This week’s theme is about healthy eating and the importance of teaching people how to cook. We have come across many different interesting articles about this theme and in particular the problems related to fast food and processed food.
Most of the readers of Food and Wine Gazette may be familiar with many of these issues but we always find some interesting points which we might have missed elsewhere or which help to raise awareness.
Our first read of the week is a Tedx Talk on Why the farm is not getting to the table. It is an interesting article by Leah on what is considered to be the food movement’s last mile problem – cooking. It is a skill that we are losing and it is the skill that actually connects the farm to our tables. If you look at the numbers it is pretty scary. In 1900, 2 per cent of meals were eaten outside the home. In 2010, 50 per cent were eaten away from home and one in five breakfasts is from McDonald’s. 20 per cent of all American meals are eaten in the car. At least one in 4 eat some type of fast food every day and Americans consume 31 percent more packaged food than fresh food. Read it or watch it. It is an eye opener.
Then there is a blogpost (in French) about a documentary The Sugar Film. The trailer of the documentary is in English and it is worth watching because it shows the devastating effect the so called ‘healthy’ products in the supermarket shelves have on people. The documentary promises to be extremely good. In the meantime watch what happens to someone who opts for a ‘healthy’ diet.
The next post deserves a blogpost in its own right. We will write about this video in the coming days. This is a lecture by American Michael Pollan who raises a lot of awareness about the perils of Fast Food. I guarantee that you will never look at a McDonald’s fry in the same way after listening to this lecture by Pollan.
Jamie Oliver also speaks about the future of food in an interview with Ted. He says that ultimately his only wish is for every child, in whichever way is relevant at the time, to be taught about food, where it comes from, how it affects their bodies, and how to cook it, allowing them to be confident in the kitchen and to enjoy food and all the pleasure it can bring to them and their future family. He says this is our biggest challenge.
On a more positive note, there is a really interesting initiative in Berlin. Airbnb, Uber etc we are nowadays in what we call the sharing economy. In Berlin there is a new experiment with food sharing sites thanks to concern for wasted food which has mounted in recent years. A number of refrigerators and shelves are being used to stock leftovers from private parties and restaurants, or people who might be travelling and have excess food. They are open to the public aimed at keeping food out of the garbage.
We’ve written about Liguria and the Cinque Terre before. Here is an article from the Frugal Traveler on the New York Times about the Cinque Terre on a budget.
You’ve probably heard that insects are the new thing to eat. There is now also the first wine guide for pairing wines with insects. We’re not sure we will be making use of it any time soon.
And to conclude there is a great article by Jamie Goode on wine critics and wine writers. He makes some very interesting points and we are in complete agreement with him.
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