Rainbow Skill : Knowledge Portal

Urban Food Forests

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:32:53 +0000

Just the phrase ‘food forest’ jumps out at a person. It sounds like it belongs in one of those whimsical adventure books we read as children. In California they’re coming to life in suburban backyards. A food forest is nothing more than an edible landscape. It is both attractive to look at and provides its owners with useful fruits and vegetables. Some land owners may even grow enough produce to sell the excess to their neighbors.

California residents who have been encouraged to make their ornamental gardens more arid friendly are compromising by planting edible gardens instead. Their landscapes become not only nice to look at, but completely useable. They are using both annual and perennial plants to spice up their landscapes and their taste buds. By planting plants that they can eat they can justify their use of water in their gardens and landscapes.

Some land-owners are taking their ‘food forests’ a step further and allow them to take over their entire yards. While economical and practical some cities are fighting homeowners who want to do edible landscapes in their front yards. Unfortunately, some cities like Orlando, Florida are fighting landowners on their edible landscaping claiming it doesn’t look as well as green grass.

It’s sad that Orlando’s mayor has taken this stance especially since one of the major’s platforms is promoting local food production and edible landscaping can be really beautiful. Fruits and vegetables come in a variety of shapes and colors. They can grow on beautiful bushes or graceful vines. Some fruits and vegetables are preceded by beautiful flowers. Many fruit trees can be trimmed to look positively ornamental in any yard. While still others leafy greens aren’t actually green! There are red and orange lettuce varieties out there that are very interesting to look at.

The only problem with the edible landscape is that certain aspects of the yard will have to be replanted on a yearly basis because many vegetables are annual plants. Despite this annoyance it does give the home owner the chance to change how their yard looks every year and in some cases even every season. Some plots in these landscapes may be able to hold two or three different types of plants through the growing season. They say variety is the spice of life and it could be what makes the edible landscape the most fun.

The mindset of the American people is that the ideal home has a yard full of green grass and it is going to take time to change that mindset, but if food prices go up these yards will become main stream. The fact that these ‘food forests’ are already trending is proof that the change is coming. Americans will change their behaviors based on their pocket book if nothing else. One day it might be hard to find a yard filled with grass because they’re all filled with lettuce instead. When that day arrives grass will become the weed that everyone is trying to get rid of!

The Climate and Your Food

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:32:02 +0000

Living in the United States has made Americans complacent about their food supply. Over the last several years the primary growing regions of the United States have experienced floods, droughts, intense tornados, and intense temperature fluctuations. Despite all this the people are always confident that there will be food on the shelves of their grocery stores.

The reality is that every food crop requires a specific climate to thrive. When those specific weather conditions are not met then the crops just won’t thrive. Too much rain and crops will rot; too little and they will wither. Generally, whole fields are not lost. The little that remains salvageable is what makes it into the food supply. Every time that there are not as many crops harvested as are projected to be harvested the price of that type of food goes up for the consumer.

Farmers have even been known to till under surviving crops because it is the only way for them to collect on their crop insurance. They have to have that crop insurance to survive until the next year, but by destroying any remaining plants they are taking them out of the food supply and driving its price up in the grocery store. They are literally being paid not to harvest their crops.

Detrimental effects on crops eventually have detrimental effects on livestock. When there is less food available for people there is also a reduction of food available for livestock. Meat prices will go up as farmers maintain smaller herds of animals due to high feed costs. Every species that relies on grains for feed will be affected. Chicken will always be cheaper than beef, but both will go up in price although there may be a lag between increases of different kinds of meat.

The overall food supply can go up in price as a result of even one bad harvest. There is one prevalent theory about the cause of more extreme weather and that theory is global warming. Some activists believe that the industrial aspect of today’s farming is contributing to the changes in climate. Fossil fuels are involved in every step of row cropping. These people believe that the emissions from the farming are responsible for global warming and the changes in climate. They really push the idea of sustainable agriculture practices like community supported agriculture. Unfortunately, the economics just don’t support a complete change to locally grown food yet.

No matter what is causing weather extremes farmers have to deal with them. The world’s population is growing, but its farmland isn’t. Irrigation systems may help some farmers offset the effects of droughts, but there is little that can be done in the case of flooding. Changes in the crop insurance program may help in the short-term by ensuring that every surviving plant makes it into the national food supply. A long term solution has to be made if weather in the Midwest of the United States continues to fluctuate widely since it does supply the entire world with food.

Migrant Workers Eat Less Nutritional Food Than They Grow

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:31:06 +0000

The American Journal of Public Health recently published a study on the lives of migrant workers. These workers venture to the United States from countries like Mexico and Cuba in search of work to support their families. Many of these workers do not have visas and live like ghosts leaving no trail behind to show that they were here.

They live in camps neat the farms where they work. In about ten percent of the camps where undocumented workers lived there were at least two basic health violations in the kitchens. The violations included things like improper refrigerator cooling which can cause food to spoil, cockroach infestation, and contaminated water. In camps where legal workers live the farms are required to submit to health inspections there were fewer violations.

The health of the people who handle fresh produce that goes into the national food supply should be a top priority. Many diseases, like the norovirus, can survive on surfaces for weeks, so the last thing we want is for any of these workers to contract one of those diseases. The workers could contaminate the food supply if they do not practice good hygiene like proper hand washing. If their water is contaminated to begin with it might be hard for the worker to wash at all.

Most Americans have no idea where the produce in the grocery store comes from. There is no way to know how each produce farmer treats his workers. The best thing a normal person who buys their fresh produce from the store can do is take steps to protect themselves from illness. Probably the best habit a person can get into is to wash their fruits and vegetable before they cook them or eat them. If they are cooking the fresh produce they can be sure to cook them fully and hopefully it will kill any residual bacteria left over from washing the item.

The only way to ensure a safe food supply is for the use of migrant workers to stop or for the practice to be legalized in such a way that it is easier for migrant workers to do their work safely. As long as farms are using workers outside the system then the workers will never have any minimum standards of living. Without a standard these workers can live in conditions that are prime for a disease outbreak and your food is not safe from being exposed to those diseases.

Alternatively, people can grow their own fresh produce when it’s in season or shopping at local farmer’s markets. Most vendors at those markets charge more than regular super markets because they do most of the work themselves. They also tend not to use any type of chemicals on their produce. Most of these vendors are generally happy to give you a farm tour if you want to see exactly where their items come from.

Luckily, there have been very few incidents of where sick workers have contaminated fresh produce by simply touching it. It wouldn’t hurt for the American government to address this issue before it does happen, though.

Miniature Cattle for the Miniature Farm

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:29:45 +0000

Most small farms would like a cow for milk or meat, but many don’t need the volume of either that would come with a full sized cow. Miniature cattle provide a great alternative. They’re generally less than half the size of their full-sized counterparts, so they produce a more manageable amount of milk and meat for a small farm.

One of the core breeds of miniature cattle is the Dexter. The Dexter breed hails from Ireland and is the smallest of the European cattle breeds. This is a heritage breed that is perfect for a small homestead. The cows only weigh in at about six hundred and fifty pounds and the bulls get to around one thousand pounds. They are considered a dual purpose breed because they are used for both milk and meat. No matter what the owner is using the cow for it can grow on grass alone; this makes the animal very cost effective to keep if there is even a small pasture available. Additionally, in some countries they are used for oxen.

Dexter cows are very good mothers who are very attentive to their calves. They are known to give birth easy which is a trait that is desirable for the small, part-time farm. Additionally, they will allow other cow’s calves to nurse on them. This means that more of the calves that are born in the herd will survive.

Many of the newest miniature cattle breeds are a direct result of crossbreeding with Dexter cattle or Zebu cattle. Zebu cattle are another heritage breed that originates in South Asia. They are well adapted for high temperatures so they are not ideal for some parts of the United States and Europe. There are now a total of twenty-six miniature breeds of cattle thanks to crossbreeding of these two breeds.

This means that you can really pick and choose what you want in a miniature cow. They now come in a variety of coloration and purpose. Some people may put more value on meat production than milk production in which case the Miniature Angus cow is for them. There are also Miniature Jersey cattle for the milk lover. For the farm owner looking for a unique cow then the Panda cow may be a good choice.

As meat animals miniatures make much more sense for the small farm because the animal is generally only being harvested for a single family. Breeds like the Dexter will produce about half their body weight in usable meat. Five hundred pounds of meat is much more manageable for a single family than the thousand pounds of meat that a full sized bull can produce.

For small farms miniature cattle are a great alternative to a milk goat herd. The raw milk derived from milking cows is growing in popularity despite the fact that in many states it’s illegal to sell it. In states where it is legal to sell raw milk miniature cows could present an affordable way to make a little extra money for the small farm.

Small Sources of Protein

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:28:41 +0000

Many people are starting to grow their own food. A garden is a great start, but you can only grow your fruits and vegetables in it. Most people need a protein source and it can be found in the chicken and in a variety of ways. Rabbits, fish, and quail can also provide a good source of protein to the small backyard farmer.

A good laying hen will generally provide her owners with one or two eggs a day. These eggs can come in a variety of sizes and colors. If you are short on space then your best option may be to get a bantam chicken which is smaller and her eggs will also be smaller. The color of your eggs will depend on the breed of hen you buy. Americana’s can lay green eggs while other breeds can lay white, brown and even chocolate colored eggs. For many backyard farmers this may be all they use their chickens for.

Others may choose to have a rooster so the eggs their hens lay are fertile. The chicks from those fertile eggs can then be raised to maturity and harvested for meat. There are a number of chicken breeds that are classified as dual purpose so the small farmer can get the best of both egg and meat production. You can fit a lot of chickens into a relatively small space which makes them great for the small backyard.

Rabbits are a great protein source for the small backyard. They grow quickly and you can breed multiple litters a year. Their size is going to be dependent on their breed. Good breeds for backyard food production include New Zealand Whites and Flemish Giants. Rabbits will thrive better when they are allowed some access to fresh grass.

A backyard aquaponics system can be costly, but you can get a pre-formed fish pond at many different stores for under two hundred dollars. They aren’t huge, but they’ll be big enough to support one type of local fish. Many of these ponds are too shallow for your fish to survive the winter, so you might have to restock in the spring. Still, you’ll have fresh fish all summer long.

Quail will take up the least amount of space of all these sources. They are tiny birds that grow very rapidly and lay a high volume of eggs. Their eggs are edible, but they are tiny. Generally, these eggs are hatched for the birds inside. Quail meat is considered a delicacy in some places. It is good, but you don’t get much meat out of each bird because of their small size.

It is definitely possible to grow your own protein at home, even in the smallest of backyards. These are just a few of the options and the creative backyard farmer is sure to come up with many more ideas. If you really want to grow your own meat consider calling some of your local meat processors and ask if they do custom processing. It may be easier on your family and yourself if you pay someone else to process your meat.

To Eat Local, Or Not To Eat Local? That Is The Question

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:27:42 +0000

Once upon a time everyone ate locally. Every family had a garden and they only bought the food that they couldn’t supply themselves. Then the farmers of the world discovered economies of scale. They realized that by specializing in one crop or another that they could grow more of it for less money and they could make a profit on it.

Today our agriculture is almost entirely specialized and most Americans’ food travels more than fifteen hundred miles to get to them. One would think that this travel time would make food more expensive, but it actually makes it cheaper. Every crop has different needs to survive and it can be hard for small local farms to manage the differing conditions needed for different plants. This results in those small farms having a higher cost for each item produced. The big single crop farms may rely on chemicals, but every plant on their land has the exact same needs as the plant before it. This means they can buy their needed items in bulk and at a cheaper cost.

Cheap crops, like grains, can be grown just about anywhere in the United States and aren’t likely to become a part of a locally grown diet. If people were to make the switch to mostly locally grown produce then the price of that healthy produce would go up because those smaller farms are paying more for inputs. Unfortunately, the prices of low costs grain products such as corn syrup would stay the same. In fact, they might even get cheaper! As farmers would stop growing other produce because they would have nowhere to sell it they would likely start growing grains. That would increase the amount of grains in the market and make them cheaper.

The poor already have a higher rate of obesity, so demanding that locally grown foods be all that are available in the super-market would only drive the poor to more grain based foods. Those foods would still be relatively cheap. The question then becomes this: are the poor better off eating chemically treated fresh fruits and vegetables or are they better off on a pure grain diet?

That is a hard question to answer. Is it unfair that wealthier people can afford healthier food? Yes, but you have to think about the poor around the world. In nations like Africa the poor are literally starving to death; in the United States the poor are eating themselves into an early death. This is happening because cheaper foods actually tend to have more calories than their more expensive counterparts.

Unfortunately, it is a simple question of economic circumstance. If you have the money then it’s probably healthier to eat locally, but if you are poor then you are better off with processed foods from the super-market because it’s all you can afford and it’s better than nothing at all. This dynamic is not likely to change anytime soon because the world’s population continues to grow while the available farm land does not. The efficiency of single-crop farms will make them the only way to grow enough food for more people on the same number of fields.

Growing Your Own Food in Small Spaces

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:26:34 +0000

We all love the fresh fruits and vegetables from the local farmer’s market, so why not grow your own? Even if you live in a space that has no yard like an apartment it’s still possible to grow some of your fresh fruits and vegetables. You simply can’t get fresher food than going out to your balcony and picking an apple off of the tree.

Miniature apple trees are among a number of miniature trees that can thrive in large pots. Ceramic pots are a popular choice for these trees because of their decorative nature, but lighter weight pots are more practical since many of these trees have to be moved inside during the winter. Many of the ceramic pots are hard to lift before you fill them with dirt and trees and can be almost impossible to lift once you’ve filled them up.

Vertical gardening is your best option for growing food on a balcony. You can buy vertical gardening pockets and tubes on the internet, but they can get pretty pricey. A better option is to make your own. You can do this by buying a section of PVC pipe and cutting half-holes in it in regular intervals. If you’ve got the equipment you can even warm the area above the hole and push it in so it keep the weight of the dirt above the plant from putting pressure on it. You will have to cap the bottom if you want to hang it vertically, so it’s a good idea to put a few inches of rock in the bottom of the pipe.

Tomatoes and strawberries thrive in these pipes. Remember to put any pipe with strawberries inside for the winter because strawberries are perennial and will grow even better the next year. Most crops that grow close to the ground or vine out will do alright in your vertical garden. Things like corn and sunflowers won’t though! Try to avoid plants that will grow up tall.

Why stick to gardening? If your landlord will allow it then your balcony could be a perfect place for two chickens. You can find small pre-made coops at many farm stores. A good chicken will produce two eggs a day, but like most animals hens are happier in pairs than alone. If you aren’t a fan of eggs then aquaponics could always be another option.

In aquaponics you cycle water from a fish tank to the gardening beds above it. The dirty waters the plants while the plants filter the water clean for the fish. There are both elaborate and simple systems available online. Tilapia are a popular fish used in aquaponic systems, but you could choose whichever type you like most. Just make sure it’s allowed by your landlord and by your local fish and game department if you choose a non-local type of fish.

Creativity is key when raising food in small spaces. You can grow a variety of food on even a small balcony and enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables right off the vine. With the right set-up you can even grow your own protein through chickens and fish.

The Importance of Predator Protection in Livestock

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:24:10 +0000

Whether you raise goats or cattle or even just chickens you likely have a predator problem. Anything from neighborhood dogs to a random fox can pose a threat to your food production animals. Confined animals, such as chickens, are particularly tempting to a predator because they have no where to run.

Herd dogs are a common way dealing with potential threats to your herd. Unfortunately, they can become threats themselves. You have a short window to teach a puppy what animals are to be protected and not eaten. This is great if your farm is fully established and you don’t plan on bringing in any new species, but if it’s not then your herd dog can suddenly become your problem predator.

A better option for controlling predators on a growing farm is to get donkeys. Donkeys are friendly animals in general, but they have proven to be quite aggressive towards predators. They will eat feed, but the survival of your herd may be worth it.

Llamas are chosen as herd guardians for the same reasons that donkeys are. They are generally friendly animals, but they will protect the herd against predators at all costs. Their primary cost is just in their upkeep as there isn’t a lot you can do with a llama.

Dogs are still the most prevalent herd guardians because of their teeth. If confronted with a predator the herd dogs will fight and unlike donkeys and llamas they will stand a fighting chance of surviving the encounter. Most good herd dogs are of a larger breed. These dogs should be confused with the smaller breeds like collies whose purpose is more to herd the animals in at night rather than protect them from an actual predator.

Good fencing will also do a lot to keep predators away from your herd. A single line of electric wire on the outside of the primary fence can serve as a good deterrent to predators. There are even farmers who have bought motion activated radios whose sound scares off predators before they even get close to their livestock. The radios also serve as an alarm to the farmers that something is out there that shouldn’t be and give them time to grab a weapon before heading out to check on their stock.

It is always wise to confine herd animals to the barn at night if the area is known for predators. The barn itself will act as a deterrent. Other methods include aversive scent markers for territorial predators like coyotes and wolves. Solar flares set up around the perimeter of the fence that are motion activated can help by scaring away the animal, but they can become accustomed to this deterrent over time. It’s not a long-term solution. Herd owners have to come up with a combination of predator protection and deterrents that fit for them because every situation is unique.

How to Reduce US Food Waste

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:23:22 +0000

Americans waste about twenty-five percent of the food that they prepare. That food then has to be trucked away to a landfill where it decomposes and releases large amounts of methane gas. That twenty-five percent on average equates to about one and half pounds of food per a person per a day. Just over the fall holidays over five million pounds of food find their way to the landfills.

There are a lot reasons for such a high amount of food waste. Expiration dates may be in part to blame because many people take them as an absolute end by date. Experts recommend relying more on the smell test of items that don’t have to be refrigerated as they can be good to eat even after the date on the packaging. They may taste a little differently, but they’re still nutritionally sound. A lack of adequate storage for these foods may also play a part in their disposal and spoilage.

A large amount of the wasted food that makes it way to landfills comes from restaurants where people leave meals unfinished. The customer has already paid for the food, so the restaurant has no incentive to try to salvage it. In fact, in many areas it might actually violate a health code for the restaurant to give the food away. It’s a hassle for them to try to compost it, so it goes to the landfill instead.

Grocers are a just as inflexible with their excess. Many food pantries will take fresh produce that is about to expire and they will redistribute it to those in need, after they rescue from the dumpster behind the grocery store. They are just as guilty as consumers though about getting rid of perfectly good food because an expiration date is approaching.

Some places like bread stores will actually sell the items that are about to expire for a discounted rate. More than a few farmers pick up truckloads of expired bread to feed to their animals at minimal cost. The bread found in these truck loads is generally not even stale and perfectly safe for human consumption. The bread can make a considerably cheaper form of feed for animals like chickens and fish. The bread is also a good treat for larger animals like goats.

The largest amount of food waste occurs on the farm. There are circumstances where it can literally cost a farmer more to harvest a crop than to till it under. Other items are left in the fields simply because they don’t look nice enough to sell. There is nothing wrong with the fruit or vegetable, it just doesn’t look perfect like Americans like them to.

Food prices still account for less than ten percent of the average person’s budget in the United States. People don’t tend to care about things they don’t pay a lot for, so the amount of food that is wasted isn’t likely to change until food prices start to rise significantly. Unfortunately, wasting food is apparently just a sign of prosperity.

Monsanto Continues to Grow Despite Bad Press

admin — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 07:22:10 +0000

Monsanto does not have the best reputation among environmental activists and some farmers. They produce the seeds for many of the genetically modified crops found in today’s markets. In 2010 the company also tried to raise the price of their seeds and received a very bad public response from the farmers who use their products. Unfortunately some of their herbicides and genetically modified corn strains have also failed to live up to their promise.

It’s surprising to see that they are doing very well despite all of this. The profits of the company have gone up 87% in just the last two years. They are standing by their genetically modified seeds in legislatures and the farmers who use them are seeing the results of the biotechnology involved in their creation. Those results are driving sales and farmer’s yields up. More and more farmers are buying their seeds because they make their money off of higher yields.

Monsanto isn’t just dependent on their genetically modified seeds though. The company is the largest seed manufacturer in the world and conventional seed breeding still accounts for about fifty percent of the of the research budget of the company. The company is also committing more money to understand why certain strains of weeds are becoming resistant to the herbicides that the company uses. This resistance should not have come as a surprise to the company since they have been using the same herbicides for over forty years. The company’s failure on this front was that they didn’t see it coming.

The company claims that their genetically modified seeds are the most tested food products on the market and that they’re completely safe. Unfortunately for the company rumors that genetically modified foods are unsafe persists, but they have obviously not having a real effect on the company. This may be because of their conventional seed division. More likely it’s because most Americans really don’t pay much attention to where their food comes from, let alone what types of seeds were used to grow them.

As technical as Monsanto is they had to get back to the people who use their products and communicate to them better the value of their product after the public relations Armageddon of 2010. That’s exactly what they did. Thanks to consistent messaging and pricing the executives of the company turned the company around after their profits plunged an astounding forty-seven percent in 2010. Not many companies could have recovered from such a loss in revenues but Monsanto did it by putting an emphasis on customer service.

As populations rise around the world more farmers will likely use genetically modified seeds for their crops. They will need to get higher yields out of every field to keep up despite changing climates in growing regions. The future of genetic modifications may actually lie in promoting traits that will tolerate extreme temperature changes. There may be seeds that one day tolerate extreme drought, flooding, or both. Monsanto’s genetically modified seeds may be the only hope for farmers in areas that are experiencing changes in their climate.