Comments on: Who Are We Talking To? A Personal Reflection on the Business of Slow Food http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/ Just another WordPress weblog Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:04:35 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: Vanessa http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2608 Vanessa Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:32:14 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2608 Great piece Aaron! Thanks for sharing your childhood stories. What strikes me that you are looking back at so many changes in a relatively short span of time. That alone is encouraging. And we were just talking about the fact that this is prime time...nytimes, 60 minutes. We just have to keep working in our communities and outside of them. Great piece Aaron! Thanks for sharing your childhood stories. What strikes me that you are looking back at so many changes in a relatively short span of time. That alone is encouraging. And we were just talking about the fact that this is prime time…nytimes, 60 minutes. We just have to keep working in our communities and outside of them.

]]> By: Parke http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2586 Parke Wed, 25 Mar 2009 02:08:20 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2586 Good points. The remedy for Pollan's diagnosis is not necessarily that the good food movement needs a national institution and a lobbying platform for federal legislation. There are other ways to be ambitious. Good points. The remedy for Pollan’s diagnosis is not necessarily that the good food movement needs a national institution and a lobbying platform for federal legislation. There are other ways to be ambitious.

]]> By: Paul Kobulnicky http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2582 Paul Kobulnicky Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:39:38 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2582 I personally live and act the slow food life but I need to tell you, as many others have, that between the states on both coasts, the world is very different. Yes there are slow foodies in the Midwest ... but very, very few. Since we tend to congregate together we think we are many but we are not. There is a lot of work to do to get the bulk of the population to fully appreciate the food chain and the decisions that affect it. I personally live and act the slow food life but I need to tell you, as many others have, that between the states on both coasts, the world is very different. Yes there are slow foodies in the Midwest … but very, very few. Since we tend to congregate together we think we are many but we are not. There is a lot of work to do to get the bulk of the population to fully appreciate the food chain and the decisions that affect it.

]]> By: Gwen http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2579 Gwen Tue, 24 Mar 2009 13:41:09 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2579 I think we're ready. The food movement is not merely a swarm of hippies eating swiss chard and planting community gardens. There are national organizations, state and local government officials and armies of environmental lawyers ready to tell the government what we need next and how we can make it happen. The environmental and public health atrocities coming out of our conventional food system are well-documented and undeniable, and making policy change to solve these problems is well within reach. Those of us on the ground should keep eating our greens and planting our gardens, but there will soon be bills on capitol hill for us to call our senators and representatives about - keep an eye out for them! I think we’re ready. The food movement is not merely a swarm of hippies eating swiss chard and planting community gardens. There are national organizations, state and local government officials and armies of environmental lawyers ready to tell the government what we need next and how we can make it happen. The environmental and public health atrocities coming out of our conventional food system are well-documented and undeniable, and making policy change to solve these problems is well within reach. Those of us on the ground should keep eating our greens and planting our gardens, but there will soon be bills on capitol hill for us to call our senators and representatives about – keep an eye out for them!

]]> By: Civil Eats » Blog Archive » Fresh From Twitter http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2569 Civil Eats » Blog Archive » Fresh From Twitter Mon, 23 Mar 2009 16:09:58 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2569 [...] Take Action var process_images = false; « Who Are We Talking To? A Personal Reflection on the Business of Slow Food [...] [...] Take Action var process_images = false; « Who Are We Talking To? A Personal Reflection on the Business of Slow Food [...]

]]> By: Kirsten http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2568 Kirsten Mon, 23 Mar 2009 16:07:02 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2568 Thank you for a very thoughtful post. It brings up several things that I am somewhat concerned about in the food movement's shift to "prime time" and a DC focus. I hope that this shift is a "both/and" shift which won't take resources and energy away from the localities where this movement's heart and soul lives and breathes, but also helps fuel work at the local and state level. Having worked at the federal and state policy level for years, I've witnessed how local and state level policies have pushed DC to act - think of the motor-voter laws, FMLA (Family and medical leave act), equal pay, banning mercury, increasing renewable energy standards. All of these policies started out at the state level and gained momentum that pushed the federal government to act (although we're still waiting on mercury bans to be standardized across the country). I hope that food movement activists don't think of DC and the current administration will be able to pass a few bills and change it all. We're at the threshold of another chapter in changing how America eats, but there is still much to be done at the local level to keep that change moving forward. Thank you for a very thoughtful post. It brings up several things that I am somewhat concerned about in the food movement’s shift to “prime time” and a DC focus. I hope that this shift is a “both/and” shift which won’t take resources and energy away from the localities where this movement’s heart and soul lives and breathes, but also helps fuel work at the local and state level. Having worked at the federal and state policy level for years, I’ve witnessed how local and state level policies have pushed DC to act – think of the motor-voter laws, FMLA (Family and medical leave act), equal pay, banning mercury, increasing renewable energy standards. All of these policies started out at the state level and gained momentum that pushed the federal government to act (although we’re still waiting on mercury bans to be standardized across the country).

I hope that food movement activists don’t think of DC and the current administration will be able to pass a few bills and change it all. We’re at the threshold of another chapter in changing how America eats, but there is still much to be done at the local level to keep that change moving forward.

]]> By: Amerigo http://civileats.com/2009/03/23/who-are-we-talking-to-a-personal-reflection-on-the-business-of-slow-food/comment-page-1/#comment-2566 Amerigo Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:46:12 +0000 http://civileats.com/?p=2735#comment-2566 Over the past 40 years, the organic/sustainable/local movement has built the grass-roots infrastructure into what it is today. We should all be grateful and reflect on how far we have come. Having said that, I do believe we are approaching, or have reached, a critical point. If USDA continues to support a cheap food policy, sustainably produced nutrient dense food will become a priviledge for those who can afford it.(Actually, it already has.) To ensure choice of food is a right, not a priviledge, I believe a centralized policy infrastructure is necessary. Micheal Pollan makes a sober oberservation. Organic/sustainable/local has no coherent policy right now. No pragmatic approach to USDA. It's very nature is decentralized, and as long as it remains so, it will remain a priviledge. NSAC- http://sustainableagriculture.net/ -is one policy advocate that is addressing the nuts and bolts of the Farm Bill. I'm sure there are others. This is the kind of work that will need to done. Over the past 40 years, the organic/sustainable/local movement has built the grass-roots infrastructure into what it is today. We should all be grateful and reflect on how far we have come.

Having said that, I do believe we are approaching, or have reached, a critical point. If USDA continues to support a cheap food policy, sustainably produced nutrient dense food will become a priviledge for those who can afford it.(Actually, it already has.) To ensure choice of food is a right, not a priviledge, I believe a centralized policy infrastructure is necessary. Micheal Pollan makes a sober oberservation. Organic/sustainable/local has no coherent policy right now. No pragmatic approach to USDA. It’s very nature is decentralized, and as long as it remains so, it will remain a priviledge.

NSAC- http://sustainableagriculture.net/ -is one policy advocate that is addressing the nuts and bolts of the Farm Bill. I’m sure there are others. This is the kind of work that will need to done.

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