VERSATILE FENNEL
Fennel seems to have an identity crisis, which may have to do with the family size (3000 species) to which it belongs, including parsley, caraway, cumin and coriander. Yet, under any of its gastronomic guises it’s an enormously pleasing food that fills the kitchen with sweetly licoriced aroma conjuring sunny Mediterranean landscapes. Italians employ the stem and bulb as a vegetable, the French treat it as an herb, using leaves in salads and the little known fennel flower to impart additional flavour to pickled olives and capers. In the San Francisco area, where the wild fennel grows in abundance, naturally sprigs are used to accent grilled shrimps, braised lamb shank infused with fennel and garlic tastes heavenly. You can also pound fennel, celery, olive oil, boiled potatoes and garlic to create a vegetarian brandade. You can use it lightly grilled in salads, even dice it and stuff fresh fish before pan-frying. Indians who have millennia’s worth experience with fennel claim it to be an aphrodisiac and digestive at the same time.Toronto, being the largest “Italian city” outside of Italy, identifies with fennel. Supermarkets routinely carry finocchio, or Florence fennel. Italians bake or braise it as an accompaniment to fish, meat and pork dishes. But the fennel goes best with fish. You can also use it diced in salads for an extra taste dimension.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Spice Buyer’s Journal: Destination Spain
Spice Buyer’s Journal: Destination Spain
McCormick’s chief spice buyer, Al Goetze, travels to exotic ports-of-call, trekking across varied terrain in search of the finest herbs and spices. In this journal entry, Al gives us a behind-the-scenes look at one of the most prized spices – saffron – as he recounts his recent trip to Spain, the world’s premier source for this culinary jewel.Saffron’s rich color and distinct flavor and aroma put it in a class by itself. Even more intriguing is the fact that the entire harvesting, drying and packaging process is done by hand. Saffron has been a part of Mediterranean history for thousands of years, and has been used as a flavoring, a natural dye, and even as perfume in ancient Egyptian and Roman times. Let me share with you the saffron story, and by the end of this journal, I’m sure you’ll agree that saffron is truly a treasure.The saffron crocus, Crocus sativus, is a small, purple flower that blooms every fall in Spain, Greece, India, and Iran. Saffron, the spice as we know it, is the bright red-orange stigma from this crocus. Each flower contains three stigmas, of approximately one inch in length. Total annual world production of saffron is less than 200 metric tons – just over 440,000 pounds.In South Central Spain, just below Madrid, is a province called Castilla La Mancha. It is a beautiful agricultural countryside made up of mountains and plateaus. One of the key areas we visited was near the town of Consuegra. Here, we saw vast numbers of old windmills, which were previously used to mill grains grown in the area. It was against this backdrop that we got a glimpse of our first field. Rows of the distinctive purple flowers lined the landscape.My local expert, Pepe, explained that each October, the crocus bulbs come to life. In fifteen days, the flowers reach maturity, with their colorful stigmas fully developed into the characteristic red-orange color.Saffron stigmas must be harvested in such a way that they do not excessively rub against the pollen rods, which can contaminate their exquisite color. For this reason, farmers like to harvest the flowers early in the morning on the first day they are in bloom, while the flower petals are still closed. Pepe told me that each crocus bulb produces about five new flowers over a short period of time. This means that the farmers must rally a large workforce in the villages to carry out the harvest.After harvest, flowers are taken to warehouses where villagers sit around tables and carefully separate the stigmas from each bud. Once the stigmas have been removed, they are lightly dried over charcoal embers.Villagers must keep close watch over the drying process to ensure there is no scorching, which results in loss of flavor and aroma. It is interesting to note that the stigmas lose about 75 percent of their weight during the drying process. In fact, Pepe informed me that because of this, it takes more than 225,000 stigmas to make just one pound of dried saffron! Only whole stigmas of saffron can be guaranteed to be true saffron.Dried saffron is packed in metal tins, where it can be kept for several years. Saffron has a perfumey, slightly bitter, honey-like flavor. A “spirited” tidbit I picked up on this trip is that aged saffron is used to make vermouth, as its bitter notes intensify over time.The tins are then shipped to the United States, where workers weigh the threads on digital scales before packaging them – by hand – in a cellophane envelope, which is then put into a white paper envelope. Once inside these protective coverings, the saffron is sealed into a glass bottle for freshness.This detailed process – from harvest through bottling – accounts for saffron’s premium price, but fortunately, a little of its extraordinary flavor goes a long way!Upon our return, we stopped at a roadside country restaurant and had some of the best paella I have ever tasted. The local seafood and chorizo sausage, flavored with saffron, was absolutely wonderful and the perfect way to end our visit.Saffron is widely used in Mediterranean, North African and South American cooking. It can be used in sweet and savory dishes.
McCormick’s chief spice buyer, Al Goetze, travels to exotic ports-of-call, trekking across varied terrain in search of the finest herbs and spices. In this journal entry, Al gives us a behind-the-scenes look at one of the most prized spices – saffron – as he recounts his recent trip to Spain, the world’s premier source for this culinary jewel.Saffron’s rich color and distinct flavor and aroma put it in a class by itself. Even more intriguing is the fact that the entire harvesting, drying and packaging process is done by hand. Saffron has been a part of Mediterranean history for thousands of years, and has been used as a flavoring, a natural dye, and even as perfume in ancient Egyptian and Roman times. Let me share with you the saffron story, and by the end of this journal, I’m sure you’ll agree that saffron is truly a treasure.The saffron crocus, Crocus sativus, is a small, purple flower that blooms every fall in Spain, Greece, India, and Iran. Saffron, the spice as we know it, is the bright red-orange stigma from this crocus. Each flower contains three stigmas, of approximately one inch in length. Total annual world production of saffron is less than 200 metric tons – just over 440,000 pounds.In South Central Spain, just below Madrid, is a province called Castilla La Mancha. It is a beautiful agricultural countryside made up of mountains and plateaus. One of the key areas we visited was near the town of Consuegra. Here, we saw vast numbers of old windmills, which were previously used to mill grains grown in the area. It was against this backdrop that we got a glimpse of our first field. Rows of the distinctive purple flowers lined the landscape.My local expert, Pepe, explained that each October, the crocus bulbs come to life. In fifteen days, the flowers reach maturity, with their colorful stigmas fully developed into the characteristic red-orange color.Saffron stigmas must be harvested in such a way that they do not excessively rub against the pollen rods, which can contaminate their exquisite color. For this reason, farmers like to harvest the flowers early in the morning on the first day they are in bloom, while the flower petals are still closed. Pepe told me that each crocus bulb produces about five new flowers over a short period of time. This means that the farmers must rally a large workforce in the villages to carry out the harvest.After harvest, flowers are taken to warehouses where villagers sit around tables and carefully separate the stigmas from each bud. Once the stigmas have been removed, they are lightly dried over charcoal embers.Villagers must keep close watch over the drying process to ensure there is no scorching, which results in loss of flavor and aroma. It is interesting to note that the stigmas lose about 75 percent of their weight during the drying process. In fact, Pepe informed me that because of this, it takes more than 225,000 stigmas to make just one pound of dried saffron! Only whole stigmas of saffron can be guaranteed to be true saffron.Dried saffron is packed in metal tins, where it can be kept for several years. Saffron has a perfumey, slightly bitter, honey-like flavor. A “spirited” tidbit I picked up on this trip is that aged saffron is used to make vermouth, as its bitter notes intensify over time.The tins are then shipped to the United States, where workers weigh the threads on digital scales before packaging them – by hand – in a cellophane envelope, which is then put into a white paper envelope. Once inside these protective coverings, the saffron is sealed into a glass bottle for freshness.This detailed process – from harvest through bottling – accounts for saffron’s premium price, but fortunately, a little of its extraordinary flavor goes a long way!Upon our return, we stopped at a roadside country restaurant and had some of the best paella I have ever tasted. The local seafood and chorizo sausage, flavored with saffron, was absolutely wonderful and the perfect way to end our visit.Saffron is widely used in Mediterranean, North African and South American cooking. It can be used in sweet and savory dishes.
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum or S. officinale).
Sassafras (Sassafras albidum or S. officinale).Also known as: Ague Tree.
DescriptionSassafras is a tree of the Laurel family. There are three species, 2 of them are found in eastern Asia, and one, Sassafras albidum, is native to eastern North America. The American sassafras is the most important. It is found from small bush size to a height of 50 to 60 feet. It has many slender branches, and the hairless leaves can be of three different types (a smooth oval, a two lobed and a three lobed leaf) sometimes all three being found on the same tree and even the same branch. The roots are large and woody, with a spongy bark. The small flowers are yellow, and the fruit is a blue berry on a red stem. The bark of the roots, formerly one of the ingredients in root beer, contains volatile oils, 80% of which is safrole. The FDA banned its use as an additive in 1960, as safrole was found to cause liver cancer in rats. The sale of sassafras tea was banned in 1976. The root bark extract and leaves are now treated commercially to produce a safrole-free product, the root bark being used as a flavoring agent and the leaves for filé powder. The safrole free extract has, unfortunately, an inferior flavor. (Safrole is similar to thujone, which is found in wormwood, and was used to make absinthe --- banned since 1913). It is not possible to make a safrole free extract at home.HistoryThe root bark has long been used medicinally by native Americans, and this knowledge was passed on to early settlers, probably to the Spaniards in Florida. Sassafras was one of the earliest American plant drugs to reach Europe, having been used medicinally in Spain as early as the middle 1500's, and was cultivated in England sometime before 1633. The early settlers also fermented the roots with molasses to make beer, and during the Civil War sassafras tea became popular. Today the (safrole free) root bark extract is used in perfumery, as a flavoring for candy, beverages, and to make an aromatic tea. The Choctaw Indians first used the dried ground leaves as a seasoning and thickener, and today the dried leaves are used to make filé powder (gumbo filé) which is used to thicken and flavor soups and stews in Créole cooking. (See also Gumbo )Gumbo Filé, Gombo FiléThe Picayune’s Creole Cook Book (1901)First, it will be necessary to explain here, for the benefit of many, that "Filé" is a powder manufactured by the remaining tribe of Choctaw Indians in Louisiana, from the young and tender leaves of the sassafras. The Indian squaws gather the leaves and spread them out on a stone mortar to dry. When thoroughly dried, they pound them into a fine powder, pass them through a hair sieve, and then bring the Filé to New Orleans to sell, coming twice a week to the French Market from the old reservation set aside for their home on Bayou Lacombe, near Mandeville, La. The Indians used sassafras leaves and the sassafras for many medicinal purposes, and still sell bunches of the dried roots in the French Market. The Creoles, quick to discover and apply, found the possibilities of the powdered sassafras, or "Filé" and originated the well-known dish, "Gumbo Filé."
DescriptionSassafras is a tree of the Laurel family. There are three species, 2 of them are found in eastern Asia, and one, Sassafras albidum, is native to eastern North America. The American sassafras is the most important. It is found from small bush size to a height of 50 to 60 feet. It has many slender branches, and the hairless leaves can be of three different types (a smooth oval, a two lobed and a three lobed leaf) sometimes all three being found on the same tree and even the same branch. The roots are large and woody, with a spongy bark. The small flowers are yellow, and the fruit is a blue berry on a red stem. The bark of the roots, formerly one of the ingredients in root beer, contains volatile oils, 80% of which is safrole. The FDA banned its use as an additive in 1960, as safrole was found to cause liver cancer in rats. The sale of sassafras tea was banned in 1976. The root bark extract and leaves are now treated commercially to produce a safrole-free product, the root bark being used as a flavoring agent and the leaves for filé powder. The safrole free extract has, unfortunately, an inferior flavor. (Safrole is similar to thujone, which is found in wormwood, and was used to make absinthe --- banned since 1913). It is not possible to make a safrole free extract at home.HistoryThe root bark has long been used medicinally by native Americans, and this knowledge was passed on to early settlers, probably to the Spaniards in Florida. Sassafras was one of the earliest American plant drugs to reach Europe, having been used medicinally in Spain as early as the middle 1500's, and was cultivated in England sometime before 1633. The early settlers also fermented the roots with molasses to make beer, and during the Civil War sassafras tea became popular. Today the (safrole free) root bark extract is used in perfumery, as a flavoring for candy, beverages, and to make an aromatic tea. The Choctaw Indians first used the dried ground leaves as a seasoning and thickener, and today the dried leaves are used to make filé powder (gumbo filé) which is used to thicken and flavor soups and stews in Créole cooking. (See also Gumbo )Gumbo Filé, Gombo FiléThe Picayune’s Creole Cook Book (1901)First, it will be necessary to explain here, for the benefit of many, that "Filé" is a powder manufactured by the remaining tribe of Choctaw Indians in Louisiana, from the young and tender leaves of the sassafras. The Indian squaws gather the leaves and spread them out on a stone mortar to dry. When thoroughly dried, they pound them into a fine powder, pass them through a hair sieve, and then bring the Filé to New Orleans to sell, coming twice a week to the French Market from the old reservation set aside for their home on Bayou Lacombe, near Mandeville, La. The Indians used sassafras leaves and the sassafras for many medicinal purposes, and still sell bunches of the dried roots in the French Market. The Creoles, quick to discover and apply, found the possibilities of the powdered sassafras, or "Filé" and originated the well-known dish, "Gumbo Filé."
Ginger was used in ancient times as a food preservative and to help treat digestive problems. To treat digestive problems, Greeks would eat ginger wra
Ginger was used in ancient times as a food preservative and to help treat digestive problems. To treat digestive problems, Greeks would eat ginger wrapped in bread. Eventually ginger was added to the bread dough creating that wonderful treat many around the globe love today: gingerbread!Ginger ale eventually stemmed from a ginger beer made by the English and Colonial America as a remedy for diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.Ginger thrives in the tropics and warmer regions and is therefore currently grown in parts of West Africa, the West Indies, India and China with the best quality ginger coming from Jamaica where it is most abundant. In the United States, ginger is grown in Florida, Hawaii, and along the eastern coast of Texas.Gingerroot is characterized by it’s strong sweet, yet woodsy smell. It is tan in color with white to creamy-yellow flesh that can be coarse yet stringy.Selection and StorageGinger is available year-round. When selecting gingerroot, choose robust firm roots with a spicy fragrance and smooth skin. Gingerroot should not be cracked or withered. It can be stored tightly wrapped in a paper towel or plastic wrap (or put into a plastic bag) in the refrigerator for 2–3 weeks and like galangal, gingerroot can also be placed in a jar of sherry and refrigerated for 3–6 months.PreparationPeel skin from the root and gently peel the skin beneath (that closest to the root is the most flavorful). Gingerroot can be sliced or minced (minced gingerroot gives the most pungent flavor). Ginger is popular in Asian cuisine where it is used both fresh and dried. Ginger can also be found crystallized, candied, preserved and pickled.The powdered, dried form of ginger has a more spicy, intense flavor and is often used in baking (gingerbread, gingersnaps, ginger cookies).GINGER The aromatic rhizome of this 30 – 60 cm tall tropical plant is used in food preparation and as medicine for centuries in southeastern Asia. There, pharmacists recommend it for any ailment with which people may be afflicted.After ginger was first introduced in Europe (approximately 800 AD) it ranked second to pepper as a spice for centuries. Ginger grows in southern China, Japan, West Africa, and many other tropical countries including the Caribbean islands. Jamaican ginger is considered to be the best of all. Chinese cooks use ginger with beef successfully, whereas European chefs prefer to use it as an exotic flavouring for fresh fruit salads, or to give cream of carrot soup and extra kick. English make candied ginger, ginger jam, and dry it to be ground and use as a condiment. Chinese dry ginger and sell it as green ginger. Black ginger is first scalded and then dried. Fresh ginger is best. Its thin skin can be scraped with the back of a spoon and then cut, grated or pounded to mix into soups, sauces and stews. Ginger possesses an intriguing; sweet, spicy and pungent flavour rendering it suitable for use in a range of dishes from stir-fried beef to ginger tea. Ginger ale, ginger beer and ginger wine are only vaguely flavoured with ginger.
THE HISTORY OF COFFEE
According to handed-down tales, the invigorating qualities of coffee, beans were first observed by an astute shepherd in eastern Ethiopia. He noticed that his sheep munching on the berries of certain shrubs were more playful, energetic and agitated. Eventually, he tasted some of berries and felt an euphoria never experienced before. Thus was coffee born!
At first people, would eat fresh “berries” to experience the affect of caffeine. Then the shrub was brought over the Red Sea to Yemen in 525 AD, where it thrived on certain locations with sufficient moisture. At first, coffee beans were used as medication, and for religious purposes by priests in meditation through the night. The word coffee is derived from Arabic qahwa.
As time progressed, a few enterprising merchants dried the beans, and eventually though to roasting those them in an attempt to concentrate the flavour. Coffee beans were mixed with hot water and later sweetened with honey, or flavoured with cinnamon or other aromatic spices. Then, one particular individual, who must have been a genius, thought of grinding the roasted beans and brewing the finely ground coffee with water. Sugar was used later to sweeten the resulting liquid. Honey was the first coffee sweetener. Ottoman armies arrived in Yemen in 1536 and soon soldiers discovered the taste and coffee’s invigorating properties. Ottomans helped popularise coffee consumption throughout their vast empire, stretching from Yemen in the east to Hungary in the west. Wherever the army went, coffee was brought along. In fact, there were specially trained people in charge of coffee logistics – storage, preparation and service. Coffee fell into the hand of Austrian soldiers in the employ of Habsburgs when the Ottoman army was defeated close to Vienna and had to beat a hasty retreat. In the confusion, the brigades in charge of coffee forgot to remove two sacks of coffee. Once the precious coffee was in the hands of Austrians, it took off in Europe.
The Ottoman administration controlled coffee production and trade, but astute Dutch merchants, managed to spirit out a few plants from Yemen to Ceylon (Sri Lanka today), Java and Sumatra (Indonesia today). The English, not to be outdone, managed to smuggle a few plants to India, and eventually to the Caribbean Islands. Coffee trade throughout the Ottoman Empire went to Venice and then to other European countries. During the 17th century, Italian street vendors sold coffee along with chocolate and lemonade. The French invented filtration in the 18th century by putting the coffee in a cloth bag and immersing it in hot water. In Costa Rica, many families still use this technique of coffee preparation. Today, coffee is one of the most popular non-alcoholic beverages of the world. In some countries, more coffee is consumed than in others and yes in many Middle Eastern and Oriental countries it is becoming more popular. North Americans are big coffee fans and this started in the beginning of the 19th century; to be exact 1812, when the war prevented tea imports. Coffee was abundant and people switches readily. There are three species of coffee: Coffea arabica, Coffea liberica and Coffea robusta. Coffea Arabica smells and tastes best pending on provenance and terroir. Coffea robusta is inexpensive and often over-roasted for espresso coffee. Many manufacturers of instant coffee use Coffea robusta as a base. Coffea liberica is often used for instant coffee production. In less expensive blends Coffea liberica beans play an important role. Maxwell House (Kraft), Folgers (Procter and Gamble), Hills Bros (Sarah Lee) and Nescafe (Nestle) are dominant instant coffee brands mostly derived from liberica and robusta beans. Specialty coffees (flavoured coffees) were invented by A Peet of Peet’s Coffee in 1974 and quickly copied by many large processors. Eventually, flavoured coffees contained more sugar than anything else and fell out of favour. Fine coffee in North America was popularised by Starbucks, and American company out of Seattle, Washington State. The management decided to emphasise quality over quantity, introduced many preparation techniques ie. espresso, cappuccino, iced coffee, and filtered. Many young enthusiastic people were hired to cheerfully suggest bigger portions, options i.e café au lait, machiatto, Latte (sound better than café au lait, albeit produced somewhat differently), espresso, cappuccino, iced coffee, Viennese, just to name a few. Coffee is still a work in progress in many countries where markets are ready top be “opened” by astute merchants with a flair in marketing and retailing. Germans and Japanese prefer aromatic and fine coffees; Italians buy mostly Brazilian coffees and over roast them for their espresso and cappuccino preparations. Finnish people are so fond of coffee that the country ranks first in per capita coffee consumption.
When the Soviet Socialist Empire dissolved and eastern bloc countries became free, again coffee consumption increased in Eastern Europe substantially. Previously populations were forced to drink more tea than coffee due to politics and foreign exchange reserves of the empire.
Of all the republics of the former Soviet Union Armenia consumed most coffee and prices are very reasonable.
At first people, would eat fresh “berries” to experience the affect of caffeine. Then the shrub was brought over the Red Sea to Yemen in 525 AD, where it thrived on certain locations with sufficient moisture. At first, coffee beans were used as medication, and for religious purposes by priests in meditation through the night. The word coffee is derived from Arabic qahwa.
As time progressed, a few enterprising merchants dried the beans, and eventually though to roasting those them in an attempt to concentrate the flavour. Coffee beans were mixed with hot water and later sweetened with honey, or flavoured with cinnamon or other aromatic spices. Then, one particular individual, who must have been a genius, thought of grinding the roasted beans and brewing the finely ground coffee with water. Sugar was used later to sweeten the resulting liquid. Honey was the first coffee sweetener. Ottoman armies arrived in Yemen in 1536 and soon soldiers discovered the taste and coffee’s invigorating properties. Ottomans helped popularise coffee consumption throughout their vast empire, stretching from Yemen in the east to Hungary in the west. Wherever the army went, coffee was brought along. In fact, there were specially trained people in charge of coffee logistics – storage, preparation and service. Coffee fell into the hand of Austrian soldiers in the employ of Habsburgs when the Ottoman army was defeated close to Vienna and had to beat a hasty retreat. In the confusion, the brigades in charge of coffee forgot to remove two sacks of coffee. Once the precious coffee was in the hands of Austrians, it took off in Europe.
The Ottoman administration controlled coffee production and trade, but astute Dutch merchants, managed to spirit out a few plants from Yemen to Ceylon (Sri Lanka today), Java and Sumatra (Indonesia today). The English, not to be outdone, managed to smuggle a few plants to India, and eventually to the Caribbean Islands. Coffee trade throughout the Ottoman Empire went to Venice and then to other European countries. During the 17th century, Italian street vendors sold coffee along with chocolate and lemonade. The French invented filtration in the 18th century by putting the coffee in a cloth bag and immersing it in hot water. In Costa Rica, many families still use this technique of coffee preparation. Today, coffee is one of the most popular non-alcoholic beverages of the world. In some countries, more coffee is consumed than in others and yes in many Middle Eastern and Oriental countries it is becoming more popular. North Americans are big coffee fans and this started in the beginning of the 19th century; to be exact 1812, when the war prevented tea imports. Coffee was abundant and people switches readily. There are three species of coffee: Coffea arabica, Coffea liberica and Coffea robusta. Coffea Arabica smells and tastes best pending on provenance and terroir. Coffea robusta is inexpensive and often over-roasted for espresso coffee. Many manufacturers of instant coffee use Coffea robusta as a base. Coffea liberica is often used for instant coffee production. In less expensive blends Coffea liberica beans play an important role. Maxwell House (Kraft), Folgers (Procter and Gamble), Hills Bros (Sarah Lee) and Nescafe (Nestle) are dominant instant coffee brands mostly derived from liberica and robusta beans. Specialty coffees (flavoured coffees) were invented by A Peet of Peet’s Coffee in 1974 and quickly copied by many large processors. Eventually, flavoured coffees contained more sugar than anything else and fell out of favour. Fine coffee in North America was popularised by Starbucks, and American company out of Seattle, Washington State. The management decided to emphasise quality over quantity, introduced many preparation techniques ie. espresso, cappuccino, iced coffee, and filtered. Many young enthusiastic people were hired to cheerfully suggest bigger portions, options i.e café au lait, machiatto, Latte (sound better than café au lait, albeit produced somewhat differently), espresso, cappuccino, iced coffee, Viennese, just to name a few. Coffee is still a work in progress in many countries where markets are ready top be “opened” by astute merchants with a flair in marketing and retailing. Germans and Japanese prefer aromatic and fine coffees; Italians buy mostly Brazilian coffees and over roast them for their espresso and cappuccino preparations. Finnish people are so fond of coffee that the country ranks first in per capita coffee consumption.
When the Soviet Socialist Empire dissolved and eastern bloc countries became free, again coffee consumption increased in Eastern Europe substantially. Previously populations were forced to drink more tea than coffee due to politics and foreign exchange reserves of the empire.
Of all the republics of the former Soviet Union Armenia consumed most coffee and prices are very reasonable.
Dear EarthTalk: The soda bottle I’m holding only lists a few U.S. states and deposit amounts on it. Aren’t more than just a few states requiring that
Dear EarthTalk: The soda bottle I’m holding only lists a few U.S. states and deposit amounts on it. Aren’t more than just a few states requiring that bottles be returned for recycling? -- Calvin Terry, Castine, Currently 11 American states have “bottle bill” laws on the books that require a deposit of usually five or 10 cents on beer and soda cans and bottles that can be redeemed when empties are returned to the store. The state of Oregon pioneered such legislation, passing the first U.S. bottle bill back in 1971. Hawaii has the newest one, enacted in 2002. Meanwhile, all but two of Canada’s 13 provinces (the remote Northwest Territories and Nunavut) have bottle bills. The Container Recycling Institute (CRI), an advocacy group based in Washington, DC, works for the passage of new bottle bills and the strengthening of existing ones. According to CRI, bottle bills make sense because they encourage recycling and, in conjunction with curbside recycling programs, extend the life of landfills by keeping cans and bottles out. Indeed, recycling rates in states with bottle bills can be as much as three times higher than in states without them. Such programs also help reduce litter. Studies have shown that beverage container legislation has reduced total roadside litter by as much as 64 percent in regions with bottle bills. Another documented benefit has been a reduction in incidences of glass laceration, simply because fewer glass bottles end up broken on sidewalks, streets and in kids’ play areas. One Massachusetts study attributed a 60 percent decline in reported childhood glass lacerations once the state’s bottle bill went into effect. Despite these benefits, however, many beverage manufacturers oppose bottle bills, arguing that the five to 10 cents added to the price of their products deters customers even though the deposits are redeemable. These companies have effectively squelched bottle bills in many U.S. states through the sheer power of their lobbying efforts. Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola and Pepsi and others have spent millions fighting bottle bills, complaining that such legislation duplicates community recycling programs already in place. But CRI says the argument has been “wrongly cast in either/or terms,” that refundable deposits and curbside recycling programs are not mutually exclusive and should be part of a comprehensive approach to recycling: “If the goal is to maximize recovery of recyclables [and] reduce reliance on raw materials for manufacturing new containers…then a combination of recovery options should be employed to ensure the highest…recovery rates possible.” Beverage sales are growing, especially bottled water and other non-carbonated drinks (which are currently exempt from many state bottle bills). And the waste has been growing as well. According to CRI, some 118 billion aluminum, glass and plastic beverage containers were discarded and not recycled in 2002 alone, more than double the number 20 years earlier. The main issue is really who should pay the costs of recycling. Refundable deposits are fair, says CRI, because they put the costs on the producers and consumers of the beverages instead of on the local communities and taxpayers.
Monday, March 1, 2010
Sacramento Food Business
Sacramento Food Business
A meal at downtown Sacramento's fashionable Grange Restaurant & Bar shows how one segment of local agriculture has room to grow.
The Grange, home to politicos, tourists and hometown crowds at the Citizen Hotel, thrives on an old idea become new again: locally grown food. A typical meal, conceived by executive chef Michael Tuohy, includes Yolo pastured chicken, salad greens, organic potatoes and a "good local olive oil."
"Local food is why I came to Sacramento," said the San Francisco-born chef, who in 2008 left Atlanta for the capital. "Within 50 miles you have everything from honey to olive oil to cheese to goats to lamb to pork to vegetables."
Regional leaders say Tuohy's four-piece meal represents a small, but key, contributor to the economy. Whether discovering a fledgling chicken supplier in Yolo County or ordering wine from Amador County, newcomer chefs and consumers alike are building a niche for locally grown and consumed food in the region's otherwise globalized farm economy.
Witness new generations of farm families running wineries, selling olive oil and growing all manner of seasonal delicacies, many of them organic.
Farming no longer constitutes a huge sector of the Sacramento economy, but it has been a stable one during the recession.
Area farms actually produced more income during the downturn, not less: $1.66 billion in 2008 compared with $1.3 billion in 2006. Employment, while still a small part of the local jobs picture, grew from an annual average of 7,400 people in 2004 to 8,300 people in 2008, according to the state Employment Development Department. Rice led the way as buyers turned from meats to cheaper grains.
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