I’m going to guess that many of you don’t love grocery shopping. Most people don’t particularly enjoy it and I blame two ever-present grocery store features: 1- shopping carts, and 2- automatic doors.
While I accept there are times when a shopping cart is necessary — should one be hosting a large dinner party, picking up dog food, or have a small child or three in tow -– I’ve personally found that my shopping is better done in smaller, more frequent doses. The handheld basket approach accomplishes two specific desirables. Firstly, I’m more thoughtful about what I pick up because, well, I have to freaking carry it. This helps keep me away from impulse buys and food wasted in the fridge. The second pretty great thing accomplished with small and frequent trips to the store is I get to avoid the cart. No wobbly left front wheel. No mid-isle traffic jams. No toppled displays or Urgent Care trips when the obligatory and super-fun cart ride down aisle six goes awry.
Automatic doors generally bum me out because I actually like holding the door for people and I like it when they hold the door for me. There’s something refreshing about acknowledging, smiling at, and saying thank you to a stranger. No matter how crazy your day has been and frantic you may feel, when someone takes a moment to hold the door for you and smile, the Crazy inside falls away a little. Take that pleasantry away by adding automatic doors, and the grocery store seems increasingly like a mad, crowded scramble for food.
And that is why I don’t love carts and automatic doors. I do, however, LOVE planning a meal and (yes) shopping for food. Love. It.
Today I spent an inappropriate amount of 9 to 5 time thinking about what I wanted to make for dinner, Googling what I wanted to make for dinner, and listing ingredients for what I wanted to make for dinner. After all that noodling I went with something super simple, classic, seasonally appropriate, and gluten free — just in case one or two celiac friends decided to come by. I also chose this dish because there are only a handful of ingredients, and the fewer ingredients I’m working with, the easier it is to Know My Food.
So tonight, here’s how I Know My Food.
Kale & White Bean Soup with Polenta Biscuits
Kale – Organic and still available…hooray!
White Beans – Organic and dried. From our winter farm share.
Shallots – Organic and inexpensive at Whole Foods. Nice.
Chicken Stock – Homemade and frozen from roast chickens past.
Andouille – Applegate Farms makes rock star organic sausages. The fire roasted pepper would be yummy here too.
Beef Stock – Organic. It’s not a necessary ingredient, but a splash is super-nice with the kale.
Polenta Biscuits – Organic and oh-so-easy to make: build a firm polenta, drop like batter into muffin tins, and bake. They’ll fall apart perfectly and without mush-factor in your soup.
After going through my ingredient list, I realized that to build this pot of deliciousness all I needed to pick up at the grocery store was the sausage, kale, beef broth, and a smattering of other household items that all fit neatly into my handheld basket. And while automatic doors are unavoidable these days, even at my tiny little Whole Foods, the shopping cart has been skirted yet again! All in all, I’d say it was a success.
To share why you want to Know Your Food from Farm to Fridge and List to Ladle, join us at www.iwillknowmyfood.com
Update 2/4/12: Recently, there have been a number of a rumors circling around and stemming from links and re-posts of an article from January 2011 (i.e. a year old article). The article – and the rumors – are untrue and the claims are still as inaccurate and divisive this February as they were last January when it came out. It’s also the wrong thing to be focusing on at a time when so much good is happening. We are happy to share what we’ve really been up to in our long-term fight against GMOs and Monsanto.
Maybe you’ve also heard our other recent news: our CE-Yo Gary Hirshberg will be changing his role here at Stonyfield so he can spend more time advocating for change in our current food system, especially the labeling of GMOs in our foods. We believe that we have the right to know what’s in our food and how it is produced. We’ve been busy here at Stonyfield fighting the good fight – continuing the work we’ve been doing for years – and would love to have you join us.
Here is some of what we’ve been up to recently:
1. Standing Alongside Just Label It
More than 500,000 people have joined us in submitting comments to the FDA in favor of labeling genetically engineered foods. That’s remarkable! We’re standing alongside Just Label It and asking all of our friends, fans, and yogurt lovers to join us.
We have no time to lose. The FDA is preparing to approve genetically engineered salmon, which would be the first genetically engineered animal on the market in the United States and a huge departure from the status quo. Plus, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is considering a proposal to deregulate corn engineered to be resistant to the herbicide 2,4-D, a major component in Vietnam-era Agent Orange. (In fact, some people are calling it Agent Orange Corn, for short.)
Watch the new video from filmmaker Robert Kenner, who produced and directed the Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning documentary Food, Inc. If you too believe we all have a right to know what’s in our food, then write to the FDA right now. (link)
2. Writing the First Consumer Guide to Genetic Engineering
“Before the GE experiment goes any further, we believe it’s critical that each of us be allowed to choose whether we wish to be human guinea pigs: Foods produced with GE ingredients must be labeled.” – from Label It Now
Gary, our Co-Founder and Chairman, and Britt Lundgren, our Director of Organic and Sustainable Agriculture, joined with Dr. Charles Benbrook, the Organic Center’s Chief Scientist to write an e-book called: Label It Now – What You Need to Know About Genetically Engineered Foods. The book cuts through the complicated scientific debate about genetically modified food to put forth a simple premise: We all have a right to know what’s in our food.
At just $2.99, Label It Now is available at iBookstore here and for download on iTunes here. All proceeds from the book go to support of the Just Label It campaign.
3. Making Our Voices Heard
We’re not shy about helping to educate on organic and the risks of genetically engineered foods and neither is Gary! He’s been out and about making some great – informative – noise and fostering important conversations recently.
Listen to Gary on NPR’s Diane Rehm show. Or read about the highlights of his talk on nutritionist Melinda Hemmelgarn’s blog.
Gary also teamed up with Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation and co-producer of Food Inc., to write an op-ed about your right to know what’s in your food that appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle. Read it here.
4. Helping You Get to Know Your Food
Just this month we launched an exciting campaign on iWillKnowMyFood.com to help us all make our food a little less of a stranger. We’ve started a space to help you get to know more about the food you eat. We’re sharing blog posts from experts, videos about Stonyfield’s farmers, origins, and ingredients sourcing, and some of the best food news articles and resources around. This month, for example, nutritionist Ashley Koff sheds insight into “What Your Refrigerator Predicts About You”.
We invite you to join in the conversation. Stop by and commit to get to know your food this year. Start by taking a look into your fridge and telling us what you want to know. Then check back to keep learning more!
Why should we care what our kids – anyone’s kids – are eating in school?
A healthy school food program is national security, preventative health care, and sustainable economic development rolled into one. I can’t imagine a more forward-looking and sound national investment than improving the quality of the foods we provide our kids at school.
Stonyfield is a proud sponsor of the Green Schools National Conference, the largest-ever gathering of K-12 school administrators, teachers, students and parents. This landmark conference (set for late February in Denver) is evidence that the green school effort has become a growing national movement that believes the health of our planet and our students are too important to ignore.
I’m privileged to be among the conference speakers, along with US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and I look forward to meeting principals, teachers, and students who are creating the green schools of the future.
The term “green schools” has come to mean more than energy-efficient buildings and school gardens. “Green” means much more, including integrating environmental education into traditional curriculum, instituting school-wide recycling programs, and, of course, providing healthier options on the lunch line.
The average price of a school meal may be cheap, but the costs are huge. Cheap, nutritionally deficient or unhealthy food impairs body and brain development, depresses immune systems and sentences our children and our nation to a lifetime of costly health challenges.
The good news is, a growing number of schools understand the perils of unhealthy choices, and I look forward to reporting back on my experiences at the conference, as we work toward a healthier future for our planet and our children!
Gary
PS – I strongly encourage anyone involved in education – principals, school board members, teachers, and others – to consider attending this wonderful conference, set for Feb 27-29 in Denver. For more info, visit www.greenschoolsnationalconference.org
The Stonyfield crew is full of proud doggie Moms and Dads, and as good puppy parents, we love to give (hu)man’s best friend tasty treats they love and we can feel good about.
Meet our new friend Jody Rodgers, CEO and founder of yöghund. yöghund is a nutritional ‘digestive friendly’ premium organic frozen yogurt with probiotics made especially for dogs which you’ll now find through our myStonyfield Rewards Program. (Sidenote: These guys may have the best tagline ever
– “yoghurt voor hunds“. Dat is geweldig!)
So, let us introduce you to one of our favorite myStonyfield Rewards partners and their line of organic frozen yogurt for the canine variety.
How did your company get started, Jody?
The concept of yöghund originated at The Barking Dog, Ltd., as a fun, innovative, and nutritional treat for the four legged guests that we cared for each day. There are often 100’s of dogs in our care at The Barking Dog facilities. Over the course of 20 years in the pet care business, The Barking Dog, Ltd. came to realize that loving pet owners were truly scrambling to find healthy treats for their pets that would also taste yummy! Realizing that the market was saturated with an array of fabricated dry treats and bones, and taking into account the fact that many dogs suffer from food allergies and intolerances, the thought of a nutritional ‘digestive friendly’ premium frozen yogurt which would be fun to lick, was born!
What is your company’s mission/philosophy?
yöghund’s mission is to seek to provide pet owners with wholesome, organic and natural functional treats, to help enhance overall pet health and well being, while avoiding unnecessary calories, fats, additives and preservatives. yöghund strives to offer innovative pet products at a good value, using environmentally sound packaging wherever possible; and to conduct business in a manner that is ethical and fair to its employees, investors, partners, customers and business associates, so all may benefit from our efforts.
Why are you excited about being a partner in the myStonyfield Rewards program?
Stonyfield has a very similar mission in the human realm. Their consumers understand the goodness of quality yogurt products and appreciate the benefits a healthy diet can offer. It is a natural fit for us, and we are thrilled be participating in this program.
Tell us the one thing your company is working on right now that you are really excited about.
yöghund is busy developing new products to broaden our offerings in functional dog treats. So keep your eyes peeled for new and exciting products from yöghund in the future!
What is your favorite flavor of Stonyfield yogurt (or product)?
My favorite is Oikos Organic Blueberry Frozen Yogurt!
Check out yöghund organic frozen yogurt for your dog on our myStonyfield Rewards site and if you are not already a rewards member, sign up here!
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