Eating Locally and Organic

Every one reading my Twitter feed under @waylandcook is probably wondering why corn and taters are on the menu almost every night. And there had been a lot of pork over the last few month. That is what we raised this year. We have only 2 1/2 acers so out space is limited for livestock. We grow gardens every year. Some years certain things do good and others not so good. This year are potatoes did ok. The corn was ok too. The tomatoes are finally taking off.  The okra is slowly taking off. The beans did not do good at all but I am not the only one with problems with them. Some people I know have planted them 3 times to get them to take off due to the weather. I did not have any luck with the broccoli this year. It did what they called bolted. It went from a plant to blooming with out having much of a head on it to harvest. The cabbages did ok but I did not plant a whole lot of them.

The pork we grew in the barn lot before the flood took the fencing. We have not put the fencing back up due to budget issues and family health issues. It is on the list to do. We will raise our own pork again.

We have chickens. I have them for the eggs. I have tried to kill them and eat them but after the long process I just do not want to do it. I took the pork to the butcher so I was not there for any of it. Just picked it up in little wrapped packages. My turkeys and ducks are for eggs and pets more than any thing.

The Goat we just got is for milk. When I was offered the goat to pick up I did not know she was half milk goat nor did I know she had to be milked. I don't mind at all. We have gotten into a nice routine and I get some where near a quart a day. The kids drink it, we have made cheese from it, and given it to a neighbor to feed some kittens she had.

Sadly I can not call my garden Organic. I am bordered on two sides by a big industrial farmer that plants GMO crops. This year it is corn. It is a sad fact that our bees will not work there corn. They love working ours.

I think it is important to buy locally and to buy organic. I mean real organic. There is a fine line between certified organic and actual organic. Certified organic is kind of organic and kind of not organic. From the reading I have done and videos I have watched they are still allowed to spray their food with pesticides and such.

We are also not big into processed foods here. With Rebekka and my diabetes, my heart problems, my kidney damage and other issues I can not have alot of processed foods. I cook alot of foods I can not have and you will see me post about it. I normally stick to vegetables (not the starchy ones) and very little meat. Hubby is a die hard meat  and  bread eater. I have to fix these things and try to do so with as little processed parts as possible. I have gotten good at making bread. I have gotten even better at cooking meat. I have one of those copy cat cook books that I use when I need to make something like onion soup mix. It even has candy bars and fast food in it. That also helps with the budget. With gas as high as it is and the fact that I am 20 something miles away from a real grocery store. We have little convince stores and a mom and pop grocery store but they are not as good as the one 20 something miles away.

Hubby and I have been researching alot lately on processed foods. MSG, GMO, and all the other abbreviations and long names for stuff they put in our foods. We are even considering researching the Gerson Diet  It sounds like it works to cure alot of different aliments and with out alot of side effects. It is another one of those that the big pharmaceutical companies do not want people to know about. We have watched documentaries on alot of different treatments for disease that are covered up by our own government and big companies.  Between the big GMO companies and the Big Pharmaceutical companies they are trying to kill us Americans.

So when you get a choice go with local, organic, non processed and non GMO foods. I think your health will be better. we are on the long road to see if this works. I will keep you updated on what we are doing. I can not buy all organic where I live but I do when ever I get a chance. I buy from mom and pop farmers that set the little road side stands up. We even have the Amish but I do not know if they are organic or not. I have never asked.