Local Austin produce / meat / eggs?

[eris_star]

I've started work full time, at a job that involves 2 hours a day in the car commuting. I hate driving, but I've discovered that listening to an audio book from the library converts "Grrr....." into "That's ok, more time to hear what happens next." The book I'm most of the way though at the moment is The Omnivore's Dilemma. It's a good book (er, CD

Comments

[synj_munki]

So, do keep in mind that Pollan is an elitist, classist, sexist jerk that does no actual science and blames all problems- real and perceived- in modern society on lazy women who deign to work outside the home, not spend all day gardening, cooking, and cleaning, etc. His thoughts on food and proper societal organization is much like Whitman waxing poetic about the seclusion of his pond when his female relatives were there *everyday* to bring him food and clean his cave.

Also, keep in mind that "local" is not necessarily best. Raising produce (especially produce) and animals in areas that are not environmentally advantageous costs more carbon, more fuel, more land, more everything (basically, there's a reason farms are common in some areas and not others; there's also a reason indigenous people did or did not develop horticulture or agriculture in certain areas). "eat local" is most effective when you are eating native plants and plants/animals that thrive in the local environment.
(this is getting long, i'll continue next reply)

[eris_star]

I can't speak to his larger body of work, since this is the only thing I've read from him (and I'm not even quite finished with it). But there hasn't been anything that I would consider to be gender-specific, nor anything that would require anybody to be a homemaker. There's only a couple "villains" I've seen so far in the book: He's pretty thorough in his disparagement of government farm policy with regard to the commodity corn that's fed to feed lot animals and broken down into corn syrup and various other components. And he's consistent with his message that big food industry is in it to make a profit, not to act out our pastoral fantasies. But those are low-hanging fruit in the realm of argument. In this particular book, he's mostly advocating that we should recognize that food can be a matter of quality rather than just quantity, and that if we want high quality we have to be willing to pay for it. It's a similar quality vs. price argument that happens in a lot of other industries where small producers get squeezed out by huge

[synj_munki]

Pollan's larger body of work does reek of "get your ass back in the kitchen and make me a fully balanced locally sources five course meal for under 500 calories yet surprisingly filling while also hand washing all my clothes in environmentally friendly methods while homeschooling the kids"-- sort of like when someone tells me how great this one book by glenn beck is i have a need to mention that he's a sexist, paranoid young earther who thinks my chosen profession was placed on earth by satan to mislead the righteous.

also, i didn't assume all or nothing, just wanted to point out "local isn't always best", and why, and included local CSAs in my second reply.

[synj_munki]

that being said, you can look into CSAs (community sustained agriculture). a lot of workplaces and farms set them up, and you get X # of baskets of whatever the local farm is producing (so, one week you get a rutabega and one onion; the next month two dozen rapes and some cabbage, etc). when i worked for the state (those brief 6 months) there was a local CSA that delivered every-other-week, and it had an egg option

[synj_munki]

oh, better link for tecolote farm
http://www.tecolotefarm.net/

[glitter_pirate]

Personally, I wouldn't recommend Greenling. We tried them for awhile and it was pretty sad looking produce. They didn't pack things well so I was always having to ask them for refunds for smooshed produce. We canceled when I opened a bag of lettuce and a swarm of fruit flies came out.

[glitter_pirate]

Also, this is the farm I was telling you about that is close to our new house. They have farm summer camps, too! http://greengatefarms.net/