Do you know what you are eating?

[JonathanD]

http://www.hulu.com/watch/67878/the-future-of-food
****EDIT***I should have put a different title. I was hoping to discuss the legal ramifications of pattent law in this situation. Also ideas on Monsonto.****END EDIT****

Seems that this is relevant to everyone. I have been looking into this for a few years, and this video is put together better than any I have seen on the subject.

Jonathan

[rosanne]

I grow some of my food in my yard: potatoes, tomatoes, squash, carrots, jerusalem artichokes, onion, garlic, ginger, arugula, celeriac, beets, etc. and all my fruit and berries such as apricots, pears, lemons, plums, quinces, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, boysenberries, blackberries, figs etc. Never use pesticide or artificial fertilizer. For these items I know what I'm eating.

[SoonerMatt]

I'm a botanist, I could tell you a lot about what you're eating

When the weather is right I grow my own veggies and try to buy what I can't grow from farmer's markets.

[dragon574444]

Ehh...I was expecting a gross picture, or maby a 5 minute video. A documentary.... =\

Maby I'll watch it tomorrow. I gotta get some sleep...

[iamlowsound]

For the most part, yes I do. I try to buy local, not only is it better for you, it tastes better as well.

lowsound

[JonathanD]

I use CSA. Renting prevents me from wanting to garden much. Maybe I will plant this spring. I find the corporate take over side of this more interesting.

What if patents are put on stem cells, for example, does your new liver belong to the company forever? What if a medication gets into your system without you knowing....must you pay for it?

[MJ5150]

Nope, I don't. As long as it has an expiration date that hasn't expired, I'll eat it.

-Mike

[Ericman197]

Saw this a long time ago, though I don't have time to watch the whole thing again. However, you don't have to go more than one minute into the documentary before you encounter totally made up 'facts.'

For example:

"The manufacture of nitrogen based bombs in World War I led to the development of nitrogen based fertilizers"

and

"Nerve gas, developed during WWII, was slightly modified to make insecticides"

Both are historically inaccurate statements. The Haber process was used to produce ammonia for fertilizer before it was used for bombs. Nerve gas was created accidentally in the search for new pesticides.

[MakiSupaStar]

Originally Posted by iamlowsound

For the most part, yes I do. I try to buy local, not only is it better for you, it tastes better as well.

lowsound

Yep. Me too. And I have Elk. Although I don't know where my neighbor shot it. For all I know he could have gotten it from the neighborhood elk market.

[NS2A]

Originally Posted by MJ5150

Nope, I don't. As long as it has an expiration date that hasn't expired, I'll eat it.

-Mike

Expiration dates are totally meaningless. My dad was a meat cutter back in the 70's and 80's and would take the expired meat (wasn't supposed to , would go in the garbage anyway). As long as you froze it or it didn't smell funny, we never had a problem with it.

[WookieeForLife]

I fish. Then I go to the supermarket...

[JonathanD]

I am unable to find any scientific research to support your argument, or their argument. Could you get me a link to the scholarly journal/research you are siting?

Originally Posted by Ericman197

Saw this a long time ago, though I don't have time to watch the whole thing again. However, you don't have to go more than one minute into the documentary before you encounter totally made up 'facts.'

For example:

"The manufacture of nitrogen based bombs in World War I led to the development of nitrogen based fertilizers"

and

"Nerve gas, developed during WWII, was slightly modified to make insecticides"

Both are historically inaccurate statements. The Haber process was used to produce ammonia for fertilizer before it was used for bombs. Nerve gas was created accidentally in the search for new pesticides.

[MJ5150]

Originally Posted by NS2A

Expiration dates are totally meaningless.

Oh, I don't know about that. I can tell you from personal experience that milk with an expired date on it tastes worse than milk that is not expired. Plus, you have to drink the expired milk with a straw and it has this really sour taste to it.

-Mike

[Ericman197]

Originally Posted by JonathanD

I am unable to find any scientific research to support your argument, or their argument. Could you get me a link to the scholarly journal/research you are siting?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haber_process

The history section describes the discovery of the Haber process, a means to synthesize ammonia using nitrogen from air, water, and methane from natural gas. The Haber process' use to produce fertilizer predates WWI by about a year. I'm assuming that this is what they are referring to, because I can't think of any other connection between WWI era bombs and fertilizers. Bomb production very likely helped speed up the creation of factories to make ammonia for bombs, and these factories may well have been converted to making fertilizer after the war. But they way they word it makes it seem like fertilizer is a direct result of bomb production/technology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organop...ate_pesticides

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabun_(nerve_agent)

The first nerve gas (Tabun) was developed accidentally, in the process of researching potential insecticides. Nerve gases ARE structurally related to organophosphates, a type of pesticide. The difference is that the pesticides are usually a bit less potent, and more targeted towards insects. Malathion, for instance, when properly sprayed, is reasonably safe.

Farmers and others are occasionally exposed to toxic levels of organophosphate pesticides, and the symptoms are more or less the same as nerve gas: tearing, salivation, uncontrolled urination/defecation, heavy sweating, and vomiting. In more extreme cases: convulsions, respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. However, fatal poisonings from pesticides are uncommon, and can largely be prevented by following OSHA rules, that sort of thing. It's an occupational hazard, much like being a miner, welder, etc.



edit: Otherwise I'm not really for or against the video. Some of their points I agree with, others are one sided. For example, the Canadian farmer presents his 'woe is me' story about being sued by Monsanto, but the video doesn't tell the whole story. The court found that Roundup-ready canola plants MAY have wound up on his property by mistake, but that he intentionally cultivated that strain.

[Munjibunga]

Well, for those of you who eat chorizo, you're eating:

tongue
lips
cheeks
jowels
salivary glands
lymph nodes
and other beef byproducts!

Sooahhhhh, what is it they're so ashamed of, not to mention it by name?

[ADbassman]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Well, for those of you who eat chorizo, you're eating:

tongue
lips
cheeks
jowels
salivary glands
lymph nodes
and other beef byproducts!

All the tasty parts of the animal. Chorizo is generally made from pork, btw. It's far rarer to find beef chorizo.

Beyond that, we're talking about sausage here. This is a product that is essentially ground assorted cuts of meat from any animal stuffed into it's own intestines. It's a pretty "gross" product by definition.

Food is cleaner now than it's ever been. Provided you're not buying hydrogenated high fructose processed cheese byproduct, which is hyperbole for processed "quick" foods, you're fine. In other words, don't eat microwave pizzas and Twinkies all day. Use common sense.

[JonathanD]

Wikipedia supports both sides of the argument. While Wiki is useful it is not a scholarly or scientific source.

Originally Posted by Ericman197

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haber_process

The history section describes the discovery of the Haber process, a means to synthesize ammonia using nitrogen from air, water, and methane from natural gas. The Haber process' use to produce fertilizer predates WWI by about a year. I'm assuming that this is what they are referring to, because I can't think of any other connection between WWI era bombs and fertilizers. Bomb production very likely helped speed up the creation of factories to make ammonia for bombs, and these factories may well have been converted to making fertilizer after the war. But they way they word it makes it seem like fertilizer is a direct result of bomb production/technology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organop...ate_pesticides

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabun_(nerve_agent)

The first nerve gas (Tabun) was developed accidentally, in the process of researching potential insecticides. Nerve gases ARE structurally related to organophosphates, a type of pesticide. The difference is that the pesticides are usually a bit less potent, and more targeted towards insects. Malathion, for instance, when properly sprayed, is reasonably safe.

Farmers and others are occasionally exposed to toxic levels of organophosphate pesticides, and the symptoms are more or less the same as nerve gas: tearing, salivation, uncontrolled urination/defecation, heavy sweating, and vomiting. In more extreme cases: convulsions, respiratory failure and cardiac arrest. However, fatal poisonings from pesticides are uncommon, and can largely be prevented by following OSHA rules, that sort of thing. It's an occupational hazard, much like being a miner, welder, etc.



edit: Otherwise I'm not really for or against the video. Some of their points I agree with, others are one sided. For example, the Canadian farmer presents his 'woe is me' story about being sued by Monsanto, but the video doesn't tell the whole story. The court found that Roundup-ready canola plants MAY have wound up on his property by mistake, but that he intentionally cultivated that strain.

[JonathanD]

Originally Posted by Munjibunga

Well, for those of you who eat chorizo, you're eating:

tongue
lips
cheeks
jowels
salivary glands
lymph nodes
and other beef byproducts!

Sooahhhhh, what is it they're so ashamed of, not to mention it by name?

I don't mind brains, penises, vagina's, ovaries, testicles etc...I just mind the hormones.

[JonathanD]

Originally Posted by ADbassman

All the tasty parts of the animal. Chorizo is generally made from pork, btw. It's far rarer to find beef chorizo.

Beyond that, we're talking about sausage here. This is a product that is essentially ground assorted cuts of meat from any animal stuffed into it's own intestines. It's a pretty "gross" product by definition.

Food is cleaner now than it's ever been. Provided you're not buying hydrogenated high fructose processed cheese byproduct, which is hyperbole for processed "quick" foods, you're fine. In other words, don't eat microwave pizzas and Twinkies all day. Use common sense.

Did you watch the link? I can't blame you if you didn't. It's long. I agree, we do eat better and safer than people 100 years ago.
What about pesticides and hormones in the food though? What about farmers being taken to trial for having plants in their field that they can not prevent from being in their field?

[XtreO]

Originally Posted by JonathanD

Did you watch the link? I can't blame you if you didn't. It's long. I agree, we do eat better and safer than people 100 years ago.
What about pesticides and hormones in the food though? What about farmers being taken to trial for having plants in their field that they can not prevent from being in their field?

It's a US only film