gauchoman

Latest stories

More stories

  • Final Day For Trans-Fats In California

    For all California residents with a hankering for trans-fats, today may be your last day to get them, at least as easily as you could before.  A law signed in 2008 takes effect January 1, 2010 that bans retail food establishments, restaurants, and bakeries from using trans-fats in their products. California is the first state […] More

  • Laboratory Grown Meat: Coming Soon To Your Dinner Plate

    Scientists in the Netherlands recently announced that they have grown meat in a laboratory for the first time.  Though no one has yet to taste this laboratory meat, there is speculation that it could be commercially viable, and on your dinner table within the next five years. The process of creating artificial meat started with […] More

  • Homemade Gluten Free Golden Crispy Granola

    I’ve always been of the opinion that granola should be eaten sparingly, a half a cup in the morning with yogurt and some fruit, or maybe for a small mid-morning snack.  Consequently, my favorite granola recipes have been those that aren’t necessarily “healthy”, but are darn tasty and are best consumed in moderation.  This is […] More

  • Homemade Gluten Free Chex Mix

    Due to circumstances beyond my control (a crazy family), I missed out on a lot of things in my childhood that others take for granted.  Strangely enough, one of those things is Chex mix.  I never tasted Chex mix until I was 30 and it was quite an enjoyable discovery.  But living and cooking for […] More

  • Healthier Fast Food? Try In N’ Out Burger

    In N Out is a burger chain on the West Coast with locations in California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.  They’ve been around since 1948 and have long prided themselves on good, fresh food.  Their menu is delectably simple – hamburger, cheeseburger, fries, and shakes.  That’s it. If you’re a conscientious food consumer, eating fast food […] More

  • BPA Is In Your Canned Food

    Bisphenol A (BPA) has gotten a lot of press recently, from infant formula to Sigg bottles, it’s everywhere.  But did you know that it’s also in your canned foods, especially canned tomato products, pasta sauces, and vegetables? BPA is a compound used to manufacture plastics and has been in mainstream use for over 50 years.  […] More

  • Hungry For Shrimp? Read This First

    Finding sustainable sources of seafood is becoming increasingly difficult.  Should you buy farmed or wild caught?  And what are the most sustainable choices?  I’ve talked about sustainable seafood before, and since shrimp is the most commonly consumed seafood in the United States, you might want to have a bit more information about that shrimp cocktail […] More

  • Stimulus Money Used To Buy Pork – Literally

    The US Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, announced last month plans to use an additional $30 million dollars to purchase pork in 2009 for federal food and nutrition assistance programs. This announcement comes as the USDA has already spent some $151 million of Recovery Act (widely known as the “stimulus”) money to purchase pork products.  […] More

  • Organic Valley Website Calculator Shows Impact of Choosing Organic Products

    Would you like to know the direct benefit of buying organic versus conventional?  Do you ever wonder what the cumulative impact of purchasing organic versus conventional products is over the course of a year?  There’s a website out there that allows you to calculate the number of pounds of synthetic nitrogen, pesticides, and herbicides that […] More

  • Sugar Laden and Highly Processed Foods To Be Sold As “Smart Food Choices”

    General Mills and Kellogg’s want to sell sugary processed foods like Froot Loops and Lucky Charms to your kids.  This isn’t anything new.  But under the guise of the new “Smart Choices” Program, large food corporations want to proudly label sugary, highly processed foods as good nutritional food options. The program was recently created by […] More

  • 4 Foods You Don’t Have to Give Up To Live Gluten Free

    Just because you have Celiac Disease, or are eating gluten free doesn’t mean you have to give up all your favorite foods.  You may have to relinquish a few, but with a little help, and some trial and error, you’ll find that there are wonderful gluten free substitutes for many of your favorite foods out […] More

  • Sigg Company Shamefully Admits Its Aluminum Sigg Bottles Contain BPA

    The Sigg Company recently admitted that its aluminum bottles, long touted as an alternative to chemical leaching plastics, actually contain bisphenol-A (BPA) in their liner. The announcement has left customers around the world outraged.  Especially damning is evidence that the company knew as far back as 2006 that the bottle liners contained BPA, yet failed […] More

  • Who Owns Your Favorite Organic or Natural Food Company?

    The popularity of organic foods in the last few years has been as well documented as it was explosive. As the growth and popularity of organic and natural foods increased, large agri-business and giant food producers became extremely interested in increasing their market share by acquiring smaller organic food companies. With all the acquisitions that […] More

  • Veggie Trader – A Craigslist For Organic, Local Fruits and Veggies

    How great would it be if there were want ads in your local newspaper or on Craigslist for organic fruits and vegetables, grown in your town, by your neighbors?  A new website – Veggie Trader has sprung up that offers exactly such a service, a purchasing and bartering clearinghouse for locally grown fruits and vegetables. […] More

  • Bailey’s Taproom – A Bastion of Local Beers in Portland, Oregon

    Portland, Oregon is a beautiful city, known for its roses, organic food, environmentally conscious citizens, and its beer.  It has truly become a destination for Oregonians and travelers alike searching for locally made micro brews and craft beers. It’s hard to walk two blocks in Portland without encountering a brew pub, ale house, or beer […] More

  • Time Saving Gluten Free Products You’ll Love

    If you’re living a gluten free life, there are a couple of companies that I’ve come to love over the years for the wonderful products they make.  They’re both great time savers for those days when you’re rushed, short of time, or just don’t have the means to prepare a meal from scratch. Pamela’s Baking […] More

  • How to Save Fruit and Vegetable Biodiversity? Just Eat It.

    How do you save dying species of agriculturally valuable plants and animals?  The answer may be as simple as what’s on your dinner plate. A recent article outlined the “eat ’em to save ’em” method of biodiversity protection.  Simply put, rare varieties of plants and animals can be saved if consumers demand them.  Asking your […] More

  • Celiac Disease – The Ultimate Gluten Free Experience

    Celiac Disease is one of the most common, undiagnosed genetic disorders with an estimated 1 in 133 people, or 2 million people, afflicted with the disease in the United States alone (figures cited from here and here).  Persons of Irish, English, and other Anglo backgrounds tend to be more prone to the disease than those […] More

  • Edible Rooftop Gardens and Green Roofs

    Growing food in your own backyard is hardly a new concept, nor is utilizing any open space available if you live in the city, but turning your rooftop into a garden?  Well that idea has caught on in cities throughout the world, and now is starting to gain a foothold in the United States as […] More

  • Neatloaf: A Tasty Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-Free Fake Meatloaf

    One of my favorite places to eat in town is Jyoti-Bihanga, a tasty vegetarian/vegan restaurant run by the Sri Chinmoy folks.  If you aren’t familiar with them, I’ll tell you this – they make a fantastic fake meatloaf, they call it Neatloaf. You can imagine how excited I was when a friend of mine e-mailed […] More

  • You Can Grow an Espalier Fruit Tree

    Do you love fresh, organic, local fruit, but lack the yard space, or even live in an urban environment with little room for growing?  You might want to consider growing an espalier fruit tree.  No, this isn’t some new exotic type of fruit, rather it is a method for growing trees in a hedge-like manner […] More

  • The Chain Never Stops by Eric Schlosser

    Best known as the author who brought you Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser is also an award winning journalist who had been writing about the food industry in the United States for many years prior to the publication of the popular book. Publicity surrounding his new movie, Food Inc., urged me to revisit some of […] More

  • Look Closely – Your Tofu and Soy Milk May Not Be Organic

    In news that may make supermarket label readers and organic consumers even more wary, a recent report raised serious questions about many brands of soy products. The investigation by The Cornucopia Institute included a survey, in person visits to farm and processing facilities, and a review of import data from over 60 soy product companies.  […] More

  • Food Not Bombs Continues to Ignite Controversy

    Food Not Bombs, a group dedicated to non-violent social change through feeding the needy, continues to find itself at the center of controversy as they enter their 30th year in existence. Groups in New Mexico, Arizona, Florida, and Connecticut have run afoul of local laws that seek to stop them from handing out free meals […] More

  • Carrotmob Reinvents the Boycott to Spur Environmental Change

    The folks behind Carrotmob continue to demonstrate the power of using your dollars to vote for environmental change, and they’re starting to get some press as well. The first Carrotmob “reverse boycott” started with a convenience store in San Francisco.  The store owner out-competed a few dozen other businesses by pledging to use 22% of […] More

  • USDA Announces $50 Million in Grants for Farmers to Switch to Organic Practices

    The US Department of Agriculture recently announced that $50 million in grant money was being made available to farmers who wanted to switch from conventional to organic farming practices.  USDA Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan made the announcement last week of the grant money being made available. The funding for the program is through the […] More

  • 10 Ways to Reduce Your Environmental Footprint Through Food Choices

    A website recently delineated a simple list of 10 ways that you can reduce your environmental footprint through changes in your food choices. The list is fairly straightforward and involves changes that any person in any country can make to reduce their carbon footprint. Substantive facts for each item are also laid out and explained […] More

Load More
Congratulations. You've reached the end of the internet.