Syria food security

This is an important article on the drought in Syria and the decline in food security. It is important because it says that when Syria moved from its centrally planned economy to neo-liberalism, its food security was lost...

http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/166728

Changing tack

"This record of failure is one reason that the government of Qatar, in addressing its food-security concerns, has chosen to concentrate on investing in existing agribusinesses rather than just acquiring land. That’s just one of many ways to invest in farming without removing the African farmers. On a bright Rift Valley afternoon, I went to see another option, a cooperative scheme under which a group of around 300 Ethiopians, working plots of 4 to 10 acres, were getting into export agriculture. During the European winter, they grew green beans for the Dutch market. The rest of the year, they cultivated corn and other crops for local consumption. The land had been irrigated with the help of a nonprofit organization and an Ethiopian commercial farmer named Tsegaye Abebe, who brought all the produce to market."

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/magazine/22land-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1

American hunger

"The four largest firms took in $22.5 billion in profits through September. Meanwhile, far more people are going hungry in the United States than previously thought. The Department of Agriculture estimates 50 million Americans, including a quarter of all children, struggled to get enough to eat last year."

Beef

"The solution to cut emissions is to stop eating beef. It leads to emission of methane which is 23 times more potent than carbon dioxide," he said.

"The best thing for us, India, is we are not a beef-eating nation.

The United States, the world's largest emitter along with China, is also the world's greatest beef-eating nation and consumes 25 per cent more than Europe.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/india/6615422/India-tells-West-to-stop-eating-beef.html

Organize!

Marcy has again sent me a great link, this time about a boycott campaign by students in support of farmworkers. We have been talking a lot about this, and we have started working on documenting farmworkers conditions in Lebanon. We have a long way to go and a lot to learn, but at some point, it is going to be necessary to link the BDS movement with labor movements, especially that the organizations on the boycott lists are often the same. (see here and here about Coke)

Here's an interesting article http://www.leftturn.org/?q=node/335:

"The Coalition of Immokalee Workers is a community-based worker organization. Their members are largely Latino, Haitian, and Mayan Indian immigrants working in low-wage jobs throughout the state of Florida. They recently won a huge victory in their national boycott of Taco Bell this March 2005 when amidst growing pressure from students, churches and communities throughout the country, Taco Bell agreed to meet all their demands to improve wages and working conditions for Florida tomato pickers in its supply chain.

I like this best:

As one of our members said, “One who does not analyze continues to be a slave.

And here's a link to "How to organize" Student/Farmworker

http://www.sfalliance.org/organize.html

Eight?

Eight steps Obama could take to save food (Thanks D.)

Badael-Alternatives

Am a bit late in posting the link to Badael this week. The akhbar site was down when I tried to access it.

This is the page link http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/taxonomy/term/16833,18255

with my editorial of the Food conference in Rome, and Ali Darwish's article on the conference too. Aziza Hamiyyeh wrote a portrait of a woman who farms a small plot of land in the middle of Furn el Chebback: Rahmeh...

Breast milk

"Breast milk, long revered for the nutritional advantages it gives a newborn, could be just as vital in terms of infant development, a leading scientist will claim this week. Up to three different types of stem cells have been discovered in breast milk, according to revolutionary new research.

Dr Mark Cregan, medical director at the Swiss healthcare and baby equipment company Medela, believes the existence of stem cells means breast milk could help a child "fulfil its genetic destiny", with a mother's mammary glands taking over from her placenta to guide infant development once her child is born." (Thanks Laila)

Stunning

"Oil-rich Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, both much wealthier nations, had significantly higher rates of stunting prevalence -- 20 and 17 percent respectively.
Yemen had the highest rate of stunting prevalence in the Middle East -- a staggering 58 percent -- meaning more than half of all Yemeni children under five were significantly short for their age"

The Khudarji Report 23: 7/11/09

Chestnuts have arrived from China (6,000 LL/kilo), as have pomelos (2,500 LL/kilo), and bags of small white onions.
The new lemon crop is in (2,000 LL/kilo), the lemons are uniform in size and of the same light-green color. They are described as "American" in terms of their seed origin.
Cherry tomatoes have arrived and are 2,000 LL/box.
Customers check the stems of black grapes to determine how fresh they are; green stems equals freshness.
The Somalian bananas are from Costa Rica and carry the Chiquita label.

The Khudarji Report, by Zayd, reflects conditions unique to a neighborhood in central Beirut; the status at your local mahal al-khudra will most likely vary.

The Khudarji Report 22: 31/10/09

The pistachio season is over; it might fairly be stated that nothing in the market is more missed when its season is over than fresh pistachios.
The local red and yellow apples have started arriving, and they are joined by local Granny Smith apples. When questioned about them, they are described as "American" in terms of their seed origin. A discussion on apples elicits the statement that given two years, the local apple varieties will be replaced by this foreign apple; the reason given is the customer desire for appearance and uniformity over taste or local flavor. A younger shop worker states, "they are all the same!" His older co-worker starts listing for him the local varieties of apple, which are named for their color and their place of origin. A customer chimes in: "yaa haram"--"what a shame".
Small local persimmons have been joined by a larger variety. A large variety of pomegranate has also arrived. One pomegranate fruit is always left cut in half so customers can taste; some prefer sweet, some prefer sour.

The Khudarji Report, by Zayd, reflects conditions unique to a neighborhood in central Beirut; the status at your local mahal al-khudra will most likely vary.

The Khudarji Report 21: 24/10/09

Clementines have arrived green and on the sour side. Because of their larger size, many customers refer to them erroneously as (yusuf) ‘afendeh, tangerines.
There are still stone-fruits in the market, as the season advances, their origin moves north and up into the mountains.
Plums are from Turkey.
A tiny green fruit called hanbalas (myrtle) has arrived.

The Khudarji Report, by Zayd, reflects conditions unique to a neighborhood in central Beirut; the status at your local mahal al-khudra will most likely vary.

The Khudarji Report 20: 17/10/09

Lubiyeh (green beans) are in abundant supply and are at 2,500 LL/kilo. Bazela (green peas) have arrived, and are at 3,500 LL/kilo. They are described as "English" in terms of their seed origin.
There are three kinds of dates in the market now: "bilih" (fresh yellow); "kaghlooleh" (large red), and "tamr" (medium-sized and dried).
It is possible to grow date palms from seed. Take the dateseeds from the variety you would like to grow and soak them in water for four days, changing the water each day. At the end of four days, scrub away any remaining date flesh and fine hairs; place each seed in a separate pot of sterilized potting soil. Water as needed; it is important that the soil not go dry. Be patient!
The date palm sends down a tap root first before a sprout will appear; this can take upwards of four to five weeks--the warmer the location of the container, the sooner the germination. After this time, a green shoot will appear, at which point the seedling should be transferred to a larger container.
Mangoes are from Egypt and are at 6,000 LL/kilo.

The Khudarji Report, by Zayd, reflects conditions unique to a neighborhood in central Beirut; the status at your local mahal al-khudra will most likely vary.

Where it began

"To end poverty, you have to know how it began - with globalisation. No, not the 20th century variety engendered by multinationals and their friends at the IMF, World Bank and WTO. They just codified practices that kept developing countries poor.
French Filmmaker Philippe Diaz, in an illuminating documentary opening in New York Friday, traces globalisation back 500 years to the Spanish and Portuguese conquests of the Americas. Diaz shows how the colonial North used the South's resources to build its industrial base and how its continued control over resources, global trade and debt rules prevents developing countries from ending poverty. "

Watch the trailer of the movie here

http://www.theendofpoverty.com/

A potential link with BDS?

"This was a David-and-Goliath battle. Activists were armed with photocopies to educate citizens about the dangers of corporate control of their groundwater resources, but Nestlé pent hundreds of thousands of advertising dollars to influence the vote in the small seaside community. However, its campaign backfired, as the townspeople were overwhelmed and annoyed by the barrage of ads, and the appearance that Nestlé was trying to buy their vote.
It wasn't enough that Nestlé was pouring money into the campaign like water to convince people that they are good environmental stewards. The company's PR firm resorted to employing many dirty tricks, such as printing the wrong polling hours on not just one advertising piece mailed to every household, but two." (Thanks Marcy)

Bello on migrant workers

"Thus, to seriously address the problems they confront, migrants and migrant advocates cannot but be involved in a two-front war. On the one hand, we must struggle in our countries of origin to end the conditions of structural adjustment, trade liberalization, and other neoliberal policies that have eroded our industrial and agricultural base and destroyed millions of jobs. We must tell the US government and the European Union that we do not need aid; what we need is for them to stop imposing bilateral trade agreements and economic partnership agreements on us. What our countries demand is a halt to the structural adjustment programs still in effect in scores of countries in Africa and an end to further liberalization of trade under the WTO and bilateral and multilateral trade agreements. Of course, development has many other requirements, but stopping structural adjustment and indiscriminate trade liberalization is a sine qua non, a condition without which other indigenous development initiatives cannot prosper.
When it comes to the other front, in our host countries, the agenda is clear. We must aggressively assert what is the unvarnished truth: that migrants overwhelmingly make a positive contribution to the economy and culture of their host countries. We must frontally oppose state repression of migrants and confront the right wing populist groups that scapegoat them. We must demand an end to the deportation of undocumented migrants, the rapid legalization and granting of full citizenship rights to those with papers and their children, and the facilitation of the achievement of legal status of those without papers. "

http://www.tni.org/article/migrant-condition-0

Olive oil and yoghurt...

"Life was simple, tranquil and often hard but despite the lack of modern amenities or even what was then available in the city, it was happy. There was no electricity or running water. We used kerosene lamps that gave poor lighting and kerosene stoves for cooking. The best stoves for indoor cooking were of the Swedish-made Primus or Radius brands. Weather-permitting, we cooked outdoors, often using a pottery pot, placed on three stones with a wood-fire underneath.

Food was tastier, simpler and healthier then, although we had no refrigerators. People dried fruits for the long, harsh winter, first by oiling them (which preserved tenderness) and then exposing them to the hot summer sun. Vegetables were sprayed with sea salt before drying. All our winter tomatoes were sun-dried, although nowadays that is a delicacy." (Thanks Marcy)

Nawf on the agenda

"Ce qui surprend avant tout lorsque l'on découvre les motifs qui constituent les Nawf, c'est qu'ils soient restés si longtemps méconnus. Il y a encore un an, ces tentures et coussins aux motifs ancestraux n'existaient que pour celles qui les confectionnaient et, accessoirement, ceux qui vivaient avec elles. Il aura fallu qu'un professeur de l'AUB, Rami Zurayk, les découvre par hasard pour qu'ils soient portés à la connaissance du public.

La veille de son arrivée au village d'Awsh Al Arab, dans la vallée de la Bekaa, un grand ménage de printemps venait d'être fait. Les femmes de la tribu bédouine Abu 'Eid avaient brûlé une trentaine de vieilles tentures jugées désuètes et sans intérêt. Et à voir de quoi il s’agit, on comprend sans peine que l'intéressé ait consacré un peu de son temps à préserver et développer cet artisanat. Car à l'évidence, c'est un patrimoine qui était en péril et qu'il s'agissait d'abord de sauvegarder, pour sa partie historique, mais surtout de faire vivre au présent. En tète: l'idée d'en étendre la commercialisation et la renommée."

The crocodiles of Rome

Khaled Saghieh in Al Akhbar on the Food Conference in Rome.

http://www.al-akhbar.com/ar/node/165863
تماسيح روما
خالد صاغية«اليوم سيموت أكثر من 17 ألف طفل من الجوع. طفل كل خمس ثوان. ستّة ملايين في السنة. هذا غير مقبول. علينا أن نتحرّك».هذا ما أعلنه الأمين العام للأمم المتحدة بان كي مون بعد افتتاح قمّة الأمن الغذائي التي نظّمتها منظّمة «الفاو» في روما أمس. بابا الفاتيكان لم يكن أقلّ راديكاليّة، إذ صبّ غضبه على المضاربات التي باتت تطال أسواق الحبوب، كأنّما الغذاء قد تحوّل إلى سلعة كأيّ سلعة أخرى.ورغم حضور زعماء ستّين دولة، أخفقت القمّة في التوصّل إلى إقرار المساعدات الغذائية المطلوبة سنوياً، أي 44 مليار دولار فقط لا غير. كما لم تلتزم بمهلة عام 2025 التي كانت مقررة سابقاً للقضاء على الجوع.إذاً، سيتكيّف العالم مع فكرة وجود مليار جائع على سطح الكوكب. الأسوأ من ذلك أنّه سيتكيّف مع وجود مليار جائع في الوقت الذي ينتج فيه الكوكب نفسه ما يكفي من الغذاء لسدّ رمق جميع سكّانه. المشكلة إذاً ليست في الإنتاج وزيادة فاعليّته، بل في التوزيع.ورغم ذلك، فإنّ أصحاب النيّات الحسنة، وسماسرة البكاء فوق جثث الجوعى في العالم، لم تصدر عنهم إدانة للشركات المتعدّدة الجنسيّات. فتلك الشركات لا تعمل على احتكار سوق الغذاء في العالم وحسب، فتحدّد أسعاره من دون حاجة إلى السوق ويده الخفية، بل تؤدّي أيضاً سيطرتها على مساحات واسعة من الأراضي في الأرياف إلى إعادة توجيه الزراعة باتجاه الإنتاج من أجل التصدير، وحرمان سكان الريف من زراعاتهم المحلية، علماً بأنّ هؤلاء السكان يشكلون 80% من جوعى العالم.لم يعد هذا الواقع مقنّعاً. والمجتمعون في روما يعلمون تماماً ما يجري. لكنّهم يريدون البحث عن حل «يرضي المزارعين والشركات المتعدّدة الجنسيات في الآن نفسه». وفي الانتظار، يمكن الموت أن يستمرّ في موسم الحصاد.على مدى أربعة أيّام، سافر المزارعون الإيطاليّون من مناطق الجنوب الفقيرة كي يصلوا أمس إلى روما للمشاركة في مسيرة احتجاجيّة. جاؤوا من الأرياف إلى العاصمة على متن جرّاراتهم. ثلاثمئة جرّار فقط سُمح لها بدخول المدينة. أمّا الآخرون، فأجبروا على الانتظار في الضواحي. مشهد معبّر في رمزيّته. فبين الجوع الذي يجتاح الأرياف، والمدن التي تلفظ فقراءها، مساحةٌ آخذة في التمدّد. إنّها الضواحي. غرفة انتظار بين الموت والحياة.

Food choices and political ideology

The executive summary, in a nutshell:

Conservatives trend towards “homey”, familiar, comfort foods and meat-heavy options. They are more likely than liberals to indulge in fast food and enjoy splurges like cheeseburgers or deep dish pizza. Their idea of international food is a “mainstream” option such as Italian.

Liberals are more likely to be adventuresome eaters, choosing international options such as Japanese or Thai. They eat fast food less frequently than conservatives, and when they do splurge on fast food they have a tendency to favor specialty, regional chains. Liberals are more likely to choose healthy or vegetarian alternatives when given the choice.

Although there are plenty of food-related differences that skew by political ideology, there’s still plenty of common ground for the dinner table. So there’s no need to let a little political disagreement get in the way of a great shared meal. (Thanks Marcy)

http://www.hunch.com/media/reports/food/