As many of you may know, I work as a Wellness + Nutrition Counselor (otherwise known as a Holistic Health Counselor) in Brooklyn, NY. You can learn more about me and my practice, here.

Each season, I send what I call a seasonal dispatch to my email list. Below is the 2007 Summer Dispatch. If you'd like to be on my list, send an email with "subscribe" in the subject to dispatches[at]zhauswellness.com.

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2007 Summer Dispatch Contents:
1. On Site: TheMindfulEater.com
2. It's Summer!
3. Eat this
4. Get your move on
5. Modern sun worship
6. The Artful Eye

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1. On Site: TheMindfulEater.com

Introduced last season was my new blog (you're reading it). The mission: To bring "A sane voice in the world of food, nutrition, and sustainability, as well as general mindfulness to one of the most important things we all do: eating."

If you haven't been keeping up, I've begun a series called "All About Organic", an attempt to simplify the issues swarming the topic. You can find the first few installments, here:
Part One: Why you should care
Part Two: Local vs. Organic
Part Three: Natural Meats

and coming soon will be Part Four: Fish

If you'd like to be notified when I make a post, you should use a feed reader. A feed reader is a central place where you can subscribe to the (subscription-enabled) blogs you like and be notified when they have new content (this subscription is called a "feed"). Your feed reader is like a free, constantly updated personal magazine of web content, curated by you. If you have no idea what any of this is, read this primer: http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/feed101 . I recommend using Google Reader (http://www.google.com/reader ) for a feed reader.

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2. It's summer!

June 21 was the summer solstice - the day at which the sun is highest in the sky and we have the longest duration of sunlight in a day. The sun gives energy, causing action and outward movement, which manifests in increased travel, working, and playing out in the beautiful sunshine. The change from spring to summer is one of maturation. The flowers and fruits that seeded last season are now growing tall all around us, equally growing and maturing - as are we. This is the high point of outdoor exercise, sports, and water recreation. We should be sure to get lots of activity as well as good amounts of solar energy.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine, summer is the season of the fire element, which is the energy of creativity, intuition, and motion; it is the action that carries out the "idea" (Spring was all about "ideas", or planting seed). Last season was about emerging and creating ideas, now we're growing and maturing them, and next season we'll harvest and store and prepare to regenerate. This season calls upon our creativity, intuition, and perseverance to see our ideas out.

The Fire element governs the heart and small intestine. The heart is one of the most active organs in summer, as it's the regulator of blood circulation - it serves each cell's needs by pumping 3000 gallons of blood per day to our lungs, where the blood picks up oxygen to carry throughout our body. It's also finely sensitive to feedback mechanisms concerning our brain and muscle oxygen needs. Most interesting is that the heart's rate and rhythm are also determined by our breathing and mental and emotional states. "Getting slow" means stopping to relax and enjoy life a little, which can include play of all types. Knowing the heart is impacted by breathing and mentality is one more reason to practice getting slow.

The small intestine is around 23 feet in length and connects the stomach to the large intestine. Proper function is the key to our nourishment because the only nutrients we can actually use are those which we digest and assimilate through the small intestine. If you've ever heard of the term "digestive flora" you'll know that it refers to the environment of the small intestine, in which live millions of helpful bacteria. These bacteria help the breakdown and absorption of nutrients. But usage of antibiotics, which kill off offenders, also kill off these good guys, and we must replenish them. This is where "probiotics" - supplemental helpful bacteria - come in, and you can find these in UN-pasteurized fermented foods (such as kimchee, sauerkraut, yogurt, kefir, pickles), or take as a capsule supplement. Whether eating fermented foods or supplements, make sure you find yours in the refrigerated section, or the bacteria have surely been killed off.

The heart is the center of intuition, our innate, inner kind of knowing. It helps us integrate our inner and outer worlds. Developing our intuition is an important process requiring practice. Our hearts know the truth. If we can learn how to listen for this information, we can answer questions and solve problems; we just need to practice getting quiet and asking, and then listening for the answer. This literally means taking a break, sitting comfortably, and focusing on just your breathing for a few minutes to slow down. Recognize thoughts without judgment, and then ask yourself how you feel about something. Instead of thinking about the answer, try to let it hang and be receptive to the feeling that arises, particularly in your body. Do a body scan - how does your body feel? Often and with practice you'll start to notice something that gives you a clue, for instance, a tense muscle, or a flutter in your heart. These are clues to your inner knowledge. Summer is the season to take this practice seriously.

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3. Eat this

Summer is usually hot and we are more active. We need a diet which keeps us cool and light - and isn't it fortunate that nature provides us with such luscious fruits and veggies to eat at this time? A diet of primarily raw, organic fruits and veggies is ideal. This will help you feel lighter and keep your energy strong in the heat.

Foods have yin and yang qualities. Fruits are the most yin (moist, cooling) followed by vegetable, whereas the yang foods are the more concentrated, heating ones, primarily the proteins (flesh, nuts, seeds, beans), fat (dairy, eggs) and complex carbohydrates (whole grains). So during the summer, most people should eat lots of fresh fruits, multi-colored salads and veggies, some seeds, nuts, and grains - and fewer dairy products and meats.

Virtually everything seems to be coming into season in summer. Rather than focus on getting more of just one thing, be aware of the rainbow of colors in the produce aisle. The pigments themselves are special powerful nutrients called "carotenoids". Famous carotenoids include lycopene (red in color, found in tomatoes among other foods), identified for its powerful effect on vision; beta carotene (deep orange, found in carrots and sweet potatoes) - associated with decreased risk for cancer and heart disease. Each color holds a host of different carotenoids. For this reason, eating a wide variety of colors will ensure you get a rounded nutrient intake. With so much beautiful food in season, make it a point to eat the most colorful palettes of meals you can, trying new things whenever you get a chance.

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4. Get your move on

Eventually in the summer, we all find our way to a body of water to cool off. Whether it's the ocean, a lake, or your local public swimming pool - get there and make a point to do a little activity in the water. If you haven't yet, consider finding your way there. When you get there, make an effort to get physical - this will not only help you be healthier, but a little bit of work makes your rest time sweeter. If you're in a body of water you can swim in, try swimming, or staying active for 15 minutes. If swimming sounds ambitious, consider just wading - actively wading without touching the bottom can be a great workout if you make it one.

Finally, take a walk - long walks on the beach aren't just for cheesy personal ads! They can be a great way to work out what's on your mind, enjoy living in the moment with the breeze blowing through your hair, and a great workout as walking in the sand is a lot more challenging than flat, firm ground. Just making the effort will get you far.

Looking for a local pool? Try these links:
http://www.swimmersguide.com
http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_things_to_do/facilities/af_pools.html

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5. Modern Sun Worship

There's a lot of hubbub about sun exposure these days, so here's an attempt at simplifying the matter. The most important thing to know is: WE NEED SUNLIGHT. Do not be scared of the sun! Vitamin D - essential for calcium absorption (and therefore bone health among other things), hormone regulation and secretion, and the immune system - is synthesized on our skin when it's exposed to sunlight. Though we can take supplemental vitamin D, sun exposure is the best source. Sun and water are the two most important nutrients for almost all living things, including us.

Like all things, moderation is the key. Yes, our tinkering has thinned the ozone layer and made us more vulnerable to harmful rays - this is an important consideration. However, we must also consider that sunblock lotions are not completely natural: in fact, they are chemical substances that, when applied, are absorbed by our skin into our blood and carried throughout our bodies. Not only that, but sunscreen (above SPF 8) blocks UV rays necessary for vitamin D production. Hm...

As a species, we've lived a lot longer with the threat of UV rays (at least 200,000 years) than with sunblock (~60 years). Many doctors and experts would have you lather yourself in sunscreen before you set foot out the door every day, but in a world increasingly plagued with toxins, I think it's important to weigh the issues sensibly and make conscious choices.

Here's the decision tree I recommend for most people (excluding those with high risk for skin cancer - talk with your doctor).

* If you will have any exposure to direct sunlight between 10am and 6pm AT ALL, then use sunscreen, and use it right. Apply it liberally, often, and 30 minutes before going outside. If you know that morning that you'll have this exposure later, apply it before you get dressed for the day. This makes it easy to cover all your parts and not get it on your clothes. But what you ideally want is to avoid this direct exposure completely...
* If you'll be outside at these peak sun hours, stay in the shade and/or cover up. Unless you're there all day, you don't need sunscreen in the shade and you'll get plenty of vitamin-D producing rays.
* Finally, the absolute BEST time to get outside and get those delicious rays is before 10am, and after 5pm (6pm in the summer). At these times in most places, direct exposure won't be strong enough to warrant sunscreen, and will give you what your body needs. And hey, the light is much more beautiful at these hours anyway.

Make an effort to get outside at these earlier/later hours. Take a morning or evening walk. Consider changing your beach time slot - I find going to the beach in late afternoon and watching the sun set, or early morning, is not only beautiful but far less crowded, and leaves me time to do something else with my day.

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6. Enjoy the Artful Eye...

... of Martin Parr. A British photographer, he explores the absurdities of British culture (much of it at the seaside) with a punchy sense of humor. His photographs elicit chuckles while his color, composition, and documentary talents inspire awe. Enjoy.

Martin Parr at Magnum Photos

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Annoying but necessary disclaimer: The contents of this email are based on the opinions of Michelle Zassenhaus. The information in this email is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional and is not intended as medical advice.

Posted by themindfuleater at 02:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last night Sicko opened in New York, at the Lincoln Square theater. We attended the 11pm showing, where Mr. Moore himself showed up and gave a little impromptu speech. It just so happens that he used to live in that neighborhood and this was his favorite theater, and he had viewed the previous showing and hung out to talk with us. He was enthusiastically received and thoroughly documented via cell phone camera (including mine, above) and delivered some witty remarks and heartfelt thanks for the support – and shared that he had just learned that this opening was one of the highest one-night sales EVER at this theater. Hm.

The movie was excellent and sobering - even for someone like me, who is already well aware of the paradigm shift that's so necessary to change the course we're on regarding health in this country.

Moore focused on the sad stories of a few "covered" patients, including volunteer workers from 9/11, and then turned the attention on healthcare in other countries, which is often abundant, highly focused on preventative measures, efficient, and most of all, free. The shot after shot of bewildered looks on behalf of citizens of canada, the uk, france and even cuba when asked how much they paid for this or that procedure, or how much effort it took to deal with their health was like a continual dagger to the heart, as we can all think of at least one person in our lives who is ill and struggling to figure what will be covered by insurance and how to afford the shortfall.

In contrast to his previous films, Moore didn't have to become an antagonistic nuisance to make his point - the status of our healthcare is so miserable all he needed to do was shed a light on it, show us what all our neighbors are doing, and the facts speak powerfully for themselves.

We desperately need a change in this country: a continual, singular business goal of "maximizing profits" is making us a sick culture in more ways than one. It's time we think about the long-term cost and introduce a bit more humanity into our business culture. And that starts with demands from the citizen/consumer. It starts with changing the laws so lobbying doesn't continue to buy our government. And then it becomes about reforming the privatized healthcare industry. If you know any movement or organization working toward these goals, please post your info here.

Til then - take your parents and go see Sicko.

Posted by themindfuleater at 02:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's no coincidence that this watery fruit ripens at the same time the sun is highest in the sky: again, the wise ways of mother nature have got our backs.

Benefits
As the name implies, watermelon is a great source of pure water. It delivers more nutrients per calorie, which makes it an excellent health food. It's packed with some of the most important antioxidants in nature, including lycopene - the red carotenoid the also gives tomatoes their color, and is known to fight macular degeneration - a disease leading to blindness as we age. Watermelon is also a good source of vitamins C, A and potassium. It has only half the sugar of an an apple, but tastes sweeter because it is the main taste-ingredient. Watermelon relieves thirst, mental depression, edema, and is an excellent diuretic. However, it is not recommended for someone with weak digestion and it can apparently inhibit semen production.

How to pick 'em
With all melons, choose one that feels heavy for its size. Look for ones with a smooth surface and a cream-colored underbelly. It's really hard to gauge from the outside. Inside, if you cut it open and there are white streaks or white seeds, the watermelon is not fully ripened. Watermelons should be refrigerated (if you can fit it! of course, if not - cut it up) to preserve their freshness and juiciness.

Preparation
Watermelon doesn't stand up to cooking and the texture doesn't really allow you to mince it, so use large chunks. But don't be relegated to just fruit salads - you can blend it and add herbs for a cold soup, or create a refreshing drink, or add it to vegetable salads to change things up.

Watermelon Feta Salad
I've been enjoying the mix of heat from pepper with the cooling properties of watermelon lately. The feta in this recipe adds just a touch of tang and the mint pulls flavors together. Try bringing it to your next backyard BBQ.

3 cups Watermelon chunks, preferably with seeds removed
1 cup crumbled feta
Course black pepper
handful of mint

combine all ingredients; chill and serve!

Posted by themindfuleater at 08:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

One of the most pleasurable summer weekend activities is to visit your local farmer's market and ogle over the colorful array of fresh fruits, veggies, flowers and other artisan products - and then to go home and prepare something lovely. One thing I've been enjoying lately is asparagus soup - easy to make and very tasty:

Market Fresh "Cream" of Asparagus Soup
The creative addition of oatmeal to this soup gives it a creamy texture without adding any actual cream to the soup at all.

2 leeks, sliced small
2 lbs asparagus
1/4 cup oatmeal
1 cup veggie stock
1 tablespoon olive oil
5 cups water
salt + pepper
juice of 1/2 fresh lemon

1. Boil 2 cups cold water, and add some salt. Lop the tops off the asparagus and boil (blanch) them for 2 minutes, then remove, keeping the cooking water, and wash under cold water. Chop the rest of the asparagus in 1" pieces
2. Saute leeks in olive oil in your soup cooking pot, over medium heat, adding some salt, and allow them to sweat - getting soft but not brown, about 8 minutes.
3. Add all ingredients except the blanched asparagus tips to this pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Blend the soup: transfer bits at a time to a blender - be sure not to fill the blender more than 1/3 - 1/2 full or it will explode everywhere. Blend bits at a time. This seems like a pain but it's really no big deal.
5. In the last batch, add 1/2 the asparagus tips, and don't blend fully, leave it slightly chunky. Add all the blended soup back to the pot, squirt in lemon juice and season to taste with salt + pepper.
6. Serve in bowls with some asparagus tips on top.

If you want to shop at your farmer's market but aren't sure where to go, let local harvest help you find one.

Posted by themindfuleater at 09:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Free Range, cage free, grass-fed, certified humane, antibiotic free, pasture-raised, corn-finished, organic, heritage, all-natural... the conversation about food is definitely heating up, and the question "where does our food come from" and its sidekick "what's IN that?" are producing a veritable whirlwind of loaded and confusing vocabulary terms. Unless you're like me and your exciting beach read for the summer is the latest sustainable-food movement tome, you probably don't *really* know what all these terms mean - and who could blame you. People make a lot of money off our confusion. The best thing we can do for our health (and ultimately public health in general) is take a few minutes to educate ourselves about the issues, and then put our money behind the products we deem worthy.

So here is an attempt at breaking down the issues swimming around the meat scene, Part 3 of All About Organic: "Organic" Meat.

A few reasons you should consider where your meat comes from

It just ain't right

"Ahimsa", a Buddhist tenet meaning "non-violence", is the idea behind the common prayer "may all beings live free of suffering." I feel deeply passionate about the humanity and respect with which we treat this planet and its inhabitants. I am going to go right out there with what many consider a hypocrisy in my beliefs: I am not a vegetarian. But being a vegetarian because you don't believe in killing an animal is, to my mind, to say that killing or dying is not natural or acceptable, and with this I disagree. This earth is a working system of which we are only a small part - and that system includes the survival of the species and birth and death. The distinction I do think is important is that of suffering. We must all die one day, but there is no reason anyone should live with suffering, and I believe this includes you, and me, and all the beings on this earth. The system that has kept this earth working (with or without us) for billions of years deserves respect and acknowledgment, which we're not doing when we step into an animal's life, relegate it to a completely unnatural setting, and incur suffering in the name of production - just to make a buck. We think this has no impact on the future health of the system that is the earth but we are starting, very slowly, to realize that this is wrong - that, in fact, the wisdom of the earth is not to be matched by our capitalistic endeavors.

I also believe that the things you put your energy into in turn reap more of that energy in your life. Ever gotten on the subway train in a bad mood, and someone bumps into you - what happens to your mood? Worse, right? This is a trivial example, but our actions and thoughts are a choice; and what we indulgepropagates more of that same energy. So what's happening to us when you telescope this theory out to include modern livestock practices in which there is systematic suffering put in place for sensitive animals that are giving their lives to feed us? I practice ahimsa, I do not believe in propagating needless suffering, and I think with a little consciousness we can easily eradicate a lot of it. Treating animals the way industrial factory farming does is simply unnecessary and unacceptable, period.

Environment

Cows used to graze on grassy pastures. The grass they ate was easily digested - because it's what they're meant to eat - and therefore they didn't get sick and need antibiotics. As they ate, they pooped, and their poop fertilized the pastures so more grass could grow. In this system, there is no waste - every element in the system is recycled naturally. In the 50s, when we removed the cows from the pastures and put them in factories ("factory farms" or, "Concentrated Animal Feed Operations" or CAFOs - as they're officially called ), the 'smart' idea was to feed them the grain we had from the surplus generated by highly politicized farm subsidies. Grain creates an overly acidic environment in the cow stomach, and introduces microbes cows have no defenses for, so they get sick and necessitate antibiotics. When they poop, the excrement is so toxic it can't be used for anything - it would kill any plants you would try to fertilize it with. So all the poop is brushed off into what CAFOs call "lagoons" (partially responsible, for instance, for the Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone).

Sound charming? Well... as you guessed, they're not - they reek, seep into the local water supply, and emit detrimental fumes into the environment. Methane is 23 times as potent as the same amount ofcarbon dioxide, and the second leading gas contributing to global warming. In the United States, farm animals - mostly cattle - account for 19% of all methane emissions. Not only that, but the cows have no grass to stand on - instead they stand in crowded, confining stalls in poop all day, until it can be cleared out. The architects of the food industry in this country essentially took a perfectly functioning natural system in which the outcome of each part was the perfect solution to the next problem - and broke it into several problems, each with no solution.

To make matters worse, the end result is also an inferior product. But if you own a CAFO, you've made a lot of money from it, some of which - no doubt - finds its way to the pockets of legislators. I typically avoid the conspiratorial tone, but the business end is a very important dynamic in this conversation; this is really true. If you're learning about this for the first time, this is the reason it's true - because most people don't really know where their food comes from, and the systematic effect it has on our environment, health, and general well-being for creatures on this earth. Think about it: our current food system is only about 50 years old, and since then, a lot of people have gotten really rich - including the food, insurance, and pharma industries, and the rest of us have gotten really sick (heart disease, obesity and diabetes all became epidemics in this same time.) Learning about these issues and voting with our forks will eventually change the playing field.

One more note about how eating beef from CAFOs affects the environment - which is does, radically. If you consider the sheer volume of cows being reared in this country (95,497,994 in 2002), you're forced to consider how much feed they're eating (7lbs of grain per 1lb of weight gained; 66% of all grain grown in this country - according to this guy), and then you have to consider all the non-renewable resources used to fertilize, produce and transport that feed - which is a lot (about 1600 calories of energy for every 100 calories of meat produced, according to the pdf of this study). And you also have to consider how much deforestation isoccurring to clear land to grow these grains - further detrimental because the trees help us mediate the amount of carbon in the environment. So this is a double-whammy. (Triple if you count the cows themselves.)

What this very simply boils down to is: if we left the cows on the pastures, we'd have lesspolluted water and air, happier cows, better and more nutritious meat, and no "what to do with the lagoon" problem to deal with. We'd also have less meat, you argue? Good - we need less - much less - eating as much red meat as we do is making us a very sick culture.

The Morass of Natural-Meat-related terms

Let's make like jedi and quickly deflect the most offensive and weakest issues confronting us when it comes to meat. "Organic", when talking about meat, means that whatever the animals are eating, it's organic - in many cases, the same biologically-inappropriate food sources, but organic ones. I consider this a polished turd in the world of sustainable eating - it's better than nothing, but hardly worthy of mention. Another term "cage-free" means that the chickens are not in cages - and that's all it means. Unless validated by further claims about the chicken's lives, I usually read this to mean they're in cell-free prisons. "Free-range" is another even more insidious term, which conjures visions, often aided by the illustration on the packaging, of happy chickens roaming the "range". In legalese (which is what many of the people selling you these products care about), it means that the chickens must have a way - whether they can actually find it or not is of no consequence - to get outside. In reality what this often means is that a huge indoor pen of birds has one little hole in the corner, covered by a door which only opens for about an hour a day for the last week of their lives. This topic just gets dismal - I'm sorry. But there really is a silver lining to this dark stormy cloud. It's the term "pasture-raised". Basically this term is a password to the product you're looking for. If someone you're asking isn't familiar with it, rest assured they are not "in the know" and probably don't have what you're after. if people know it, they can readily attest one way or another - people who go to the trouble to pasture raise their chickens - basically letting them live their happy little lives roaming free (truly) on the pasture, eating grubs, worms, and other insects - understand what you're after and are proud to tell you about it and show off their product - which, of course, is superior. The eggs from the hens have deeply orange-yellow yolks, chock full of heart-healthy omega 3's (from worms and grass; see below). Pasture-raised chicken flesh is juicy and tender and very tasty. When speaking of beef, "grass-fed" or "meadow-raised" is synonymous with pasture-raised.

One other term, "certified humane" is a little label you'll see on some meat products that looks like this. It a certification by an independent organization that ensures that "product was produced with the welfare of the animal in mind." I look for this on all my meat products, but like organic, some (in fact, many) small farms use humane practices and haven't gone through this certification process. Typically, if a product is pasture-raised, I assume it's being handled with care. Certainly it's not living the sad life of a factory animal.

Nutrition

Omega-3s are vitally important; they're called "essential fats" because they play a vital role in every cell and system in our bodies - and these are the ones we must get from external sources. Omega-3s are heart-healthy and essential for proper function. It's essential to have them in balance with Omega-6 fats in our systems, but the problem is that culturally, we eat a lot of Omega-6 fats (in veggie oils) and our original source of omega-3 fats (fish) has dwindled and become problematic (mercury, farmed fish - topic of the next installment of this series). Each of the fats provide the essential opposing forces for the process of inflammation - creating it (controlled by omega-6s: in case of injury, inflammation brings what's needed to the site of the wound, quickly) and stopping it (controlled by omega-3s: excess or chronic inflammation eventually wreaks havoc on the system), the imbalance of which is increasingly identified as the root of many diseases. Beyond this, omega-3's are heart-healthy (reduce risk of heart attack by 50%) and essential for brain development and health (depression and other mental disorders like schizophrenia, ADD, and Alzheimer's). Grass-fed beef has 2-4 times more omega-3 fatty acids than meat from grain-fed animals, and much less saturated fat. Pastured chickens and hens produce high omega-3 meats and eggs (eggs have 10 times more omega-3s than factory hens).

The meat from pastured cattle is four times higher in vitamin E than that from feedlot cattle, and almost twice as high as the meat from feedlot cattle given vitamin E supplements. In humans, vitamin E is linked with a lower risk of heart disease and cancer.

Grass-fed meat is very lean and can have 1/3 the amount of fat as a similar grain-fed animal. Grass fed beef can actually have the same amount of fat as a skinless chicken breast. Lean grass-fed beef has also shown in studies to reduce the LDL ("bad") cholesterol level.

Finally, CLA - conjugated linoleic acid, is another type of good fat for which pasture-raised animals are the richest source. CLA may be one of our most anti-cancer defenses; there's a lot of research going on on this lately; in labs it has proven to reduce tumor growth in animals.

What you need to know for buying meat at the market/store

Again, visiting your local farmer's market is a great way to check in on these priorities. What you're looking for are pasture-raised chickens, pigs, and cows. In each case, the pasture may be a little different to suit the animal's needs, but no worry about such details. Remember, "Free-range" is not the same as pasture-raised. "Grass-fed", a term used to refer to cows, IS usually pasture-raised.

Beef: "grass-fed" means pasture-raised; antibiotic-free, hormone-free, and certified humane. Trusted local farms in NYC: Slope farm, Natural Acres, Violet hill

Pork: pasture-raised, antibiotic-free, hormone-free, and certified humane. "Heritage" is another label you'll see for pork - these are species of pigs that are known for their superior flavor and by their nature don't do well with industrial farming, so they're always small-farm produced. Some trusted sources: Flying Pig Farm, Violet hill

Chicken: pasture-raised, "free-range". Remember, "free-range" and "certified humane" claims are government certifications, so even though a farmer practices this way, they may not be certified. Talk to them, or go with these trusted local (to NYC) farms: Dine's farm, Murray's Chicken, Violet hill

Lamb: pasture-raised, "certified humane". Farms: Jamison

When dining out

I don't expect everyone to make this decision, but I will only eat naturally raised meat, so I am constantly refining how to suss out the meat situation in restaurants. Below is my latest approach - I'm open to yours if you have one, please share. Regardless if you eat this way or not, I think letting the owner know you care is important. Also, it's really interesting to get a peek into the considerations of a chef - many of them are eager to share their concerns and passions with you.

1. Ask the server if the meat is "pasture-raised", or natural. I used to think if the server didn't know it, then it wasn't an important issue for the restaurant, but this has proven wrong enough for me to ask these servers to ask the chef. You can tell pretty well if there's recognition on the receiving end - if there's any lack of confidence about what it is, exactly, you're looking for answers to, the answer is definitely that the meat is not 'naturally raised'. (Getting this meat not only takes a special effort, but it's expensive: you won't find places with a low price point carrying these meats, or they can't survive; an understandable byproduct of a supply and demand economy - so no one who doesn't know their issues is buying this stuff.)

2. If they know what you mean but don't know the answer, you can help figure it out by asking if their meat is from a local farm (and if so, what farm). Usually they know the answer on that pretty well. If I don't know the farm and they think it might be naturally raised and it's definitely local, I will go with it. Here (NYC), a local farm is not an industrial farm. If the restaurant has gone this far convincing me it's an important issue for them, I will trust their hunch about whether the meat is naturally raised or not.

3. If the whole situation becomes an awkward project - abort mission and have the salad or fish dish.

Speaking of fish dishes... join me next time for Installment 4 of All About Organic: Sustainable and Natural Fish

For More resources on where to shop, which farms to trust, and restaurants that support sustainability, visit the Sustainable Table Shopping. To learn about farms in your area and their products, visit Local Harvest.
Or learn more about the issues, here.

Posted by themindfuleater at 11:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)