If you’ve been reading along, you will know how much I love my chickens. There is *nothing* better than knowing where your food is coming from, and knowing their living conditions. This post is not about that. 🙂
It is, however, about food. Part of our living philosophy is to eat foods that are in as close to their natural state as possible. Every one of my kids know how to cook, including our 7-year-old. Cooking in our house means using raw ingredients. My kids will tell you, that while a stray, packaged waffle over at Nana and Papa’s is ok, it gets old in a hurry, and they will actually turn them down if required to eat them for long periods of time. They particularly can’t stand “fake” pancakes, as they call them.
This post isn’t about that, either. What I’m ranting about today is processed foods, and the “stuff” the government allows to be put in them, all the while punishing people using whole (and {gasp!} sometimes raw) ingredients.
If you’ve read my Ode to Chickies, you’ve come to understand the appalling “regulations” by which chicken eggs are considered to be “organic,” “free range,” “certified humane,” etc. In my opinion, folks are generally WAY too trusting of the government to keep them “safe.”
Here’s another example. Check your food packages- do you have anything that has “fiber added”? Have you ever stopped to think about WHAT that added fiber actually is?
See anything that says cellulose in the ingredients? How about cellulose gum, powdered cellulose, microcrystalline cellulose, etc?
Cellulose. Sounds pretty benign, doesn’t it?
Cellulose. Wood pulp.
That’s right, people. Cellulose is virgin wood pulp that is processed. And guess what? I know this is a shocker, but we mere humans can’t actually digest wood pulp, because we lack the enzyme to do so.
So, the government says that wood pulp is ok to eat, but you can’t sell raw milk of any kind nor are you allowed (in Colorado) to sell a dead animal or charge money for harvesting it. Each state has its own regulations, some of which are bizarre.
We’re not even talking about selling, either. In some states, it is illegal to use raw milk for your own personal use. (No, I am not going to get into the debate over whether to pasteurize or not- when you are talking commercial dairies that use antibiotics and questionable feed, that all needs to be taken into consideration- and that’s not what we’re talking about.)
“Did you know a family in the midwest who ran a dairy farm was recently raided? Along with their personal computers (used for homeschooling), dairying equipment, and personal records, the officials also took the raw milk in the family’s house fridge. They were told it was illegal, even though the family drank it themselves and did not sell anything out of that fridge! Another family dairy was raided, and the cheese building was quardoned off. The family was not allowed to access the cheese stored in the aging cellar, that they had made, for the purpose of feeding it to themselves!!”
Did you hear about the woman in Michigan who faced 93 days in jail (criminal charges) for growing a garden in her front yard? I could not make this stuff up!
Read the entire How Are You A Criminal? post, courtesy of my friends at the Red Gate Farm. I am not joking- READ THIS! And then share it with everyone you know. There are many more examples she has shared that demonstrate sheer lunacy.
Once you’ve done that, go here to the Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund site and read about some of the current things that are happening.
This is not something to ignore. Our freedom to eat real food is being eroded, all the while non-foods are being packaged and marketed en masse to unsuspecting folks; folks who are relying on the government to “keep them safe” and healthy.
PEOPLE. WAKE UP. DO SOMETHING. EDUCATE YOURSELF. EDUCATE OTHERS.
Another one to share is the article, titled “15 Food Companies That Serve You ‘Wood'” from Food Freedom.
That’s all. Back to your regularly scheduled programming. 🙂
I’m completely not as edumacated on this topic as you are BUT I can say that when I eat wrong, I feel like crap. I know it. My vertigo feels worse, too much sodium in processed foods makes me feel bad as well, I mean irritable and bitchy isn’t the word. I finally realized how bad of an effect processed stuff has on me when I ordered something from Panara Bread one day for lunch, looked up nutritional value later and it said something like 3700 mgs of sodium in what I’d eaten which is 1300 past your entire daily allowance! I assure you, my brain was not happy with this overload.
I remember reading the story about the woman who grew a garden in her front yard, stupidest thing on earth that I have ever seen. I thought, they’re off their rocker right? I think they stopped the madness after a while though.
I’m not the biggest fan of gardening BUT I agree, all these things and additives and the like are really bad for us. My body feels differently in a few short days depending on what I eat (or not eat).
Enjoy your rant 🙂 I think we lose sight of really important things.
Holy cow, that is a lot of salt! I think the type is sooooo small on packaging they ought to issue magnifying glasses with the shopping carts, or have some dangling on strings on the shelves so we can READ that small type! 😆 So, I think there are a lot of reasons why people don’t read labels- the thing to watch, too, is the portion size. The info may not look good until you realize that all those calories and junk are for 1/2 of a 1/2 of a small spoonful.
I am not good at gardening. I’m a fan; I just can’t grow anything. It was too hot here this past summer, but strangely my corn got some weird fungus and even my okra (which I’ve been told likes the heat) didn’t grow. 🙄 I’ll have to regroup for next spring and see if I can get something to grow. Even my watermelons and cantaloupes were baseball size. I got heritage breeds (because then supposedly you can actually grow stuff from the seeds, unlike the seeds from the hybrids which don’t grow true to variety), but I didn’t think that mean minature, lol.
I’m afraid that when the pooey hits the fan, I’ll be one of those starving because I can’t grow my own food. I’m sure I’ll eventually run out of our canned foods….
I’m still working on limiting my gluten, which is a total pita. Food definitely affects the way we feel!!
Yup. I have considered a gluten free diet. I definitely watch my salt intake and when I “don’t” pay attention and think that I can eat whatever I want, I certainly pay and mentally too because for lack of a better explanation, I have no brain. My mind clouds over and it’s just like… ugh… seriously? Totally true. OR I get highly irritable and I’m not pleasant, my eyes burning is the first sign that I’ve eaten something with too much salt. That’s a real pain too because I assume I’m tired because of it but it’s just that my eyes make me think I am. If you can see what I’m saying. Kind of like allergies, my body isn’t tired by my head is 🙂
Nah, I think if push came to shove we’d all be pretty surprised at what we’re capable of, so you’d probably learn right quick how to grow a successful garden. Totally true… because simply said, you’re life would depend on it and there’s nothing more motivating then that!
Hey, I nominated you for the 7 X 7 link award…here’s the link: http://wp.me/p1Cvgh-rk
Awww, you’re so sweet! 😀 Thanks!! I will definitely try to get to this next week. This time of the year is so crazy busy, and I haven’t done my shopping yet! Eeek!
“processed foods, and the “stuff” the government allows to be put in them, all the while punishing people using whole (and {gasp!} sometimes raw) ingredients”
That’s exactly what comes to my mind when I read about the restrictions. Why do they approve of all those genetically modified additives in organic food while placing such unreasonable restrictions on products of local farmers which clearly are fresh and healthy? As a great fan of organic food I am appalled. I think their products can under no circumstances be replaced by genetically modified ones. What I like in particular is bio meat. It has recently been on the rise but it still needs a lot of promotion. I was lucky to find some great places such as The Healthy Butcher, Fresh From the Farm, Cumbrae’s in Toronto where you can get healthy and high-quality meat which not only eases your conscience as far as the treatment of animals is concerned but it also has a much more positive impact on your health and lifestyle. But when I read about the actions that the government together with other authorities are about to take I get the impression that the future of local farmers and organic food is under serious threat and we should all do something about it.
I have no idea why they do that, Anthony. It’s just not right, imo. The government needs to get out of our kitchen cupboards!
I think if more people knew what kind of hormones went into animals; what kinds of genetically engineered feed is being fed, etc, they might start to take notice. Is it any wonder that people are as sick as they are? Is is any surprise that all kinds of diseases are on the rise?
I’m a ways away from Canada. 🙂 I’m actually a lot (like, a few hours away from :lol:) Mexico, but….. We get our beef and pork from a local butcher. We can take anything back that doesn’t taste good. We know the packages aren’t injected with anything to make the meat look “fresher.”
I think if people had access to CSAs, they would use them. We don’t have access, but would LOVE to have one!
Too many regulations. Did you read my post about EPA regulations? Ya, if they can’t get them for what they are growing, they’ll get them for farm dust…..
You are totally right. And it’s not just farmers- I think folks who *think* are under serious threat…. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by!
I´m so with you on this. Like you we are lucky enough to keep our own chickens. We even get to drink milk straight out of the goat, and the lamb and goat we eat we´ve seen running past our track daily. Who are people to tell us that we can drink such and such etc…sheer madness!
I know! How are things regulated over there, T? Is the madness just here, or is it all over the world? I think commercial foods are one thing, and certainly there should be standards. But what you take in for your own personal consummption is another thing entirely. If people want clean food, they should be able to have it. In our sue-happy world, I’d even be willing to sign a release saying I won’t sue the government if something I eat upsets me. 😀
I would absolutely ♥♥♥ to have a goat!!