Do you ever get weary of the onslaught of hype we get over what food we should or should not eat? I sure do, but there is a new twist in food marketing now,the so called organic's.
Many food ingredients will come as organic, to qualify
as certified organic a strict set of rules must be adhered to. Visit the USDA national
Organic Program for the complete program http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/indexIE.htm.
I believe in many cases, organic is better but the one that got me the last few days has been the marketing of
certified organic seafood. It just can’t happen, not by following the rules
above, and not with simple logic. How does one know for a certainty where a
fish in the wild swims and what does it eat, and what it does, it does that
contain anything not allowed on the list for certification?
Let's first look at what some consider this a new trend in dining, yet it is the original way of dining. Go out in the field and forage for what you require for the daily meal, take it home and enjoy. In doing so the diner enjoys a flavor experience that only the freshest ingredients can provide. Farm to fork food is locally-sourced, seasonally influenced, and produced in a sustainable and organic fashion. From fruit to nuts, meat and cheese, fowl and vegetables, every ingredient should be chosen as if they came off the farm minutes ago.
Why? Foods are more flavorful as they have traveled less and therefore are fresher. They are more nutritious because the longer the food travels from afar it loses health-promoting components, it has less opportunity to be contaminated with chemicals like sulfur dioxide (used to preserve freshness) or just fuel fumes and chemical sprays use to transport the food from large distance. Sulphites are used as preservatives used: antimicrobials that inhibit growth of bacteria, yeasts, or molds; antioxidants that slow air oxidation of fats and lipids, which leads to rancidity; or to block the natural ripening and enzymatic processes that continue to occur in food after harvest.
Let's first look at what some consider this a new trend in dining, yet it is the original way of dining. Go out in the field and forage for what you require for the daily meal, take it home and enjoy. In doing so the diner enjoys a flavor experience that only the freshest ingredients can provide. Farm to fork food is locally-sourced, seasonally influenced, and produced in a sustainable and organic fashion. From fruit to nuts, meat and cheese, fowl and vegetables, every ingredient should be chosen as if they came off the farm minutes ago.
Why? Foods are more flavorful as they have traveled less and therefore are fresher. They are more nutritious because the longer the food travels from afar it loses health-promoting components, it has less opportunity to be contaminated with chemicals like sulfur dioxide (used to preserve freshness) or just fuel fumes and chemical sprays use to transport the food from large distance. Sulphites are used as preservatives used: antimicrobials that inhibit growth of bacteria, yeasts, or molds; antioxidants that slow air oxidation of fats and lipids, which leads to rancidity; or to block the natural ripening and enzymatic processes that continue to occur in food after harvest.
Proteins (meat, fish and fowl) are often packaged with
addition of preserving gasses, carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen, allow these
food items extended shelf life up to as much 112 days (diced lamb). In Canada a
system called MAP (modified atmosphere packaging) is used to extend the shelf
life of proteins, it is a process of removing or changing the gas concentrations
(oxygen, nitrogen and carbon dioxide) from proteins. The US uses both the CO2
and MAP methods, often in combination. Extending to the shelf life of proteins poses
higher health risks for the consumer. Thus farm to fork philosophy provides far a superior dairy, vegetable or protein to consumers.Farm to table philosophy supports local economies because the money spent on local food
returns to the local purveyor supporting the "home grown" economy. The
local purveyor provides a fresher product can charge a fair (often less) price.
Gives the local purveyor opportunity to hire more local employees as well as
building personal relationships with their clients. Local, also gives the
dining establishment a stronger reputation within the community as one actually
supports the community.
Promotes seasonal dining because eating local often translates to eating what's seasonal in your area and offers us the chance to eat in conjunction with what nature is bearing to harvest. Seasonal dining means that chefs need to be creative in menu offerings, thus an ever changing opportunity for the consumer, no more stagnant menus, the same old same old has past.Chefs who support the philosophy buy at least 50% of their ingredients from small farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food producers within 100 miles and less than 150 miles from their kitchens, when possible. Climate may require flexibility in the philosophy, clearly a fresh most vegetables purchased in the middle of December in most of Canada cannot be grown locally. Yet, when it is seasonally available it is always first choice. The only way you could have an organic product would be to farm it, raise it, ensuring it is completely free from anything that could have it labelled as a GMO (genetically modified food) which then leads to a whole new batch of contentious issues.Most for products can carry the label as organic and be farmed to the table, however, I have some issues with fish and seafood being labelled such. As for fish and seafood it is nearly impossible to bear such a designation, as no fresh or sea water marine animal lives in a non polluted environment. Whether Pacific salmon, Lake Erie Pickerel of Gulf of Mexico shellfish, all marine life in all the worlds oceans are subjected to environmental pollutants.
Promotes seasonal dining because eating local often translates to eating what's seasonal in your area and offers us the chance to eat in conjunction with what nature is bearing to harvest. Seasonal dining means that chefs need to be creative in menu offerings, thus an ever changing opportunity for the consumer, no more stagnant menus, the same old same old has past.Chefs who support the philosophy buy at least 50% of their ingredients from small farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and food producers within 100 miles and less than 150 miles from their kitchens, when possible. Climate may require flexibility in the philosophy, clearly a fresh most vegetables purchased in the middle of December in most of Canada cannot be grown locally. Yet, when it is seasonally available it is always first choice. The only way you could have an organic product would be to farm it, raise it, ensuring it is completely free from anything that could have it labelled as a GMO (genetically modified food) which then leads to a whole new batch of contentious issues.Most for products can carry the label as organic and be farmed to the table, however, I have some issues with fish and seafood being labelled such. As for fish and seafood it is nearly impossible to bear such a designation, as no fresh or sea water marine animal lives in a non polluted environment. Whether Pacific salmon, Lake Erie Pickerel of Gulf of Mexico shellfish, all marine life in all the worlds oceans are subjected to environmental pollutants.
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