Vermont's New Labeling Law for Genetically Engineered Food

I received a request the other day from my friends at MoveOn.org urging me to donate money to support the State of Vermont's legal defense fund to defend their recently passed law that requires foods to be labeled if they are produced with genetic engineering. Although the e-mail from MoveOn stated that Monsanto has filed a lawsuit challenging the law, the lawsuit filed two weeks ago in Vermont does not name Monsanto directly, but was filed by the following four organizations: the Grocery Manufacturers Association; Snack Food Association; International Dairy Foods Association; and, the National Association of Manufacturers.  

Foods containing genetically engineered ingredients have been sold in the United States since the 1990s. In May of this year, Vermont became the first state in the nation to unconditionally requiring labeling of food that is partially or entirely produced with genetic engineering. The law is set to take effect in July 2016. Maine and Connecticut have also passed labeling laws, but they do not go into effect until other states enact similar laws. I don't know what the passage of the Vermont law means for these two states. 

The lawsuit comes as no surprise. Vermont's Attorney General Bill Sorrell said prior to enactment of the law "I think it's very likely that we would be sued, very likely" 1 In anticipation of such challenges, lawmakers included a legal defense fund, now named "Food Fight" in the bill." Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream has shown its support by renaming its Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream "Food Fight Fudge Brownie" during the month of July and will donate $1.00 for every one that is sold at its Burlington and Waterbury stores (watch B & J video.)     

I wonder the usefulness of such labeling for the consumer since, according to the Christian Science Monitor, 85% of corn and 91% of soybeans sold in the United States are genetically modified and 75% of processed foods sold in grocery stores contain ingredients that are genetically modified.2 Will it be meaningless, or will it push consumers to demand Non-GMO products, thus leading to changes in production from manufacturers such as Ben and Jerry's which has a goal of 100 percent of their products being GMO free by the end of the year?   

1 WCAX.com, February 7, 2014
2 Christian Science Monitor, June 13, 2014

Welcome Midsummer!

At 6:51 this morning, we experienced the summer solstice in the northern hemisphere. And the weather forecast could not be any better. Partly Sunny, 0% chance of Rain and a high of 76 degrees.  Although is is officially the "beginning" of summer on the calendar, the summer solstice was traditionally considered the "mid-point" of the growing season. !Sigh! My garden is not cooperating. I think I am going to reseed some of my plots today where the seeds either did not germinate or have gotten consumed by some other creature. The radish plants are doing well with the recent cooler nights and have added some spice to our dinner salads.

Since the first day of summer also has the longest hours of daylight (15 hours and 22 minutes in New Hampshire) it truly is a day to get outside and celebrate. Because the sun is higher in the sky in the summer it's rays are more directed at the earth and result in warmer days. And because the earth and oceans collect, store and release the energy from the sun at different rates, typically the warmest days of the year are yet to come in July and August. 

And although the total length of daylight will now diminish, it is comforting to note that the sun will not start setting later until July 5th providing me with plenty of daylight while tending to the garden after work.
 

British can Reduce Food Waste with a Software Application

Google Partners with U.K. Grocer to Tackle Food Problem

Sainsbury Food Rescue is a new web and mobile application made in partnership with a local grocery chain in  the United Kingdom. With voice recognition software, the user simply needs to say the ingredient(s) they have as leftovers and they will be returned with a list of ways in which those ingredients can be reused. Although I'm not sure how the app is much different than a regular Google search, it sounds like a helpful tool
that is designed to reduce the amount of food that is disposed of by consumers. The success of the application will be tracked by allowing users to see the amount of money that is being saved by re-using food items that may otherwise have thrown away. In addition, the information will be added to regional and national totals. If nothing else, it sounds like this program will be increasing consumer awareness of a large global problem. According to the United Nations Environment Program, 30% of all food generated in the United States is disposed of each year. This is not only a financial loss, but is an environmental issue as additional fertilizers and chemicals are used to produce the excess food as well as causing methane, a harmful greenhouse gas, to be generated from the decomposition of rotting food.

Rhubarb adds Character to the Garden

I love rhubarb.  I love the fact that it's the first plant to appear in the spring; I love its large elephant like leaves and its white and pink stalks; and, most of all, I love its tart unique flavor.

Although I enjoy the taste of rhubarb on its own, it is usually improved if it is accompanied by a sweeter fruit. Here is a modified recipe from Organic Gardening magazine. The combination with peaches is something different than the typical strawberry-rhubarb combination. The pistachios are great and not overpowering, but walnuts or pecans could be substituted. Try it for a Father's Day breakfast, brunch or even a dessert!

Rhubarb and Peach Kuchen

1 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons butter softened

3 ounces cream cheese softened

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 eggs

½ cup buttermilk

2 peaches peeled and chopped

1 cup rhubarb, trimmed and chopped and mix with ¼ cup sugar

¾ cup pistachios

Sift in small bowl first 3 ingredients; in large bowl mix butter, cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in vanilla, eggs and buttermilk. Spread half the batter in 13 x 9 inch pan. Press fruit and nuts into batter, then add remaining batter on top. Bake at 350 until set, about 45 minutes.

The Seeds Are In!

Finally a weekend with no rain and no other plans which allowed me the opportunity to finish planting the garden. It was a late start this year all around. Although I was able to plant some radishes and greens in early May, continuous rain delayed the planting of the post-frost vegetables. By waiting until June, a lot of weeds had already come up, so the prep work took a while longer. And, as you can seed I am still "growing" lots of rocks! 

It is easy to see where all the New England stone walls came from, but it is hard for me to imagine the hard work it took for the early New Hampshire families to clear the land not only of trees, but of large boulders. In my case, it doesn't help that my garden rests over the burial ground of materials excavated from the building of our house foundation 18 years ago! I find a use for the uncovered rocks as plot and row markers. The remainder get added to the remnants of a historical stone wall, as well as newly created ones which line a path on our property. 

What is in my garden this year? For seeds - Cherry Belle and Easter Egg Radishes; Strawberry Spinach (heirloom); Sugar Pod Peas; mesclun mix; zucchini; Butta Summer Squash; Acorn and Butternut Squash; Black Valentine Bean (heirloom); carrots; cucumbers; and for the fall decorations, a few ornamental corn seeds and gourds.  Purchased plants - Cherry and Early Girl Tomatoes; Eggplant; and hot and green peppers. The egg plant and peppers appear stunted and I am wondering if they will recover. I suspect they were not hardened off properly before being sold. Hopefully with some water and mulch they will soon become established. Now, I just need to see what the growing season brings.

Milkweed and Monarch Butterflies

This week, the University of Guelph, Ontario published a study on the relationship between the reduction in milkweed plants and the decline of monarch butterflies. See news story "Habitat Loss on Breeding Grounds Cause of Monarch Decline" . The full text of the article is available for purchase through the Journal of American Ecology. Although the loss of wintering breeding grounds in Mexico is certainly one factor impacting their survival, this article suggests that more resources should be spent on restoration of milkweed habitat. Monarch caterpillars only feed on milkweed plants which sustain the larvae and help protect monarch's from predators.  The toxins from the plant that are consumed by the caterpillar carry over to the adult and cause predators to avoid them. The study concludes that since 1995 there has been a 21 percent decline in milkweed due to the expansion of industrial agricultural and the growing of genetically modified crops that allow for the wide-spread use of herbicides that kills all weeds.There are several efforts underway to help monarchs survive. MonarchWatch.Org has a Bring Back the Monarchs campaign which focuses on restoring monarch habitat by propagating 20 species of milkweed which are host plants for monarchs across the country.

 
This is another plant that I remember being in abundance when I was a child. My mother would sometimes collect the pods in the fall and and spray-paint them for dried flower arrangements. In the past few years, milkweed plants have been popping up all over the yard and sometimes in the garden. We try and leave them when possible, but I have yet to see a monarch caterpillar on any. There have been on occasion however, the larvae of the milkweed tussock moth - not nearly as exciting. We seem to have more milkweed than ever this year, so maybe we will be lucky and one monarch will decide to stop by and continue her life cycle. If you are interested in tracking or reporting sightings of monarchs check out the Journey North website.  

Spreading Bark Mulch

I love the sweet smell of freshly laid bark mulch. Its scent in the neighborhood is a sure sign that it is time to clean up the garden beds. A fresh layer of bark mulch outside is like a fresh coat of paint inside. There are many choices of bark mulch from basic pine to premium hemlock and colors from bright red to black. I prefer a pine or a pine blend and opt for a natural brown hue, as opposed to anything that has been dyed. In addition to improving the look of your landscape, a layer of mulch provides many benefits for plants. It is a great weed suppressant and the weeds that do come up are easier to pull as long as long as you get to them before the roots go down deep into the soil. Mulches also protects plants by retaining moisture in the soil and moderating its temperature. This is especially important when the first heat wave hits before newly planted vegetables and annuals have taken hold - like today which reached 84 degrees!

As with plants that you buy, it is important to know your source. I learned my lesson this year. I wasn't sure how much I would actually need as I was just planning on touching up some areas around the yard so I decided to just purchase bags. Although it would involve numerous trips using the trunk of my car, I figured I could pick up a few every day on my way home from work and save the cost of a bulk delivery. I got home with the first load and opened up two bags I was greeted by an awful stench! When I poured the contents on the ground it came out as several solid chunks covered with white mold. The mulch has so compacted that I could not even break it apart with a shovel. I wasted no time returning the remaining bags to the store the next morning. Although I did receive a complete refund, it was disappointing that the store was willing to sell a product that had obviously been in storage for a while and most likely under less than ideal conditions. I ended up calling a local landscaping company and had five yards of freshly processed New Hampshire pine mulch delivered. I am very happy with the product and am looking forward to finish spreading the rest of the pile this weekend.