Category: children’s health

The Heart of the Home

By Judith, 03/24/2010 7:38 pm

The kitchen is said to be the heart of the home,

yet many of today’s kitchens function more like the company break room.

There was a day when food was thoughtfully prepared from basic ingredients, most of which came from the local economy if not the backyard itself.

Much of what we call “cooking” consists of opening packages, bottles and cans purchased at the mega low cost food mart, than assembling the ingredients   in a color by number   style and heating up the results.

In this kitchen environment   the conventional range gets very little play time because the   microwave is stealing the show as well as the remaining health in the food being prepared.

Many cooking; shows, books, home party plans and trade shows marketing to middleclass moms, focus not on preparing truly healthy foods but on having family time around the table. That’s cool, but families should eat Well together, not just consume the latest combination of advertised food stuffs that the billion dollar food industry is churning out into the grocery markets.

The major thrust of all this is convenience. Voices, in the market place, are chanting that we don’t have the time, that we need a fast fix for our hunger, a time saver so we can get on with the important things in life like working, shopping and playing.

But seriously, we all still have the same 24 hour day as did  our  grandmothers,

not to mention a battery of labor saving devices at our disposal. So it’s really not about, not having enough time, but rather, what are you doing with YOUR time.

To further make the point that our food industry has gone berserk is all the controversial nutrition disinformation.

Are we really so gullible to believe that food products, created months   ago, in  food stuff factories , hundreds if not thousands of miles from our kitchen, are  really healthy??? So what if it doesn’t contain artificial colors, or artificial preservatives, is low fat,  all natural or even organic. It’s old, processed and there is a reason that it doesn’t spoil on the store shelf and in our pantry cupboard….there is nothing left to decay!  It’s already dead.

It is an empty harvest.. a ruse to make you think that you have when you don’t.. unfortunately you spent your money on their product didn’t you?

The money that you earned being too busy to cook for yourself..

Do you need these types of products??? Is it conceivable to live without cold breakfast cereal or the hot ones in the cute packages that come in all the nifty flavors that you just heat up in the M-wave?  Could you find the time to make your bread from flour you’ve milled yourself?

Are you even a little curious as to how to make it happen for you and your family?

YOU CAN!!!!!!  It isn’t hard. You just need to learn how , understand why and then you are off to creating your own Kitchen Counter Culture.

The mission of this site is to;

Show you the skills necessary in making the transition from grocery shopper to grocery maker,

Equip you with information that is critical for you to make truly informed choices concerning your food purchases.

Empower you to facilitate  health and wellness in yourself and the ones you love through “at home” food preparation.

And to have FUN;  learning ,creating and  cooking with your family, friends and neighbors..

I’m happy you’ve read this far…..  :0)

Now take the next step and

KEEP FOOD REAL!

Email me and we will set a time for you,  your group, or church to learn the why and the how to making delicious, nutritious food at home :0)

Blessings!

Judith Parker,  HN

judith@kitchencounterculture.com

Raw Milk Legislation

By Judith, 01/19/2010 5:08 pm

Below is a copy of an email I received…. I am posting it here and I hope that many of you respond :0)

Our LOCAL Farmers need our help NOW!

KEEP FOOD REAL!

Thanks,


Judith

Dear Raw Milk Advocate:

As you may be aware, there are currently proposed legislative rules before the House and the Senate in Boise concerning Cow/Herd Share Programs in Idaho and our ability as Farmers to continue to provide these services to people who wish to use them.  There are some good parts to the proposed rules which will help to assure the cleanliness of the milk, such as regular testing of the milk for bacteria counts, etc.  However, there is one proposal which could, in effect, drastically limit the availability of raw milk from Herd Share Programs in the future.  That is that each herd would be limited to no more than three lactating cows or seven goats or sheep.

This limitation, in my opinion, is unrealistic, as it in no way serves to reduce the risk of contaminated milk; safe milk depends on cleanliness. But it does severely limit the amount of milk a single farm can produce for its boarders.  Therefore it will limit the number of consumers who can use the boarding services. 

If you agree, and you would like to help protect the right of consumers to drink raw milk please contact the legislators listed below and let your voice be heard IMMEDIATELY!

The House and the Senate work simultaneously to hear the rules. Below are each of the committee members of the Senate Agricultural Affairs Committee and their email addresses:

Senator  Tim  Corder (R), Mountain Home – Chair, tcorder@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Chuck  Winder (R), Boise - Vice Chair cwinder@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Gary  Schroeder (R), Moscow,   gschroeder@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Brent  Hill (R), Rexburg,   bhill@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  John  McGee (R), Caldwell,   jmcgee@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Leland  Heinrich (R), Cascade,   lheinrich@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Melinda  Smyser (R), Parma,  msmyser@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Edgar  Malepeai (D), Pocatello,  emalepeai@senate.idaho.gov

Senator  Les  Bock (D), Boise,  lbock@senate.idaho.gov

We have learned that the representatives of the House Agriculture subcommittee that will study the rules are as follows (with links to their e-mail addresses):

Rep. Ken Andrus, (R) Lava Hot Springs, Chairman, kandrus@house.idaho.gov

Rep. Mack Shirley, (R) Rexburg, mshirley@house.idaho.gov

Rep. Dennis Lake, (R) Blackfoot,
dlake@house.idaho.gov

Rep. Donna Pence, (D) Gooding. dpence@house.idaho.gov

You can email members of the House Agricultural Affairs Committee at the following website: http://legislature.idaho.gov/about/contactbycommittee.cfm.

If you or others wish to have your voices heard, you must act now! If you believe that people should be able to drink raw milk if they wish and that producers should not be limited by unreasonable low herd size limits please email each of the above legislators immediately or it will be too late to make your voice heard.

Sincerely,

Luana Hiebert
Heritage Farms
PO Box 247
Cocolalla, ID  83813
208-683-4410

When you purchase from Heritage Farms you support a local farmer, sustainable agriculture, and thus, the very environment in which you live!

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