It has taken me some time to get here. I got married three weeks ago! There was much work leading up to it, and lots of time with family and friends, and so I have not spent nearly as much time reading as I might ordinarily. However, we're settling back down into normal life, and also into some brand-new living room furniture - a wedding wish that has come true. Now I have a true reading nook! Not as lovely as some of the fancy library getups that some people on the internet seem to have, but it's mine and I'm thrilled: a lovely leather armchair and ottoman to sink into and read a book. They have replaced a dilapidated Ikea Poang and associated dilapidated ottoman.
My new reading nook
I've made recipes from Simple Suppers and the Vegetarian Collection, and they turned out delicious. I returned the Whole Foods Market cookbook to the library because it is coming as a gift from my new sister-in-law.
Seeds of Deception was exactly what I thought it would be - drivel. Poorly researched, out of date, poorly sourced, and, frankly, mostly irrelevant to Canadians. A lot of the pages are devoted to GM tomatoes (no longer on the market), GM potatoes (also no longer on the market), and issues related to American governmental interference with scientific efforts and GM research (no surprises there). If anything, the book reinforces that the Canadian government has stood up, kept BGH milk and dairy out of Canada, and held government to account when it tried to muzzle research on BGH milk. Admittedly, Canada is currently failing miserably at scientific backing and freedom, but in terms of GM produce I don't think we're doing too bad. The book totally cherry-picks and sensationalizes what it writes, with a heaping spoonful of sarcasm and disdain. It was terrible, but I read it cover to cover in order to be able to say that with authority. I hope to never read as poor a quality of book ever again.
Just Food was interesting. It also had a bit too much haughty confidence on the part of the author, but I did find his writing to be much more, well, fair, and realistic in terms of how humanity can balance our population and our food needs along with the environment. His main ideas were:
- Local food is a bit too overrated - don't focus so much on food miles but on the carbon cycle of the thing you're eating overall
- We need to drastically reduce our meat consumption, and instead replace land-based meat with ethically- and environmentally-sound aquaculture systems (more fish!)
- Integrate livestock and food production on mid-size farms, growing things that thrive in the environment you're in without heavily modifying it
- Judicious use of biotech and chemicals, being mindful that some organic chemicals are very environmentally harmful
I would definitely recommend the book. My main issue throughout, which was validated in the final chapter, was that a lot of the food decisions he recommends are currently impossible to make, with our labelling and farming systems as they currently appear. This was a disappointing ending to a book that brought me much hope. But it certainly gave good ideas for what to keep an eye out for as I shop and eat.
So, with a bigger focus on finding vegetarian meals for all four of us to enjoy, and finding ethically raised meat (pork and beef has been found, chicken pending) to eat in moderation (less than we have in the past), and eating more fish, I'm going to go sit in my new chair and move on to my next book, started before the food kick: The Bedtime Book of Famous French Stories. So far it is fabulous! I'm kinda done with reading non-fiction for a bit, and am looking forward to engulfing myself in French prose.
Title: Seeds of Deception: Exposing Industry and Government Lies about the Safety of GE Foods
Author: Jeffrey M. Smith
Published: 2003
Pages: 254
Title: Just Food: Where Locavores get it Wrong and How we can Eat Responsibly
Author: James E. McWilliams
Published: 2009
Pages: 222
Total Books Blogged: 12
Total Pages: 4145
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