The last few days have brought the first hints of Autumn. The temperatures have dipped down into the 50's and 60's and my friends are starting to go apple picking. Light sweaters are becoming mandatory and the iced coffee is seeming less appealing than the Earl Grey tea. As summer comes to an end, so do the days of the great outdoor festival here in Massachusetts. Thankfully the most important one to hit the area in years sold out and reached record numbers through the combined show, live web cast and commercial free showing on DirectTv.
What I am talking about is Farm Aid. A slew of the most influential musicians of my lifetime came together 45 minutes south of our home office and put on an AMAZING day of music yesterday in honor of 23 years of Farm Aid. Arlo Guthrie, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chrissie Hynde and the Pretenders, Willie Nelson, Jakob Dylan, Dave Matthews, Neil Young and our company favorite.... Mr. John Mellencamp. They all gathered to raise money and awareness to the importance of the small family farmer. The American farmer is at the root of the eco movement. Fresh wholesome food ...produced, harvested and available in local markets in our towns and cities. Knowing the face and hands behind our food makes our food that much more nutritious. Not just to the body but also to the soul.
In my 33 years I have experimented with nearly every dietary category that exists. In my early childhood my mother helped a local farmer by labeling his produce boxes. I can't remember much of this time except that I do remember being fond of Arby's and their horsey sauce. A few years after we moved from the Hudson Valley to Florida I was handed a copy of "Diet for a New America" and two weeks before Thanksgiving I informed my mother that I was from then on a vegetarian. I flirted with lacto-ovo vegetarianism, I added some fish, I became strict vegan.... all of it. In the mid to late 90's I had a few health crisis that led to my rebirth as a meat eater. A vegetarian and animal rights activist for nearly 12 years, I found it difficult to justify and pardon the term but to swallow the idea that I needed to eat meat in order to be healthy. With this, in the late 90's and early 00's (is that what we call that? The 00's?) I started reading up on Macrobiotics.
The theory of eating local and seasonal resonated with me. Living in NYC I found it quite easy to be a successful macrobiotic, however, when I moved to Boston in 2002 I suddenly found macrobiotics to no longer be an accessible option for my lifestyle. I couldn't eat out, I didn't always want to eat in, my partner tried to accommodate but I felt like a social pariah and suddenly I found myself eating all types of things without thought. Until lately. It's been on my mind alot again. Eating locally and in season. No corn in December shipped from Mexico, no bananas because they just don't grow in Massachusetts. Tomatoes in February?! Strawberries from California?
The global kitchen has opened our eyes and diversified our palates but at what expense? Why do my parents have difficulty finding strawberries and citrus fruit from Florida when they live there? All that they can find at market is fruit from California. Why are my dear friends in California finding Florida produce in their markets instead of their own local farms?
This problem isn't as simple when we consider our pets. How does one feed local? Unless you have the assistance of a good holistic nutritionist I would err on the side of a great commercial raw food such as Nature's Variety, a food mix from Sojourner Farms or Honest Kitchen or HIGH quality brand such as Orijen, Merrick's Before Grain, Abady, Solid Gold or Wolf Pack. With that said, IF you have assistance from a solid holistic nutritionist and vet I wholeheartedly believe that a home prepared meal with fresh meat, veggies, fruit, probiotics, oils and supplements is the HEALTHIEST thing you can do for your pet. By choosing a humanely and naturally raised protein source from your local region and supplementing that with local nutrient rich vegetables that are grown organically such as acorn squash, sweet potatoes, kale and bok choy and adding in some fresh seasonal berries and local cultured yogurt... then you will find a dog who shines. Vet bills that shrink. A life span that doubles. A carbon pawprint that reduces.
Thank you everyone who does what they can for the earth, for their pet and for the local small farmer.
Direct TV is matching dollar to dollar your donations to Farm Aid through the month of September. Find and join a local CSA . Sign up for a plot to grow your own or help to create a local community garden!
This is important. Our health and our future depends on it. Thanks everyone!
