March 2009

Food Network Canada's 100 Mile Challenge

I knew that once I started writing about local food, the movement was well beyond its tipping point. What I didn't know was that Canada's Food Network was planning its own new reality show called The 100 Mile Challenge. From their website:

The 100 Mile Challenge challenges six families to survive for 100 days on food that originates within a 100 mile radius of their home. Through intimate, often funny, sometimes painful, always entertaining, personal stories, we'll witness exactly what happens when this extraordinary food-focused experiment unfolds. The 100 Mile Challenge will get all of Canada talking about what we eat and where exactly it comes from.

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What to Do With Your CSA Bounty

My friend Doug sent me a great article from Slate the other day, written by Catherine Price.

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New Simple, Good, and Tasty Logo

Check out the spiffy new Simple, Good, and Tasty logo! It was designed by my good friend Stuart Flake, an amazing designer. You can see more of his work at What Agency, Inc.

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Now We're Farmers!

We'll, not really. But we do have a garden started in our yard, thanks to A Backyard Farm, which I wrote about in an earlier Simple, Good, and Tasty post. A Backyard Farm, in its first season, is the brainchild of Joan and Coleen, two terrific women whose quest to grow local, sustainable foods in Minneapolis and St. Paul now now extends to other people's home gardens. We had Joan and Coleen out to our house a couple of weeks ago, and we discussed an approach that would work for us.

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Find the Farmer

findthe-farmer2Super interesting article in the NY Times recently about Find the Farmer, a company whose goal is to help us figure out where our food comes from, and who farmed it.

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Find the Farmer

findthe-farmer2Super interesting article in the NY Times recently about Find the Farmer, a company whose goal is to help us figure out where our food comes from, and who farmed it.

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How to Fight Wal-mart? Sell Better Food!

walmartNo big surprise in the Wall Street Journal's recent article about local businesses suffering when a Wal-mart comes to town. But there's also some interesting advice for small business owners and local grocers when it comes to staying alive. For one thing, the article cautions these businesses against trying to match Wal-mart on price, suggesting that this will simply compound the problem, reducing sales by 25% rather than 17%.

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Star Tribune Features Common Roots and Whittier Public School

There was a short article in the Star Tribune last week about Common Roots Cafe (whose terrific local, sustainable food I featured last week) and the support they give Whittier schools in Minneapolis. Here's a quote:

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Lucia's: a Twin Cities Treasure

lucias1It would be hard to overstate what Lucia's - and it's owner/founder Lucia Watson - have meant to the Twin Cities food and dining landscape for the past 20-plus years. Since it's inception, Lucia's has been not only one of the city's finest restaurants, but also one of it's most active members of the local, sustainable food community.

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Obamafoodorama.com

I continue to find all sorts of great information and links from the Every Kitchen Table blog by Rob Smart. One ofobamafoodorama my new favorites is Obamafoodorama, a blog dedicated to the First Family and the foodies who surround them. Who knew how perfect a fit that White House Garden was? Turns out it was just the tip of the iceberg!

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