August 2009

GREETINGS

It is now official: our PreThanksgiving Feast will take place this year on Saturday, Nov. 21, at the North Shore Presbyterian Church in Shorewood. It’s a great venue, and those of us who remember our first Feasts there are full of enthusiasm about going there again. Mark your calendars now!

As suggested before in these pages, I am eager to find things that MARV might do between now and then to promote vegetarianism. In especial, I’m thinking of World Vegetarian Day on October 1, and wondering if this year (finally!) we might use that opportunity to seek a little publicity for the cause. Might we try to get on some talk radio show(s)? Last winter, when we were discussing Great American Meat-Out activities, someone suggested dropping literature in as many doctors’ offices as we could reach. Our letter-writing campaign didn’t work out for the Meat-Out, but maybe if we orchestrate it better we might make it work for World Vegetarian Day. Any other ideas? As the evidence keeps mounting about the world ecological/ climate/ food supply problems of raising and eating animals for food, I feel more and more strongly that vegetarians really ought to be working overtime to help people move towards the obvious alternative. But to do something in early Fall, now is when we have to come up with an idea, plan it out, and get ready to act, whether that means targeting and contacting a show host, or selecting and acquiring flyers, or whatever. Come to a potluck with ideas, or contact me (Louise) at chuckgyver@aceweb.com or 414-962-2703.

M.A.R.V. ACTIVITIES

Sunday, Aug. 2, 5 PM, regular potluck at the Friends’ Meeting House, 3224 N. Gordon Pl. in Riverwest (from Humboldt Blvd., go east on Auer a few short blocks to the parking lot).

Food theme is native seasonal veggies: corn, beans, squash, tomatoes, new potatoes, pepper

Subsequent regular potlucks will be on Sept. 6, Oct. 4, and Nov. 1

Saturday, Nov. 21, PreThanksgiving Feast

Other veg-friendly potlucks

The August macrobiotic potluck will be at Emily F. and Bill Keelty’s place at noon (note the time) on Aug. 30: 6506 Silver Beach Road North (Harrington Beach exit off I43). Call 262-285-3331 to confirm and get directions.

The Urban Ecology Center’s vegetarian potluck will be on Thursday, Aug. 20 at 6:30 PM at 1500 E. Park Pl. – bring plate and fork as well as your meatless dish. Phone is 414-964-8505.

Vegan Meetup: to find out about possible August events, check the Vegan Meetup website.

QUOTES OF THE MONTH

“,…the new Food Safety Enhancement Act of 2009 (HR2749)…does not address underlying causes…When addressing the concerns of e. coli or salmonella, the bill focuses on fresh vegetables and fruits rather than CAFOs (Confined Animal Feeding Operations), in effect treating the symptoms and not the disease…”

-- Organic Consumers Association

“Fruit makes us happy!”

-- Deborah Madison, quoted in Prevention

NEWS

Animal foods are still bad for you, in a variety of ways. A study of Spanish men found that those with the highest levels of meat and full-fat dairy consumption had lower sperm counts, while normal sperm quality was associated with higher intake of carbohydrates, fiber, folate, vitamin C, and lycopene (translation: whole grains and produce). An Austalian study found that people who eat lots of red meat are 50% more likely to develop age-related macular degeneration. Good Medicine, the publication of the Physicians’ Committee for Responsible Medicine, reports on studies finding that meat cooked at high temperatures has been linked to colorectal cancer, and that eating meat and high glycemic-index foods increases the risk of kidney cancer. Another study found that foods high in saturated (animal-food) fats and transfats, when eaten during midlife, are associated with lowered cognitive function. And then there are issues over fish oils. One study found that fish oils offer no heart benefits; another found that eating fish may ward off dementia (while eating meat increases its likelihood). It is probably about the omega-3 fatty acids, which are known in any case to help cognitive function – so eat your dark green leafy vegetables, flax seeds and their oil, hemp seed oil, and walnuts.

Then there was an incident in which a Haz-mat team was sent to a milk tanker crash in PA, because too much milk in streams will kill fish. A Univ. of Louisville neurologist warned that farmed fish could become a source of mad cow disease because they are fed slaughterhouse waste. And Prevention magazine did an article on a nasty microbe called methicillin-resistant staph, which can cause dangerous illness if picked up at a hospital or gym (for example); the article made very clear that factory farms are the reason this is a problem at all (one of their suggestions for how to keep safe was “Stock up on nonmeat protein sources.”)

Cookie dough made at a Nestle plant in February tested positive for e. coli – in June, leading to a recall (just a little late). Congress is finally trying to act on egg safety in particular and food safety in general, but most of the measures being proposed at this point merely involve working towards creating useful rules. The Obama administration has announced, though, an intention to really ban many uses of antibiotics in raising animals – which might just decrease factory farming, which really can’t work without them.

In other news, swine flu is still out there, although somewhat in abeyance for the summer. The question is whether it will resurge in the fall, and if so whether it will still be mildish or will have gotten nastier. Vaccine production for it is not going well. And while it was good news that no one was injured in the spectacular fire at the Patrick Cudahy meat-packing plant on July 6, it was sad that the plant was not shut down by it. It was good news, though, that a Missouri couple got a $1.1 million settlement from a hog farm near them due to its odor releases; perhaps this will help repress such operations? And the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable future – not exactly a fringe group – is urging people to adopt Meatless Mondays.

Yet another study suggests that rhesus monkeys whose calories are restricted all their lives live longer and healthier (though the NY Times photo of the fat unhealthy monkey looked complacent, while the thin healthy monkey in the picture looked disgruntled…). On a different note, a new study found that vegetables and fruits lose vitamins pretty quickly even when stored in the refrigerator; advice is to buy locally grown produce that spent less time in transport, and eat it promptly –and/or eat food that was frozen soon after picking.

Regarding water (always vegan!), an Australian tourist town created a flap in the bottled water industry by voting to ban bottled water from their jurisdiction. The bottle-banning campaign was triggered by a bottling company seeking to extract millions of liters of water from the local aquifer. And another potable liquid, organic milk, is still involved in controversy over accusations that Horizon and Dean Foods are really factory farming their organic-milk cows in confinement conditions, contrary to organic rules. (Organic Valley, a Wisconsin-based coop of small farms, is a better choice if you want to buy organic milk.)

And of course, plant foods are still good for you.

Good Medicine reported on two new studies in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which found that eating soy foods decreases risk of prostate and breast cancers. And PCRM is itself involved in studies which are showing that a vegan diet helps fight type 2 diabetes. Organic Gardening magazine reported on a study which found that eating lots of fruits and vegetables helped older people minimize calcium excretion and thus preserve bone mass; the theory is that produce is digested into alkaline residue so calcium can stay in the bones and not be used to neutralize the acidic residue from digesting animal foods. More specifially, an item in Prevention reported on research which found that carotenoids, the antioxidents in red/orange/pink vegetables and fruits, may help safeguard bone density in women.

Prevention had a number of interesting items, in fact. One listed various foods that help fight cholesterol, naming shiitake, maitake, and enoki mushrooms, beans, walnuts, oats, and replacing saturated fats with omega-3s (fish were suggested, but see above for non-fish sources). Another mentioned that the amino acid arginine, which is abundant in watermelon (of all things), may help promote weight loss.

And in a third item, whole grains, blueberries, green tea, and dried fruit were four foods suggested as helping people reduce tummy fat.

Good Medicine reported on research about which cooking methods best preserve antioxidents in vegetables. The study found that for most veggies, cooking without added oil on a griddle, or microwaving, worked best, while boiling and pressure-cooking were worst, al-though artichokes, beets, green beans, and garlic were less affected than other varieties – and celery and carrots were actually found to be more nutritious after cooking.

Salt is certainly vegan, but a “Simply Health” article in the Outpost Exchange nonetheless warns that it is way too easy in our society to eat way more than is good for you. The easiest way to cut down, it advised, is simply to stop eating processed foods – and eat more fruits and vegetables instead. And on a similar note, the Whole Foods magazine ran an article about making the best choices of packaged foods in the grocery store. It recommended for breads, crackers, cereals, and other grains that you look for whole grains, less fat, more fiber, and avoid saturated fat, trans fat, and added sugars; for frozen or canned fruits and vegetables the suggestions were to go for unsweetened, and if canned packed in water or its own juice, while avoiding syrups, juices that are not 100% fruit/ vegetable, and that minimize sodium.

Finally, it’s produce season: in-season fruits include blueberries, raspberries, plums, melons, peaches, and nectarines, while seasonal veggies include cukes, green beans, carrots, tomatoes, basil, summer squash, and sweet corn. YUM!

DIALOG

As mentioned above, and discussed in previous issues, there is a whole controversy going on about enforcement of organic standards. It was perhaps predictable that the agriculture/ food industry, after fighting against an organic standard for so long and then losing, would follow up by trying to water it down. The Cornucopia Institute, which has taken the lead in watch-dogging this matter, has complained to Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack about suspect imports of “organic” grain, nuts, and vegetables from China as well as other coun-tries. And it has also raised the problem of supposedly organic milk, beef, and eggs that are actually, it claims, being raised in de facto confinement settings which technically approximate organic standards but really come to factory farm business as usual. Examples of this are egg operations where there is an open door to an outdoor area, but the outdoor area is in fact so small and uninviting to the hens that it is never used, or dairy barns where apparent access to the outdoors fails to result in the cows actually being on grass the way the organic standard requires. The latest move in this story is Dean Foods’ WhiteWave division announcing that it will release a new non-organic “natural” line of dairy foods.

What can you do? If you do buy dairy, buy Organic Valley rather than Horizon/ Dean – and don’t be fooled by the word “natural,” which is legally meaningless. And if you want to do more, Organic Consumers Association suggests that you tell Kathleen Merrigan, the

Dept. of Agriculture’s Deputy Secretary, that you want the USDA to put a stop to labeling fraud in the organic food and personal care industries. Go to capwiz.com/grassrootsnetroots/issues/alert/?alertid=13678531

CONNECTIONS

In July (the month just ending) the Outpost Exchange honored MARV’s own friends, Citizens United for Animals (CUFA) as “Community Heroes”. A number of people are active in both MARV and CUFA, and Chuck and I remember that when MARV first got started, fifteen years ago this fall, CUFA really helped us get going. Way to go, CUFA.

OCCASIONAL TRUTH IS WEIRDER THAN FICTION DEPARTMENT

Good Medicine reported on a car created by scientists with the World First Racing team, which is made of such eco-friendly materials as potato fibers and resins, soybeans, and carrots; its biodiesel engine runs on chocolate extracts and vegetable oil.

Also, Chuck noticed an ABC News story on the internet, which reported that former President Bill Clinton, on his way to be a featured speaker at a “Weight of the Nation” conference in D.C., paused to order a take-out meal of a double burger, onion rings, French fries, and an apple-pie milkshake. Does the expression “unclear on the concept” ring any bells?