Anne Quinn Corr is the author of Seasons of Central Pennsylvania: A Cookbook, and is one of the founders of the Slow Food Central Pennsylvania convivium in Centre County. She lives in State College, where she writes a food column for the Centre Daily Times and teaches in Penn State's Nutrition Department. She also runs a catering business.
The Local Action Network is an all-volunteer community group dedicated to fostering sustainability in the Central Susquehanna Valley through relocalization, or the reestablishment of local food networks, the strengthening of local economy, and the development of local energy production. Check out their website, www.LocalActionPA.org, for more information.
In the spirit of local, sustainable food, LAN is also partnering with the Northwest Earth Institute for a group discussion on food and sustainability. Please contact them if you're interested in being involved. From LAN's website:
This Earth Day Consider the “Menu for the Future”
Food is much in the news these days -- from questionable industrial farming practices, to tainted food recalls, to shortages caused by fuel input prices or competition with alternative biofuels for arable land. Given that we currently expend on average about 14 calories of energy to generate 1 calorie of edible food, it’s worth thinking about whether there might be a more reasonable way of doing things.
James Beard once said, “Food is our common ground, a universal experience.” For centuries food has been used to mark the change of the seasons, to bring together a family at the end of day and as an integral part of many celebrations. In recent years, food has grown to represent a multi-billion dollar global industry and a point of confusion for many struggling to understand the risks and benefits associated with choices such as organic vs. conventional, meat vs. vegetarian, or local vs. global. Food impacts our lives and environment in so many ways, on a multitude of levels. Yet few people take the time to weigh questions such as: “Where is my food coming from?” and “What are the implications of my food choices?”
In response to a growing need to consider the larger implications of our food choices and understand food’s relationship to sustainability, the Local Action Network (www.LocalActionPA.org) is proud to partner with the Northwest Earth Institute (www.nwei.org) in the launch of Menu for the Future, a six-session group study guide to be released in celebration of Earth Day, 2008. Menu for the Future offers people a unique opportunity to gather in small groups to examine the effects of modern industrial agriculture on both human and ecological health, explore emerging food system alternatives, and discuss how we as individuals can contribute to a more sustainable food supply.
