Magic Hat Stories

Exit 1 Bayshore Oyster Stout Thanks to the Oyster Restoration Project

I'll admit it, I'm just love a story like this. As I have written in a number of posts, Slow Foods USA has their Arc of Taste which is a catalogue of endangered native foods in the USA. Included on that list is the Delaware Bay Oyster;

For 200 years, Delaware Bay oysters have been prized for their fine flavor and plump, firm meat.  In their heyday, during the late 19th century, schooners and oystermen harvested the bivalves for local oyster houses and also for restaurants in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Chicago, St. Louis and San Francisco.

It was a thriving industry, and let's face it Bivalve, NJ just didn't pick their name out of a hat. The industry fell on some hard times due to a couple of reasons;

For centuries, oysters have provided a sustainable food supply and contributed to the economies of Delaware and New Jersey communities. In fact, 1 to 2 million bushels were harvested every year during the 1930s, when the population initially began to decline. The introduction of the oyster disease MSX in the 1950s, followed in the 1990s by a second disease, Dermo, has resulted in a significant decline in the oyster population. Consequently, the industry has been imperiled.

Thanks to the Delaware Bay Restoration Project though, the Delaware Bay Oyster is on it's way back; 

During the summer of 2005, the Delaware Bay Oyster Restoration Task Force initiated a large-scale oyster shell-planting and transplant program that, by 2009, had deposited over 2.1 million bushels of shell onto existing oyster reefs. These "seed beds" are needed because oyster larvae require a clean, hard surface upon which they can attach or "recruit." This effort has yielded a substantial increase in survival among juveniles; this, despite a population decline in areas outside the seed beds.

The success of this project has earned it a 2008 Coastal America Partnership Award, a 2009 gold medal from the Federal Executive Board, and a 2008 Government Award from the Water Resources Association of the Delaware River Basin .

And now Flying Fish Brewery is using the Delaware Bay Oyster in it's Exit 1 Bayshore Oyster Stout. Flying Fish is a New Jersey based craft brewery, and for those who don't know, it's been a long running running joke here in NJ citing the exit off the NJ Turnpike that your from, and not so much the town.

It's great to see this. It's local, it's sustainable and it's all based on a local tradition and lifestyle that endured for some many years. The story can continue now, along with the heritage that inspired a town to name itself Bivalve. What a shame it would be to have this town become the home of some cheesy outlet mall with a caricature of a oyster as it's logo, and a Long John Silver selling some canned oyster stew imported from China. 

Community Garden Update

So everything is coming together for my plot at the community garden program I’m participating in. The seeds arrived, and the peppers are just popping up. The tomatoes will be soon I’m sure. I got the peppers planted a couple days before the tomatoes.

I have the plot roped off and I’ve been there a couple times during the day so I could see the sac of the sun in the sky. This will help with the direction of the rows. Today we’re getting rain and this will help me see how drainage is overall.

Sustainable and Organic Dairy Farm 101

As someone who strives to learn and live sustainably, and tries to share the stories of the people who do, and those who create sustainable practices to follow, I had little idea of what healthy practices makes a dairy farm healthy and organic. In pursuit of other information, I ended up at the Straus Family Creamery's Web site. I found a wealth of information here that they share, so in the interest of paying it forward, I'm sharing it with you.

First their history;

Our History

Our small, family-owned dairy farm began when Bill Straus began farming in 1941 with just 23 cows here on the beautiful shores of Tomales Bay and the Point Reyes National Seashore, 60 miles north of San Francisco. Ellen Straus, his wife, read the book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson in the early 1960s and began our family's strong commitment to environmental sustainability. We have been farming here for more than 65 years.  We still consider our most important responsibility to be stewardship of the land.

Certified Sustainable California Wine

I  believe that companies that do the right thing should be rewarded for their effort. In business there is a choice to follow the practices that offer a positive impact on society or to ignore what's best for the sake of profit for a few.

One of the issues facing us today is the ability to sustain our lifestyle. The issue applies to food, energy and all natural supplies. I'm glad to see that this is now in the minds of people in the business world, and that consumers are now building a demand for sustainable products.

End Hunger through Gardening!

Well I borrowed the title of today's post from The Dinner Garden's Web site. It sums up the concept that is this group's mission. They are dedicated to providing seeds to people so they could grown their own food. Also, they also provide instructions on how to become a gardener. I like the spirit of possibility that they present and they back it with the help. From their blog:

Our Mission Statement
The Dinner Garden provides seeds, gardening supplies, and gardening advice free of charge to all people in the United States of America. The intent is to assist those in need in establishing food security for their families. The long term goal is that people will plant home, neighborhood, and container gardens and use the vegetables they grow for food and income.

Prison Gardens and Prairie Grass Restoration as Part of the Sustainable Prisons Project

In Washington state there is an initiative going on to have people incarcerated learn about being stewards of the environment. The Sustainable Prisons Project has three components that make up this project:

GREEN-COLLAR EDUCATION AND TRAINING
We inspire and train inmates and correctional staff through programs designed to improve prison sustainability and connect participants to the larger world of science and conservation. Our instructors range from biologists and farmers to business entrepreneurs and green energy experts.

SUSTAINABLE OPERATION OF PRISONS
We help correctional staff develop cost-effective, environmentally sound practices for operating prisons and engage offenders with direct responsibility for these activities where security is in place. Activities include recycling, composting, organic gardening and rehabilitating troubled dogs.

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION
With support from visiting scientists, we carry out ecological research and conservation projects involving inmates, college students and community partners. Current projects include rearing endangered frogs, propagating native prairie plants and a beekeeping training program.

Right on, Target, for Sustainable Seafood

In a big move forward for sustainable seafood, Target has announced they will no longer use farmed salmon in the food brands they own;

Target Owned Food Brands Will Feature Only Wild-Caught Alaskan Salmon

MINNEAPOLIS, Jan. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Target® today announces that it has eliminated all farmed salmon from its fresh, frozen, and smoked seafood offerings in Target stores nationwide. This announcement includes Target owned brands – Archer Farms® and Market Pantry® – and national brands.  All salmon sold under Target owned brands will now be wild-caught Alaskan salmon.  Additionally, sushi featuring farm-raised salmon will complete its transition to wild-caught salmon by the end of 2010.  In consultation with the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Target is taking this important step to ensure that its salmon offerings are sourced in a sustainable way that helps to preserve abundance, species health and doesn't harm local habitats.

This is good news and is a feather in the cap for the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which has a program called Seafood Watch. It's an extensive collection of information about sustaining seafood population. From a lesson about fish farming to a downloadable guide for purchasing sustainable seafood, the program is a great source of information, and an influence on the marketplace.

I would love to see Target take this one step forward with an ad campaign. For now though, it's a good step forward for sustainable seafood.

ARAMARK has been working with theSeafood Watch program since 2008.

A New American Revolution Started By a Brit

By now, I hope you know America was founded by a revolution against the British. In a modern day twist so to speak, we have a English chef who wants to kickstart a revolution in america

JAMIE OLIVER KICKSTARTS A REVOLUTION IN AMERICA - IN OUR HOME KITCHENS, SCHOOLS AND WORKPLACES

"Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution" Premieres Friday March 26, 9:00-10:00 p.m., ET on ABC

Jamie Oliver is here to start a revolution. The impassioned chef, TV personality and best-selling author is determined to take on the high statistics of obesity, heart disease and diabetes in this country, where our nation's children are the first generation not expected to live as long as their parents. Oliver is inviting viewers to take a stand and change the way America eats, in our home kitchens, schools and workplaces, with the thought-provoking new series, "Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution," debuting FRIDAY, MARCH 26 (9:00-10:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network. The series is produced by Ryan Seacrest Productions and Fresh One Productions.

The Indigenous Crops of Malawi - A Look at Why Growing Indigenous Plants is Critical to a Sustainable Future

From World Watch Institute, Kristof Nordin makes a couple interesting points.

As Kristof Nordin explains in the video, Malawi has over six hundred indigenous plants that could provide food, clothing and fuel. Why do they need a non native crop requiring chemical fertilizers instead? There are many reasons I suppose, but it does bring up a point about how local crops or plants best serve the local area and the environment in general.

Unfortunately, the “fixation on just one crop,” says Kristof, means that traditional varieties of foods are going extinct—crops that are already adapted to drought and heat, traits that become especially important as agriculture copes with climate change.

New Year's Resolution - Renew Your Region's Culinary Traditions With Endangered Fruits and Vegetables

The holiday season is filled with all sorts of traditions. Many are family, a lot are social and or cultural, and there's one that thats seems universal, the New Year's Resolution. Once the clock strikes midnight, and the new year is born, it's a symbolic fresh start according to the calendar, and offers the opportunity to make some changes in your life. This year, why not consider renewing the culinary tradition of your region. Specifically in the USA, Slow Foods USA has a program called Renewing America's Food Traditions.