Met amazingly dynamic and go-getter students at Miami University (in Ohio, that is) who brought me out to speak and shared a delectable dinner after. It was really inspiring to meet undergraduates and graduate students working on important sustainable development initiatives, the importance of which seemed to be brought home by the abnormally balmy weather in December in Ohio. --Anna

The Grub Food Quiz

This is what I realized mid-way through the readings tonight at the gritty Bowery Poetry Club: Grub is both rant and rhapsody. This revelation came to me as I waited my turn to take the stage for a friend's monthly Rant/Rhapsody reading series. After reading a few of my favorite passages from Grub, I brought up a willing volunteer from the audience who tried his hand at this quiz. The prize if he got 7 of 10 correct? A copy of Grub, of course. Here's the quiz. How would you do? Answers will be posted shortly. --Anna

1. What’s the new job of Rob Horsch, former Monsanto VP?
a) Deputy Administrator, EPA
b) Senior Program Officer, Gates Foundation
c) Deputy Administrator, USDA
d) Member, National Organic Standards Board

2. Who said: “There is not one grain of anything in the world that is sold in the free market. Not one. The only place you see a free market is in the speeches of politicians”?
a) President Richard Nixon
b) Dwayne Andreas, Archer Daniel Midlands Chairman
c) Senator Tom Harkin from Iowa
d) Richard Crowder, US Trade Rep and Chief Agricultural Negotiator, former Monsanto VP

3. Philip Morris spent millions rebranding itself in the wake of Big Tobacco lawsuits with which brilliant new corporate name?
a) Humana
b) Virtua
c) Respira
d) Altria
e) Beneficia

4. What’s Hawaii’s most popular food?
a) Spam sushi
b) “Spamburger”
c) Chicken-fried Spam
d) Spam poo poo platter

5. Match the Tagline: “Nature Talks, We Listen”
a) Dow
b) Syngenta
c) Dupont
d) Monsanto
e) Biotechnology Industry Organization

6. Match the Tagline: “Biotechnology—A Big Word That Means Hope”
a) Dow
b) Novartis
c) Dupont
d) Monsanto
e) Biotechnology Industry Organization

7. What percentage of non-GMO cucumbers seed does Monsanto now control?
a) 18%
b) 28%
c) 38%
d) 58%

8. From this list, name the countries that don’t require GMO labeling?
1) United States
2) China
3) Canada
4) Australia
5) France
6) All of the above

9. What’s the likelihood that an African-American or Latino child born in the U.S. will develop Type II diabetes?
a) 1 in 3
b) 1 in 5
c) 1 in 8
d) 1 in 10

10. How many toys does McDonalds sell or give away every year?
a) 250 million
b) 500 million
c) 1 billion
d) 1.5 billion

Bonus Question: Which do we have more of… prisoners or farmers?

Check Out Appetite for Profit in Bookstores Now

Think that announcement from Coke and the Big Drink companies that they’re pulling sugary drinks out of the nation’s was a sign of corporate responsibility or a move of brilliant corporate PR spin? This and many other questions will be answered for you in Michele Simon's insightful new book, Appetite for Profit. Thanks to the New York City Nutrition Education Network Michele and I had a chance to do a reading together. I highly recommend the book and Michele's insightful blog you can find here. --Anna

Back in the Blogosphere

It’s been a long time
I shouldn’t have left you
Without a recipe for bean stew

That’s right yall. I’m back in the blogosphere. Been going through hella transitions over the past two months. But I’m settled into my new place. Ethernet is up. Back on the grind.

We have a lot of catching up to do. . .

--bryant

Videoing the Vote

Down in Philly today with my brother and some friends as part of a Video the Vote team. Inspired by the making of American Blackout and the universal audience reaction to the voter disenfranchisement seen in the film -- what can we do? -- Anthony's GNN partner Ian Inaba and colleagues decided to create a way for all of us, across the country, to do something about it: Document voter suppression to stop it. In a few short weeks, they created this platform and trained citizen journalists across the country. By Election Day, they had hundreds of volunteers. My day will be spent at the Election Protection offices helping connect videographers with problem polling places. --Anna

The TH Interview: Anna Lappé

Treehugger's Dave Chiu had some great questions--and I tried to do them justice. Head straight to the interview here.

Calorie Counting

Think you can estimate how many calories in that Starbucks Frapuccino? Big Mac? Denny's French Toast? Try your hand at it with this online quiz. Then, ask yourself, wouldn't it be nice not to have eating out be a guessing game? A proposed New York City Board of Health policy would make calorie labeling mandatory on restaurant menu boards. Seems like a wise idea to me. --Anna

A Great Weekend in the Great White North

Had an amazing weekend running a two-day workshop at The Marguerite Center, north of Ottawa. The Center (or Centre, as they'd say in Canada) runs educational programs for folks in the community. This was their first on food. After lots of talking about food politics, the impact of our food system on our health, and how we can get involved with making a difference, we all headed into the kitchen where we got lessons in making samosas, curries, and other delicious Indian delicacies. (This is a shot of a few of us mid-samosa folding) --Anna

...and now for something completely different

Most of what you see and read here is about our adventures (and mis-adventures) on the trail of food, farming, and sustainability. But, now for something completely different: Read my musings on love in the land of Memoirville. --Anna

The Trouble with Trans Fats - ON GNN

Read my article on the proposed trans fat ban at the Guerrilla News Network and join the fray in the debate.

Your User Guide Is Here

More than 60 experts and innovators (including a few pages by yours truly) -- and a tireless team of editors -- contributed to this 600 page tome. Here's a breakdown on the seven sections of what's inside. --Anna

Stuff (which covers topics like green design, reducing one's ecological footprint, biomimicry, sustainable agriculture, clothing, cars and emerging technologies);

Shelter (covering topics like green building and landscaping, bright green home decor, clean energy, sustainable water systems, disaster relief and humanitarian design);

Cities (topics like smart growth, sustainable communities, transportation, greening infrastructure, product-service systems, leapfrogging and megacity challenges);

Communities (topics like education, women's rights, public health, holistic approaches to community development, copyleft, South-South science, social entrepreneurship and micro-lending, and philanthropy);

Business (topics like socially responsible investment, worldchanging start-ups, ecological economics, corporate social responsibility and green business);

Politics (topics like networked politics, new media, transparency, human rights, non-violent revolution and peacemaking);

Planet (the big picture -- everything from placing oneself in a bioregion to climate foresight to environmental history to green space exploration).

Check it out anywhere books are sold.