We’d miss them–even as we complain all winter about having nothing but bananas to go on our morning cereal. But much of the world’s population relies on bananas for more than a supplement to bran flakes in the morning. Millions depend on them as a food source or for a major part of their farming income. And that source is facing the greatest pathogen it has ever encountered. The killer blight, a fungus, is called Tropical Race 4. (My post here is a rough …
Image by Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Cake via Flickr Bacon Bits. Fruity Pebbles. Chicken Nuggets. Fish sticks. We have such low expectations for our food (as advertised on TV!) that having a certain foodiness built into the title is enough. Oh, and maybe we’d like a deceptive image of the real food article masquerading on the box as if it were contained inside. Makes us feel better about serving this phantom food to our kids. And an image of a wholesome freckle-faced girl …
The Kingdom Fungi is so varied in form that for mushrooms to be the sum total of our understanding of the group is a grotesque labeling that gives scant credit to the role these organisms play in the Bigger Economy. And yet, it’s understandable that mushrooms represent this group of living things as they are the most visible manifestation of a largely invisible life form. Mushrooms also are so interesting in their growth habits, shapes and colors that it is easy to think of …
Image via Wikipedia We’ve been the unwilling victims in our recent travels of normal, average American food–vegetables and fruits breed for many things other than taste or even nutritional content, picked before ripe, shipped boxed, canned or frozen for a couple of thousand miles and prepared by indifferent and often unskilled hands and served with no pretense at anything more than making a profit. We had a meal at TGIFriday’s that was to die from. It made us realize how much of what we …