Balance of Food

Tim Walz would be a step forward on food policy

The stereotype is that a vice president has an important job yet usually doesn't do a whole lot. A U.S. vice president who spent time on food policy would be a great start.

Tim Walz is the governor of Minnesota and the vice presidential pick to run with Vice President Kamala Harris on the Democratic Party ticket. Walz has been praised for his work on getting school breakfasts and lunches to be free in Minnesota.

Eater.com pointed out Walz's understanding of the "connection between food and climate change."

Walz is from a Midwestern state where they understand food. Harris is from California, a state that understands about the growing of food.

One reason to love the #TimWalz pick is his love for #schoollunch funding. https://t.co/WuMqd1Atr0

— Chad Rubel (@balanceoffood) August 6, 2024

Reducing the stigma of lunch debt. Knowing first hand having been a school teacher that kids learn better when their stomachs are full.

We feel confident that the Minnesota governor knows that turkey is meat. Turkey is a big deal in Minnesota. The fact that Walz's daughter Hope is vegetarian means he has a resource to understand that approach to food.

Needing a radical 'New Deal' from the next Secretary of Agriculture

Michael Pollan for Ag Secretary?

The reality is that the status quo, of which Vilsack is a champion, feels like everything is fine with the U.S. food approach. The days of drafting Michael Pollan as secretary of agriculture is beyond a pipe dream.

If Americans voted based on food policy, the Democratic Party would win every time. Then again, if they voted on food policy, voters would want the Green Party or a left of center party such as the New Democratic Party in Canada.

Shopping for vegetables is a reality, not a political stunt

As we've seen in politics, the secretary of agriculture doesn't really tackle concerns over the food supply. When I covered U.S. politics, those who rooted for Tom Vilsack (former Iowa governor) were likely disappointed at his 8-year stint in that cabinet post. Those people were surprised that President Joe Biden brought back Vilsack for the same post. That said, Vilsack is miles ahead of Sonny Perdue in that capacity.

There is proposed legislation to establish the Federal Food Administration under the umbrella of food safety and promoting nutrition. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL.) and Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) introduced the legislation.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA). United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Health and Human Services (HHS). All of these agencies sort of cover these topics yet the USDA is more about promoting food and the FDA is more about drugs.

Food safety would be helpful given e-coli spills from factory farms but we are concerned that "food safety" will be making sure we have more UHT milk. 

Unfortunately the Federal Food Administration won't see the light of day as long as the Dems don't control the House of Representatives. The presidential race is crucial yet the lower ballot races also matter a lot.

We know some of the right-wing side of government don't want another federal agency. They don't complain about the Transportation Security Authority (TSA). They might want a better run food system.

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com politics coverage

Reverse the monoculture mentality of Earl Butz. Diversify farm ownership so farms aren't "too big to fail." Have a smarter immigration policy so more crops aren't wasted on farms. Stop making front and back labels on food being a shell game approach. Make declaring one's self organic a hell of a lot easier. Treat chickens, cows, and pigs with more dignity.

Create a food system that feeds more Americans without relying on bragging as much about food banks. Just some of the many ideas I would incorporate as a secretary of food safety and nutrition.

BalanceofFood.com U.S. food policy coverage

BalanceofFood.com agency alphabet soup coverage

This may seem naive but I think there could be true bipartisan agreement on improving the food supply. Most Republicans aren't rich and many of them go to food banks. The corporate mentality toward the food system clouds people's thinking.

photo credit and video credits: I Am Grambling
Twitter capture: @balanceoffood

Canada (finally) introduces a national school lunch program

We have written a few pieces noting that our friends in Canada don't have a national school lunch program. Canada is the only G-7 country without a national school lunch program.

The federal budget details will become more clear on April 16. The Trudeau Government has leaked the idea of spending $1 billion over 5 years on a national school food program. The government hopes the program will start delivering meals to students by the fall.

The government target is to provide meals to 400,000 more kids outside of those currently getting food from local school food programs. Plenty of kids are getting school lunch even now; more kids are going hungry.

The debate has been on the radar. We wrote this story in 2017 and the topic wasn't new then either.

Canada has a few unique issues with putting together a national school lunch program. Let's look at them:

-- Education is run by the provinces. Provided school lunches are part of education, Canada would have 10 different provincial setups. Your lunch in Quebec may be way different than lunch in Saskatchewan.

-- Some Canadians are very happy with their current school lunch program. A lot of parents like that their kids come home for lunch.

-- Canada has a lot of rural territory. A program that serves Winnipeg, the largest city to the south, and Churchill, a tiny, far north post, in Manitoba.

-- Some northern programs may currently be geared toward Indigenous students and those parents may worry about federal controls over their local school lunch programs.

Where school lunches funding generally is consistent in European countries, Canada could be vulnerable to school lunch funding cuts when the Conservative Party is in charge. School lunch funding is way more political in the United States, though if Canada develops a federal program, that could be a part of the Canadian political landscape.

Canada does have advantages over the United States, as an example. Canadians are more trusting of government in general. A low bar but still relevant. The prime minister is a former teacher who knows the value of learning when children have full stomachs.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau understands the correlation between full bellies and academic success in the classroom.

Unlike in the United States, the political system in Canada makes passing such legislation a lot easier. The federal Liberal Party government is a minority government; the NDP (definitely) and Bloc Quebecois (likely) would be on board for this legislation. The Canadian Senate may take its sweet time but a bill will eventually get passed into law.

Canada election 2019 is underway and food policy should be discussed

Argument is getting louder for Canada to have a federal school lunch program (2017)

Canadian Senate suggests food policy changes U.S. should copy

Celebrating Full Frontal with Samantha Bee for fighting for a better food system

Hospital patients, school children both need better focus on nutrition

Not all of the pushback will be poorly considered. The mantra of "we are feeding kids locally right now" is likely true in many parts of Canada. The idea behind a federal program, even if distributed by the provinces, is to cover more people and set some standards across the board.

I wish I had a better sense of the options Canadian children currently get either through local programs or home options to go back during the school day.

Some of that pushback will be politically oriented. "He's buying votes." "Why is he doing this now 9 years into his government?" As for the former question, you can buy votes with many other topics that aren't school lunch. As for the latter question, Canada's food insecurity may be more of a factor in 2024 than it was in 2015 when Trudeau was first elected.

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage

Whenever we first found out about Canada not having a national school lunch program, the first thought was "Maybe Canada doesn't need an actual federal school lunch program." The United States has been a poor example where non-inflationary financial adjustments are rarer than eclipses. There isn't an incentive to do well by school children south of the 49th parallel. Canada will only benefit with a federal school lunch program if the standards are higher, even in provinces run by conservative governments.

video credit and photo credit: CBC News

California bacon is a reality even with the unfortunate grace period

California voters passed Proposition 12 in 2018. The goal was to improve lives for the pigs that provide bacon and other pork products. Fresh pork has to be born to sows with at least 24 square feet of space, allowing a breeding pig to turn around and extend its limbs. The proposition also banned widely used gestation crates to protect sows from other pigs.

The law finally went into place as of July 1, though there is a 6-month grace period so some pork sold in California will still be covered by the old rules. We would be very curious if there was labeling as to how well the "old pork rules" pork would sell in the grocery store.

The measure also included space requirements for egg-laying hens and veal calves. They didn't run into the kind of issues over pigs since the pork industry fought back a lot harder. The Supreme Court of the United States ruled 5-4 in favor of Proposition 12.

Massachusetts also passed a similar law that should go into effect soon.

Besides getting better quality bacon and other pork products, the idea is to push the industry nationwide to better standards for pigs across the board. California has enough economic pressure to make a difference at the start. California consumes roughly 13% of the nation’s pork but produces a insignificant amount of the total production.

Those who buy bacon and other pork products at farmers markets are likely getting meat from pigs that are treated much better than the conventional standards in the United States. The idea behind Proposition 12 is that people who shop in grocery stores have that same kind of access.

These are the pigs in Spain that give us jamon iberico. These pigs roam free and eat amazing acorns, the bellota, among other natural foods as part of their diet. They roam freely with not a cage in sight.

The United States isn't alone in the cruelty level of keeping animals but is sadly #1 in this category. This is why buying meat products at farmers markets is gaining in popularity.

This is proof that the U.S. can and should do better by the animals where we get food.

BalanceofFood.com local/state food policy coverage

BalanceofFood.com farmers market coverage

During my last trip to San Francisco, I ran into millionaire's bacon. Millionaire's bacon is enhanced with a sweet and spicy flavor.

You shouldn't have to feel like a millionaire to eat quality bacon from well-grown pigs. That level of bacon should be readily available to a farmers market addict or a house spouse frantically shopping with 3 kids in tow at a Ralph's or a Safeway.

video credit: KCRA 3 Sacramento
photo credits: Serious Eats; me

Demand for food banks may not be visible but is ever increasing

"Why is he still complaining about food insecurity and the need for food banks? The economy is doing really well. Those long lines during the pandemic. That was just the pandemic."

We wrote about those long lines 3 years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic. We thought these images would make a meaningful impact: spotlighting the number of people who are getting in long lines, lining up hours before the food banks open up.

"Let us remember these images when the pandemic subsides. Hunger is real for a lot of people. They should feel no shame for getting help."

So where are we in 2023?

"We used to spend $1.5 million per year on purchasing food. We spend now up to 1.8 million per month on food." — Neil Hetherington, CEO of the Daily Bread Food Bank in Toronto.

Imogen Birchard, a producer on Front Burner from CBC News, pointed out in her story that "In March, when Canada's unemployment rate was hovering at a near record low of 5%, the Daily Bread Food Bank broke their monthly record with 270,000 client visits up from 60(,000) to 70(,)000 pre-pandemic."

Congressional Republicans decided that too many people on food assistance needed to get off the rolls. The age was raised to 55 from 49 for adults without children to receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for 3 months in a 3-year period unless they work a minimum of 20 hours per week.

This was part of the debt ceiling deal where the Republicans blackmailed the White House to get this concession. Let's not forget that in a "good" economy, people 50-54 already have trouble getting hired.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in new research said the change could result in almost 750,000 adults ages 50 to 54 losing their federal food assistance.

The White House did get work requirements waived for veterans, individuals who are homeless or facing housing instability, and youth aging out of foster care.

3 months of help, not much help within that amount, over a 3-year period when a lot of people can't find regular work. That feels cruel in an actually good economy, which isn't what we have now.

Even if they do find work, hours can easily be cut to below 20 hours a week, putting their limited benefits in danger through no fault of their own.

The numbers show the need is growing for people who work full time. Even with that level of income, some people are struggle to make ends meet without food assistance.

"The greatest concern and that that I want to impart is unemployment is low. And if we get to a situation where combating inflation through higher interest rates results in a slowing down of the economy and increased unemployment rates, we will be in a state that food banks have never been in before. Well, we're there now, but we will be. It's a crisis on a crisis on a crisis, and we're just getting to that third one." — said Hetherington.

While we dispute the employment numbers in both Canada and the United States, Hetherington makes a good point in one regard. A bad situation will become worse if (when?) employed people get tossed out of their jobs.

Food banks are dealing with one variable that usually isn't a factor. The rising costs of food mean they can't buy as much food for the same amount of money. Their food dollars don't go as far, just like their clients.

France has rules on supermarkets to reduce food waste. Spain was working on a similar law. Farmers struggle to get all their crops picked due to worker shortages.

Food banks now more important than ever in COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

A "capitalist" society struggles with the idea of making sure people can get food because there must be payment. Food being wasted. People desperately needing food. We should make this work.

"I've tossed the idea by the board of directors of maybe we should you know, we have 200 food banks in the city of Toronto maybe we should shut them down and just distribute food at one location until government policy changes and that location being City Hall or Queen's Park. And and so if you need food and we serve about 12,000 per day, the 12,000 people would be inconvenienced and they'd have to come to two to Queen's Park to pick up their food. And we would do that every single day, every single day, until policy change happens. That's not like us. That's, you know, we're not that kind of an organization. But at some point we have to say enough is enough." — said Hetherington.

The lines from 2020 were a visual reminder of the impact of food insecurity in rich countries. Hetherington is suggesting another visual impact. Queen's Park is where the Ontario provincial government meets.

"But at some point we have to say enough is enough." Will that be enough for us to see what is happening with food insecurity? Should we do better before then?

photo credit: Neil Blake/Grand Rapids Press/AP

Full Frontal with Samantha Bee makes the case for universal free lunch

The USDA waived any requirements during the pandemic, allowing all school children to get a free school lunch. As Full Frontal with Samantha Bee points out, that policy expires at the end of this school year.

We found during the height of the pandemic that many children rely on their schools to give them food and nutrition they weren't necessarily getting at home.

Lunch debt has been a real thing. The program explains nuances such as subsidies not reflecting the cost of food and financially strapped school districts really need the money.

We see samples of children raising money to help their fellow kids get out of "lunch debt." While those stories are heartwarming, their efforts should be unnecessary.

One way for schools to reduce the money to spend on school lunches is scratch cooking. Unfortunately, a lot of schools can't make that happen due to a lack of facilities.

California and Maine have passed universal free lunch on a state level. The federal waiver expires June 30. Bee makes a strong case for universal free lunch.

How school lunch can teach children about vegetarian options

Vote for a better food policy on Election Day

Daily Show addresses increased junk food in school lunches

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

BalanceofFood.com television coverage

One more school lunch related note mentioned in the segment: give these kids a proper amount of time to eat lunch. The segment mention that some school lunches are served at 9 am.

Full Frontal with Samantha Bee airs on TBS on Thursdays at 10 pm Eastern.

photo and video credit: Full Frontal with Samantha Bee/TBS

Tom Vilsack is not a good way for Biden-Harris to fight for improvement in the food supply

"Meet the new boss, same as the old boss" was meant to be a metaphor by Pete Townshend from The Who's Won't Get Fooled Again in 1971. Townshend likely couldn't imagine Tom Vilsack being invited to run the Department of Agriculture once again in the United States.

Vilsack was not an inspired choice even in 2009 under Barack Obama. He did fit the recent definition of having been a governor (Iowa) in an agricultural state. 

Vilsack's most significant act while as the Secretary of Agriculture is to endorse the use of "pink slime." Vilsack said pink slime was "safe, it contains less fat and historically it's been less expensive."

Colbert Report: Tom Vilsack and school lunches

Stephen Colbert calls out Tom Vilsack for ag policy contradictions

Vilsack will have an easier time since Stephen Colbert went out to do a regular talk show at CBS.

Vilsack is leaps and bounds ahead of Sonny Perdue, Mike Johanns, and Ed Schafer in the post.

As we noted during the campaign, the outgoing regime has done disturbing and disgusting work to reduce the safety standards for meat, poultry, and seafood.

Needing a radical 'New Deal' from the next Secretary of Agriculture

If the United States has a benign or progressive food policy that factored in nutrition and American consumers, Vilsack might be able to sail the ship and not crash into an iceberg. Stephen Colbert did more to advance the concerns over the U.S. food supply in the 9 years on the Colbert Report than any Secretary of Agriculture has done in decades.

Michael Pollan turned down a proverbial request for the position after the 2008 election. Pollan did offer these words of wisdom.

"What Obama needs to do, if he indeed wants to make change in this area — and that isn't clear yet that he does, at least in his first term — I think we need a food policy czar in the White House because the challenge is not just what we do with agriculture, it's connecting the dots between agriculture and public health, between agriculture and energy and climate change, agriculture and education."

Substitute "Biden" for "Obama" and that advice is still helpful.

Vote for a better food policy on Election Day

Joe Biden vs. Donald Trump: Who will be better on food policy

The American people did vote for a better food policy on Election Day with the election of former Vice President Joe Biden and outgoing Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA). They will be sworn in tomorrow midday as the new U.S. president and vice president, respectively.

Biden and Harris will be arms in deep in the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic amplified the growing food insecurity in the United States. The pathetic financial supplement further exasperated a widening gap in a struggling to feed a family or even an individual.

Children who weren't in school struggled to get fed where school breakfasts and lunches had been the difference for many kids.

Celebrating the Michelle Obama legacy for food and nutrition

Biden could pick a nutrition czar, something that Barack Obama did during his time in office. Sam Kass and Debra Eschmeyer filled that role under President Obama. Michelle Obama might be available once again. Unlike Vilsack, that is a retread Americans can get behind.

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

President Obama placed a priority on increasing the money spent on school lunches. Conservative Democratic senators helped water that down to a 6¢ increase in 2010, the first such non-inflationary increase since 1974.

Expectations are low and since the food supply didn't come up, no promises to be broken. Here's to hoping to find solutions in the next 4-8 years.

photo credit: Colbert Report/Comedy Central

Vote for a better food policy on Election Day

Today is Election Day in the United States. A chance to get a conversation going on food policy. A chance to have a reasonable, likely useless Secretary of Agriculture. A chance to get food processing back into the United States instead of sending previously live animals to China for processing.

We discussed a lot of that last Tuesday between the presidential candidates. The pundits often say the vice presidential candidates are really important but isn't always so. Fair to say in 2020, for once, they might be right.

Age and/or COVID-19 risk make Mike Pence and Kamala Harris a lot more relevant.

The picture (above) and video (below) is from a September 22 campaign stop in Flint, MI where Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) were touring a farmers market. If there is any major politician on a major party ticket who gets the need for good food, Kamala Harris is that politician. 

Harris is from Oakland in the East Bay where they have access to some amazing food at markets in San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley. The area around the Bay Area has amazing soil and growing seasons. I know this from many visits and meals.

The farmers market visit in Flint is also more significant because of the fight to get access to poor communities and communities of color. Harris understands this plight.

Joe Biden vs. Donald Trump: Who will be better on food policy

We would love this to be a reasonably balanced battle. Republicans arguing for increased nutrition but asking how that gets paid for out of the budget. Dems responding with creative solutions to do both. We are not there.

We would like to get equal time with Mike Pence. Pence was a Congressman and Governor of Indiana, a state definitely into farms. The side of the political equation that is into babies being born aren't as concerned about their nutrition factors once they are in school.

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

We've seen the divisive and petty squabbles over making kids eat for cheaper and with lesser nutrition standards in school lunch. They are the people who will lead our country in the future. They will be better people with school breakfasts and lunches.

Republicans are into large farms, corporate farms where cows are closer together than people piled into a Volkswagen in the late 1960s. Small farms are being bought out by larger farms since farmer debt has climbed in the last 4 years.

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

There is only a single VP debate as opposed to 3 (scheduled) presidential debates. We do have a good sense of how Pence and Harris approach food policy if they get a promotion. 

As we've noted, your job isn't done once you voted. Good that you voted but you have to continue the fight for a better food policy. Our future will be better shaped with an improved food policy.

photo and video credit: MLive

Joe Biden vs. Donald Trump: Who will be better on food policy

The U.S. election is on November 3. Many have voted early. Hope that voting democracy isn't too damaged where you live.

Food policy hasn't come up in the campaign. We don't know where Joe Biden stands on food policy or how he thinks about food. We do know he isn't Donald Trump and won't make things worse.

• Earlier this year, the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service allowed the sale of chicken meat made from birds that have had diseases for human consumption.
• The U.S. sends meat and seafood to be processed in China and the food comes back to the United States.
• Rollbacks on the nutrition standards of school lunches from where they were under Barack Obama.
• The horrible tariffs that impacted farmers for no logical reason. The American Farm Bureau points out that debt in the farm sector is projected to increase by 4 percent to a record $434 billion. Farm bankruptcies continue to rise.

This is not the whole list by a long shot. This would be a 30-minute read with the whole list and the Internet does not want a 30-minute read.

Obama signs school lunch bill, still waiting on food safety bill

Blanche Lincoln, who worked hard to cut school lunch increase, lost her Senate race

BalanceofFood.com school lunch coverage

The Democratic Party has had control of the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the White House for 4 years between 1981 and the present. Bill Clinton had that level of control from 1993-1995 and Barack Obama from 2009-2011. During the Obama time, there was a lot of political work that went into a 6¢ school lunch increase, the first such non-inflationary increase to school lunches since 1974.

Blanche Lincoln (D-AR) worked so hard to reduce the increase to 6¢.

The Dems taking back the Senate is possible but will be a difficult task. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris might get elected but without the Senate, they won't be able to get much done, especially on the food supply.

We would love to have a policy debate with a pair of parties that cared about the impact of nutrition and food policy. We barely have one at times.

Celebrating the Michelle Obama legacy for food and nutrition

BalanceofFood.com endorses Michelle Obama to be First Lady for 4 more years

We don't make endorsements here at BalanceofFood.com. Our "endorsement" of Michelle Obama in 2012 was more about her efforts than her husband's efforts.

We know the famous rose garden in the White House was destroyed recently. We don't know what happened to Michelle Obama's organic food garden on the White House property.

If Biden and Kamala Harris get elected, perhaps Dr. Jill Biden will incorporate Michelle Obama's help once again.

Daily Show addresses increased junk food in school lunches

We mentioned in May 2019 that Higher Ground, Barack and Michelle Obama's production company, is working on a half-hour series for Netflix called Listen to Your Vegetables & Eat Your Parents. The program will “take young children and their families around the globe on an adventure that tells us the story of our food.”

That program is still in development. As we have noted, government can do some good but other forces need to be part of the process. We hope some adults learn along with children about the value of vegetables.

Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Trump on how they approach food

5 questions you should ask presidential candidates about U.S. food policy

The Obama Administration brought in a "nutrition czar." Sam Kass served as a senior policy adviser for nutrition policy and executive director of Let’s Move! Kass was there from the administration start until December 2014. Debra Eschmeyer, co-founder of Food Corps replaced Kass in those roles.

Eater through Civil Eats covered a lot on Dems work on climate change and agriculture.

Biden served as vice president in the Obama Administration. A "secretary of nutrition" would be a vital resource as opposed to a secretary of agriculture. The United States hasn't had a significant secretary of agriculture in a positive sense in a very long time.

We hope to have more positive coverage of school lunches and overall food policy in the next 4-8 years.

photo credit: Kevin E. Schmidt/Quad City Times
video credit: McDonald's

Canada milk producers threatened with invasion of cheaper American milk

Being a classic regular milk drinker, if you suddenly had a milk option come into your local market that was significantly cheaper, would you automatically switch to the cheaper milk?

Milk is already pretty cheap in the United States. The cost level depends on your interest in organic, regular, UHT, shelf-stable milk.

Canadians have rather good milk. They pay a hefty price for milk, but they get quality milk.

The newest trade deal between the United States, Canada, and Mexico (CUSMA | USMCA) means Canadians will get access to cheap American milk. Depending on the import costs, the savings could be $1-$2 for 4 liters (slightly more than 1 gallon).

UHT milk provides longer shelf life but nutrition and taste are lost

Farmers benefit more than consumers with Canada supply management

There is one distinct difference between the standard milk in both countries: recombinant bovine somatotropin (rBST), the artificial growth hormone allowed in American milk but banned for Canadian milk.

Canadian milk is already very good milk. Unfortunately, as we've noted in other stories, food budgets in the two countries are tight thanks to wage shrinkage and job growth in certain industries.

If you live in Ontario, Quebec, and the Maritimes, your milk could come in a bag. The individual liter-sized bags are placed in a pitcher; the user cuts a diagonal slice into the top corner closest to the spout in the pitcher. The process (pronounced PRO-cess in Canada) is easier than it sounds. You won't find American milk in a bag.

The American milk will need to be labeled in English and French, since Canada requires bilingual food labeling.

American dairy companies might try to get around this by shipping its products to be used in cheese, yogurt (yoghurt in Canada), and butter. The milk products should be identified as American; as we've seen from meat classification between United States and Canada, country of origin labeling has been a concern. Consumers should know where their food comes from, especially with rBST.

CUSMA passes through U.S. Congress

NAFTA 2.0, er, USMCA is a nightmarish trade deal for Canada

Canadian milk is more expensive because Canadian dairy farmers get better compensation. The U.S. government encourages overproduction of American milk so trade deals are engineered to dump cheap American milk onto other countries, such as Canada.

The supply management system in Canada is politically protected. Liberal, Conservative, NDP: all behind supply management.

Given the number of U.S. dairy farms that are going under, Americans should consider a smarter dairy management system with better compensation.

Consumer cost of milk, cheese, butter, and other dairy products needs to be weighed (whey-ed) against the quality of the product and the compensation for farmers.

Canada election 2019 is underway and food policy should be discussed

BalanceofFood.com Canada food policy coverage

The new trade deal is expected to go through on July 1.

photo credit: Dairy Farmers of Canada
video credit: YouTube/pincstuff

Farmers markets in the new normal in the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic

Depending on where you are in North America, some areas have had farmers markets going all along in a limited form. For most of North America, May brings the farmers market season. Outdoor farmers markets will bloom though not in the same way or the same speed thanks to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Patience and patience will help the process along. Keeping distance and having to wait to get into the farmers market are some of the changes in 2020.

We've seen some markets go to a delivery option where you order online and pick up your food at a designated spot. That takes away the charm of a conversation with your farmer and choosing your own produce. Safety triumphs over the usual nuances of a farmers market.

Your local farmers market will have its own rules and guidelines. Be careful to follow them. The farmers and vendors are also trying to be careful.

Some DC markets ran into issues over social distancing. Seattle farmers markets were closed for a large chunk of time. The start of Chicago farmers markets has been delayed without a plan in place for opening the markets.

Farmers markets have been considered essential similar to grocery stores. Figuring out how to make that work has been a concern. Places that have year-round markets have been the canaries in the coal mine. Others can learn the good and bad from those markets.

Those places that are starting their farmers markets in May don't have much of an excuse for not starting. Hard to plan during a pandemic but you've had 7 weeks to come up with a plan. Limit people inside the market, letting people in as others are leaving.

We aren't asking for farmers markets to be what they were in 2019. Create a new normal for 2020. You will find in a Venn diagram that the people who go to farmers markets are those most likely to conform to protecting themselves with masks and face coverings.

The delay or uncertainty for the farmers markets produces one difficult problem for farmers. If the markets are uncertain, they might not show up in 2020.

Farmers have a certain rhythm to doing multiple markets during the week to justify making those trips. If they can only travel to half or a third of those markets, they may not make trips at all. The farmers and consumers both lose in that exchange.

Make the move to bring containers to farmers markets

We had a marvelous suggestion last summer to bring containers to collect fruits to save their containers in a pro-environment way. A lot of pro-environment moves have been put on hold during the pandemic.

If you still believe in this, let them pour the fruit into the container that you bring. They don't want to touch your container. You don't want to touch their container.

Sadly, you might have to give this up for awhile. Know your farmer is still crucial. Ask questions. Good communication is always important.

Will COVID-19 play a role with farmers markets?

The sad reality is that liability is a factor. If you can set up delivery options that are practical for those with cars or higher incomes, you reduce your liability. We already know the social aspect of farmers markets will be minimized in 2020. No sampling. You can still ask your farmer if there is an actual market but those conversations will be with masks.

Farmers markets won't be casual outings for people who aren't familiar to learn more. Farmers markets in a pandemic means you have to know exactly what you want in advance of your shopping.

BalanceofFood.com farmers market coverage

Grocery shopping has become more stressful but the basics of grocery shopping haven't changed, unless you count the one-way stickers in store aisles.

Farmers market shopping will look very different for those communities that have farmers markets. You may have to spend a lot more time online to try and get what you want.

Farmers markets are essential. We need structure in place to show that they are essential to nutrition for people at a most important time.

We found a local farmers market open tomorrow. We will have more on this encounter next week to get an inside perspective.

photos credit: EdiblePhoenix.com; me