FARMERS MARKET CHEATING

Last week a manager for Southern California's largest farmers market operator claimed at a state hearing held by the California Department of Food and Agriculture that Mexican produce was sold as local. A vendor, he said, buys wholesale and misrepresents it as his own. So all the chatter about wholesale products at farmer's market is now official. Just from my experience buying at different farmers markets, this does not really surprise me. Often the 'local' produce is not as fresh as is should be and doesn't taste accordingly. A couple of weeks ago, I became a shareholder of the Silverlake Farms/CSA program, allowing me to pick up seasonal produce sustainably and locally grown in Los Angeles. This is the best produce I have ever had in L.A. It reminded me of how easy it is to forget the taste of farm fresh and healthy vegetables and fruits. But now that I have my 'fresh taste' back, I am not willing to compromise any more. 

FAKE ORGANIC

I am pretty sick of hearing the term 'organic', since I feel the term has become somewhat meaningless. The organic hype has put us under a massive attack from supermarkets (yes, count Whole Foods in), selling us their version of organic food. Industrialized organic food, that is. What's the value of grass fed beef, if shipped thousands of miles from South America, leaving substantial carbon footprint? What that of organic milk, if the herbivore cow is still forced to eat corn - organic corn - that makes it sick? And what about the vegetable, shipped across the country, losing taste and nutritional value on its way to the shelf?  And the fruit having been picked by farm workers paid minimum wage?