Think sustainability for Mother’s Day this year
May 08, 2013
Mother’s Day is a holiday where food plays a central role as a token of appreciation or a gesture of love.
This Mother’s Day, Danielle Nierenberg and Ellen Gustafson, co-founders
of the Food Tank, offer tips for how to create a better, more sustainable celebration:
1. Buy local.
Consider cooking your
a mom meal at home instead of going out to a restaurant and trying to buy as
many ingredients as possible from local farmers .
A study by the
Natural Resources Defense Council about the environmental impact of food
transportation in California showed that importing food products into the state
released nearly 250,000 tons of greenhouse gases. That’s the equivalent amount
of pollution caused by about 40,000 vehicles. Also, shipping food from far away
also means that it's not as fresh, or tasty, when it reaches consumers.
Local Harvest has a search feature that allows consumers
to find area farmers markets’ and farms in their communities.
2. Dine responsibly.
If Mom wants to go out for dinner on her big day, do some research and find a restaurant that follow best practices for sustainability.
Use the The Green Restaurant Association’s search feature that allows diners to locate the most environmentally friendly places to eat. In addition, make sure to eat leftovers. The NRDC reports that consumers eating in restaurants leave an average of 17 percent of meals uneaten, and that more than half of that is thrown away.
3. Learn something new.
Understanding why it’s
important to eat locally and to support sustainable operations is vital.
Documentaries such as Food, Inc., What’s on Your Plate, and Food Chains can provide great conversation topics for
Mother’s Day dinner.
Also, these books are worth reading to learn more about food and agriculture: “Cooked” by Michael Pollan; “VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 to Lose Weight and Restore Your Health .
. . for Good” by Mark Bittman; “Bet the Farm: How Food Stopped
Being Food” by Frederick Kaufman; “Foodopoly: The Battle Over the Future of Food and Farming in
America” by Wenonah Hauter; “Behind the Kitchen Door” by Saru
Jayaraman; “The Perfect Protein: The Fish
Lover's Guide to Saving the Oceans and Feeding the World” by Andy Sharpless and
Suzannah Evans; “Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food
Giants Hooked Us” by Michael Moss; and “Full Planet, Empty Plates: The
New Geopolitics of Food Scarcity” by Lester R. Brown.
4. Make a donation.
Instead of buying
another gift for Mom that she doesn’t need, find an organization that supports
a food- and agriculture-related issue and make a donation in her name.
About 17.2 million U.S. households didn’t have enough food to eat in 2010, according
to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In
New York City, City Harvest collects food from restaurants, grocery stores, and other food
businesses for donations, and also supports educational programs about
nutrition in low-income communities. Oxfam America also has a gift section where you can donate
a vegetable garden for a family in need.
5. Help out in the community.
The latest U.S. census report shows that 46.2 million people were
living in poverty in 2011, and poverty is the leading cause of hunger.
Share a meal with those less fortunate on Mother’s Day by lending a helping
hand at a food bank or a soup kitchen. Food Pantries has a
website to locate food pantries and soup kitchens in your area. Sharing a plot
in a community garden is another great activity. For example, Chicago’s Green Network offers a map showing area community gardens and information
on how to get involved.
6. Buy fair trade.
Chocolate, fresh
fruit, coffee, or flowers are often given as Mother’s Day presents. These are all
items that can be purchased from fair trade producers. Fairtrade International helps support smaller
producers and farmers who may have a difficult time covering their costs while
remaining competitive in the global market. Fair Trade USA offers a global reach map that
shows organizations involved in fair trade.
Food Tank co-founder Ellen Gustafson recently launched the Apron Project. The first collection of aprons is handmade in Rwanda by Indego Africa,
a nonprofit organization supporting women-owned businesses in Rwanda. It helps
businesswomen build economic independence through access to markets and
education.
7. Plant a garden.
Planting a vegetable
garden at home is a fun Mother’s Day activity that will help make sure mom has
fresh produce available throughout the summer.
It’s also a money saver. The National Gardening Association estimates that the
average return on the investment of a home garden is $530. For the urban
gardener with limited space, these tips from Inhabitat
are a good place to start.
Happy Mother's Day. I hope the tips are helpful. I'll be thinking about my mom as I plant my garden this week.
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