FOOD DAY 2011

Food Day is Monday, October 24, 2011. It is the first annual and is already gaining support from people and organizations all over the country.

What is FOOD DAY? It is an organization that seeks to bring together Americans from all walks of life to push for healthy, affordable food produced in a sustainable, humane way.

The 6 Food Day principles are:
1. Reduce diet-related disease by promoting safe, healthy food;
2. Support sustainable farms & limit subsidies to big agribusiness;
3. Expand access to food and alleviate hunger;
4. Protect the environment & animals by reforming factory farms;
5. Promote health by curbing junk-food marketing to kids;
6. Support fair conditions for food and farm workers.

Food Day was created by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). The Center is a consumer advocacy organization whose twin missions are to conduct innovative research and advocacy programs in health and nutrition, and to provide consumers with current, useful information about their health and well-being.

There are events happening all over the country. But why should you care about Food Day?

• Currently is costs much less to feed your family a diet of junk food than one of whole foods, fruits, and vegetables (due in part to subsidies);
• There is no law to label foods with GMO's;
• Two-thirds of American adults and one-third of children are overweight or obese;
• A healthy diet can lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels, blood sugar, and prevent everything from tooth decay and obesity to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer;
• Just 10 percent of large farms rake in 74 percent of direct subsidies – with the top recipient getting $4.8 million in 2009. Most of that aid goes to growers of just five crops: corn, wheat, soybeans, cotton, and rice;
• Over-fertilization of farm fields results in polluted rivers and streams, as well as "dead zones" as in the Gulf of Mexico and Chesapeake Bay.

Eating healthy and healthy farming should be a right, not a privilege. 

You can learn more at a local Food Day event - participate, or even hold your own event.

Check out these local events:
Mindful Mouthfuls - October 22/23 in Elgin, IL
Find a Local Event

Alexandra Gnoske is an Environmental Expert. She is the Author/Illustrator of "Loui Saves the Earth" and Founder of RECYCLE ME.

Counting My Blessings - One Pumpkin at a Time

So Peace Day, Peace Week and Gandhi's birthday are over, but I'm still counting my blessings, big and small (a lot has been happening).

Something that may not seem like much has brought a lot of joy for me and my kids. Earlier in June we discovered a "volunteer" pumpkin plant in our little Chicago backyard.

Volunteer pumpkin plant spreading through our back yard.

It's a volunteer because we didn't intentionally plant it. It's origins probably come from an old Halloween pumpkin I threw in the garden to decompose a few years ago. Amazing how life is patient and persistent.

My kids and I would check on the plant regularly with anticipation. We didn't know what kind of pumpkins would show up. I thought they would be small since I usually put the large pumpkins in  the front garden to decompose.

It took a while - and spread a lot - before we saw the first pumpkin take hold. We could tell it was going to be big. And it grew quite fast. We had a lot of fun checking on it and wandering around to see if anything else was growing - but no such luck.

Then one day the big round pumpkin started turning orange! That was a great day of excitement. Why? I don't know if I can really answer this - for me I just love the outdoors and I love to watch life happen. I'm not sure why the kids liked it so much. I suppose it's a little adventure in the backyard - I remember having lots of fun in my backyard as a kid - so why not?

About the same time we could see that two other pumpkins started to grow. Was it a miracle? (Did I mention I have 3 kids?). My son, 5 years old and the youngest, immediately proclaimed the big orange one was his. Fortunately for me - I had a pumpkin for each kid.

This Sunday I hacked down the large pumpkin vine that had taken over a third of my yard, growing over my tomatoes, knocking over my wildflowers. But it was time. We put the three large pumpkins out in front for Halloween. Not sure if I can bring myself to carve them.

Even luckier though - additional small blessings - my brother had volunteer pumpkins in his yard...about 20 or so, not miniature, but a smaller version. So to our delight we ended up with three more.

I don't know why it was such a thrill - but there is so much satisfaction in the experience of watching something grow, change, and come to fruition. A miniature life-cycle in my very own backyard. And to share that thrill with my kids, to watch them get excited about growing pumpkins, well, that is a big blessing to me. After all, what joy is there in life if you cannot share?