Local / Natural / Organic.....or not

I haven't blogged about food in a while........although our goal to produce food from our own veggie garden into the Fall was met - it turns out we don't like the masses of kale we grew.....now we know!  As winter takes a grip here it is so much harder to stick to the "eat local" plan and where as in the summer I would turn my back on a <insert fruit/veggie of choice> if it wasn't from our region, now I easily pick up one shipped from miles away because I just have to have <insert fruit/veggie of choice>.

So fickle and weak am I.  So easily sucked into the "have what you want when you want it" mindset.  I politely silence the facts I know to be true about carbon footprint etc.. etc.... and I justify the heck our of my choices........"the children need fresh veggies".......

Allan buying the fish off the boat

So when Sunday rolled around and I cast around for inspiration for Tuesday Soup Group I was feeling pretty awesome that I would use a salmon in the freezer we bought locally in the summer from the docks in Steveston (I even helped filet it and skin it ), bought my veggies from the local small green grocer in Steveston and use salmon stock Allan made and froze months ago.

Saint Nicky of the Salmon Chowder..........giving my halo a good polish with the dishtowel.  Before I checked where the fennel and dill came from........ oh well......at least half the soup is "local", it is all veggie and all organic.....and I have my fingers crossed it will be delicious. 

Two posts on FB this week made me realise that we have a long way to go in this whole "eat local" movement but I think the very fact it's getting out on social media so much and people are talking about it and making choices, even inconsistent choices like mine, then maybe that is at least half a step in the right direction.

Here are those links that made me think........I haven't had time to "verify" the facts here but even if only half of it is true it's horrifying enough....

Can You Guess What McDonald’s Food Item This Is?

Say hello to mechanically separated chicken. It’s what all fast-food chicken is made – things like chicken nuggets and patties. Also, the processed frozen chicken in the stores is made from it.

Basically, the entire chicken is smashed and pressed through a sieve — bones, eyes, guts, and all. it comes out looking like this.

There’s more: because it’s crawling with bacteria, it will be washed with ammonia, soaked in it, actually. Then, because it tastes gross, it will be reflavored artificially. Then, because it is weirdly pink, it will be dyed with artificial color.

But, hey, at least it tastes good, right?