Re-sharing a solid post from Farm Fed. Let’s make this interactive. Below are a few Yes / No statements. Reply with Y or N and jump into whichever one sparks an opinion. 1️⃣ Local food is always more nutritious 2️⃣ Buying local is always more expensive 3️⃣ You can taste the difference in truly fresh food 4️⃣ Convenience and eating local can’t coexist 5️⃣ Knowing the producer changes how you value food No right answers... just real experience. 👇 Pick a number (or a few) and share your take. And if you see someone you agree (or disagree) with, reply to them and keep dialogue moving forward about these important points ... that’s how the conversation comes alive 🌾

Did you know that broccoli used to have 158 milligrams (mg) of calcium in the 1970s? Today, it has just 72 mg. Or that beef used to have 3 mg of iron? Today, it has just 2.3 mg. An orange once had 26 mg of phosphorus. Today, the same orange only has 18 mg. Nutrient value is on the decline and Grow is here to support that change through decentralization.... Based on simple averages alone, here’s how each food product stacks up based on a grouping of the seven nutrients evaluated at present day vs. 1974… Cheddar Cheese: average nutrient decline of -18.0% Fluid Milk: average nutrient decline of -1.0% Eggs: average nutrient decline of -5.4% Ground Beef: average nutrient decline of -19.4% Apples: average nutrient decline of -37.5% Blueberries: average nutrient decline of -20.0% Oranges: average nutrient decline of -13.2% Almonds: average nutrient decline of -8.5% Broccoli: average nutrient decline of -20.9% Carrots: average nutrient decline of -5.7% Spinach: average nutrient decline of -4.0% Tomatoes: average nutrient decline of -16.5% When categorized into their respective major food groups, these simple averages result in a -10.9% decrease in measured nutrients for meat, dairy, and eggs; a -23.5% decrease in measured nutrients for fruit; an -8.5% decrease in measured nutrients for nuts; and an -11.8% decrease in measured nutrients for vegetables. Altogether, the simple average equates to a -14.2% decrease in measured nutrients across our food basket. Such a dynamic decline leads to real consequences for a nation’s health! What is going on? Why is this happening? The simple answer is that the plants and animals that humans eat get their nutrients from the soil…and American soils are under significant pressure from broad-based mismanagement over time. Repetitive annual monocropping practices, intensive tilling, and heavy chemical applications have depleted stores of organic matter while disrupting networks of insects, worms, bacteria, and fungi that feed nutrients from the ground into plants and animals. Thus, our “real” whole food supplies from the land increasingly contain lower levels of nutrients as the cumulative loss of microbiology in our soils builds further and further. This dynamic is additionally stressed by the fact that progressively violent wind and rainstorms are eroding soils from the ground and thereby sending nutrients into our rivers, lakes, and oceans. Over the past 100 years, many bioregions have lost roughly half of their topsoil or more. To make matters worse, as we lose beneficial nutrients from our food, we are inadvertently swapping in dangerous chemicals like pesticides.

Working at a beef processing plant all day, I see a lot of meat come down the line. Who can name all the cuts from left to right? There are 5 different cuts.

Thanks to Andrew Brooks, the Spirited Chef for this reminder; Did you know that it is now being discovered that your gut health is tied to your Emotional well-being? It's true. A healthier gut produces more contentment and a sense of well being. Some might call that happiness. How is this so? Well, aside from our gut manufacturing most of our immune factors, it is also a center for some hormone production. Imbalances of the gut mean less positive hormone production, and more feelings of distress. Also, if you are never sick (especially when most others are), you just feel better on a regular basis. Your body is functioning as it should.

https://open.substack.com/pub/madagriculture/p/mapping-the-new-dietary-guidelines?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewer