Plenty Epicurean Pantry

Image courtesy NWEI (www.nwei.org)

Table Talk ✱ First Wednesday ✱ at Plenty epicurean pantry ✱ 7 - 9 pm ✱ $24

On March 3rd Terralicious and Plenty will be co-hosting Table Talk. These lively sessions take place in the store on the first Wednesday of each month, from 7 - 9 pm,  and are an opportunity to sample wonderful food, share preparation and growing tips, and engage in great discussions about food and sustainability. Please e-mail trevor@epicureanpantry.ca to receive updates as plans develop or sign up for the first six sessions of Table Talk at the store.

Linda Jane recently shared this definition with me:  deipnosophist - person skilled in dining and table-talk.  It was used in plural as the title of a work by Athenaeus (3rd Century) describing long discussions at a banquet.

We will be starting the Table Talk series with a discussion course from the Canadian Earth Institute (an affiliate of the Northwest Earth Institute in Portland).  Please join us as we discuss food and sustainability over six sessions of Menu for the Future.

Join us to:

• Explore food systems and their impacts on culture, society and ecological systems
• Gain insight into agricultural and individual practices that promote personal and ecological well-being
• Consider ways to create and support sustainable food systems

Menu For the Future

Participants will each receive a course book ($24 cost) containing a diverse collection of short essays, articles, and book excerpts organized around themes to create lively discussion. Discussion questions and a suggested meeting format are included as well.

What’s Eating America

Given the array of food choices and advice, eating in modern industrial society can be wrought with confusion, contradictions and anxiety. Session one considers the effects of modern industrial eating habits on culture, society and the earth.

Readings:

• Organic, Local, and Everything Else by Zoe Bradbury
• Navigating the Catch of the Day by Daniel Duane
• The Anxiety of Eating by Michael Pollan
• Sunday Dinner by R.W. Apple, Jr.
• Inheritance by Sue Browning
• the Pleasures of Eating by Wendell Berry

Anonymous Food

Session two traces the historical shift from family farms to industrial agriculture to present day questions surrounding genetically modified organisms (gmos) and industrial organics. The session examines the ecological and economic impacts that have accompanied the changes in how we grow and prepare food.

Readings:

• On Trial: Industrial Agriculture by James E. Horne and Maura McDermott
• Your Food doesn’t come From the Store by Tom Philpott
• The SUV in the Pantry by Thomas Starrs
• Rethinking the Meat Guzzler by Mark Bittman
• Mean or Green? by Liza Featherstone
• The Potato by Michael Pollan

Farming for the Future

Session three explores emerging food system alternatives, highlighting sustainable growing practices and the benefits of small farms and urban food production. The session considers how individuals can make choices that lead to a more sustainable food supply.

• Can Organics Save the Family Farm? by Eliot Coleman
• Excerpt from Deep Economy by Bill McKibben
• Lawn to Farm: Suburbia’s Silver Lining by Wylie Harris
• Making Food Deserts Bloom by Brian Halweil
• Why Don’t We Have Gardens Like This? by Jennifer Cockrall-King

You Are What You Eat

Session four explores food systems from a human health perspective. The session considers the influences that shape our choices and food policies from the fields to capitol hill, and the implications for our health and well-being.

• Unhappy Meals by Marco Visscher Terry
• Five Easy Ways to Go Organic by Tara Parker Pope
• Food Without Thought by Heather Schoonover and Mark Muller
• Making Informed Food Choices by Marion Nestle

Towards a Just Food System

The readings in session five examine issues of hunger, equity, and Fair Trade. The session considers the role that governments, communities and individuals can play in addressing these issues to create a more just food system.

• Growing Resistance by Alison Hope Alkon
• Bananas by Ed hamer
• Breadbasket of Democracy by Ted Nace

Choices for Change

Individuals and communities are discovering the benefits of choosing local, seasonal, and sustainably grown and produced foods. Session six offers inspiration and practical advice in taking steps to create more sustainable food systems.

• When Eating Local Gets Personal by Brian Halweil
• Local or Organic? A False Choice by Samuel Fromartz
• Tangerine Meditation by Thich Nhat Hahn
• A Grand Experiment by Bill McKibben
• Returning Stories to the Modern Kitchen by Ann Vileisis
• Excerpt from Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver

(In the lists above I unintentionally broke with convention and italicized all the titles but rest assured that they are short articles or excerpts from books - you won’t be asked to read six books for each session.)

Also, U-Vic has some wonderful food and sustainability courses happening:

• Pick and Choose: Navigating Your Way to the Greenest Food Choices – Wednesdays Jan 13 to Feb 10, 7-9pm ($85+GST) Course Code: ASSF017
• Food and the Sacred – Thursdays Jan 14 to Feb 18, 7-9pm ($100+GST)
Course Code: ASSF007
• Tapping the Potential of Bigleaf Maple – Saturday Jan 23, 10am-3pm ($65+GST)
Course Code: ASSF016
• Introduction to Sustainable Gastronomy – Tuesdays Mar 2 to Apr 6, 7-9pm ($125+GST)
Course Code: ASSF001
• Ethnic Cuisines: How World Cuisines Survive and Thrive in Canada – Wednesdays Mar 3 to Mar 31, 7-9pm ($150+GST)
Course Code: ASSF018
• Food from the Hood: The Role of Urban Agriculture in the Relocalization of Our Food System – Tuesdays Apr 20 to Apr 27, 7-9pm. Field trip Saturday Apr 24, 9am-12pm ($45+GST) Course Code: ASSF019
• Exploring Local Foods – Wednesdays Apr 7 to May 5, 7-9pm ($160+GST) Course Code: ASSF008