Farms Not Arms, & More

Farmer Jim Cochran (pictured at left in the blue shirt) is, by any sane person's estimation, a hero in California. (I won't limit him to our community here in Santa Cruz.) His farm, Swanton Berry Farm, was the first certified organic strawberry farm in California—he dared to think that methyl bromide wasn't necessary to grow a tasty strawberry. And he was the first organic grower to use unionized labor. (Read an article in the San Francisco Chronicle...he also implemented an employee stock program at the farm.)

His latest endeavor, being co-chair on Farms Not Arms, is just one more indication of Jim's commitment to a better world for everyone. Today's Santa Cruz Sentinel spotlights Jim and Farms Not Arms, which was founded less than a year ago: article 1 and article 2. (You can go to the Farms Not Arms website and register as a supporter, as I did, for free—and you can make a donation there, too.)

Pictured here: black futsu squash, a Japanese varietal. I love how they look.

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How many times a day do you read a food blog that mentions pork, bacon, salume, charcuterie, or some other reference to the pig? Over at Slate, Sara Dickerman wrote a great piece called “Some Pig: The Development of the Piggy Confessional,” about why food writers are obsessed with the pig.

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Bloggers/writers take note: time to revisit your use of these clichés. (Note: Gawker left off “I lurves me some _______________,” but they approved my comment bringing it to their attention. If I see that phrase coming from you, you get a mental red pencil mark from me.)

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That's all for today—but a teaser for an upcoming post. A chance encounter at the Aptos farmers market on Saturday morning led me to meet one of the original founders of the market, who was only 24 at the time. She's going go send me some scans from those days—this woman literally changed the face of all farmers markets in California. It's a fine bit of history, and I look forward to her telling her story.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: “The cliche is a hackneyed idiom that hopes that it can still palm itself off as a fresh response.” — John Gross

Thanks for visiting.

Comments

[Richard Speel]

Thanks for posting the story about Farms Not Arms!

[Kristin Ohlson]

Ah- I always feel as if I've been on a lovely vacation when I visit your blog!