmade toys bought under the table.

There is still time to affect change. The Handmade Toy Alliance has a fantastic site devoted to saving handmade toys. We share their position that the best course of action right now is to contact representatives and CPSC officials with the following proposal:

"I request the Consumer Product Safety Commission to make some very reasonable exclusions in their interpretation of the law as they continue their rulemaking process. These include exempting books and uncoated fabrics from testing and allowing manufacturers to rely upon testing done by their materials suppliers instead of paying for redundant unit-based testing. I would also like to see an exemption to third party testing requirements for micro-businesses similar to the exemptions granted by the FDA for small producers under the food labeling laws."

We have contacted our representatives by phone and email. We urge you to do the same. Find your Congressperson and Senator. The CPSC provides a web form for questions/comments.

Note:

All source data about the law was taken from the CPSC's website on CPSIA, http://www.cpsc.gov/ABOUT/Cpsia/cpsia.HTML I am not a lawyer, and even CPSIA's legal interpretations are preceeded with words of caution. My interpretations are solely mine.