As Michael Pollan predicted, irradiated spinach is in vogue — at least with the FDA. Some of the fallout, below:

>> People aren’t too psyched ’bout nuked spinach, found out BlogHer’s Catherine Morgan in her roundup of women bloggers writing on the topic. The posts she links to outlines some of the main reasons many oppose irradiation and are opting for local, sustainable produce instead.

>> What people are psyched about: Slow Food Nation, a celebration of sustainable food and traditional cuisine happening over Labor Day weekend in San Francisco. The weekend features “local hikes, regional tours, lectures, workshops, films, music, cooking demonstrations and, of course, lots and lots of food” — and many of the events are already sold out!

>> Follow the Slow Food Nation goings-on at tonx, a blogger who happens to be a co-curator for the Coffee Pavilion at the event.

>> It’s hard out there for a slow food farmer, write Ariane Lotti and Stephanie Ogburn in Grist: “Although the local foods movement does seem to be thriving, I haven’t seen an equivalent jump in the percentage of small farmers being able to base their entire livelihood on their farming occupation.” Why not? The authors blame it on the demands of our current “dominant economic system.”

>> On the contrarian side, Stephen J. Dubner at Freakonomics outlines some reasons why hyper-locavorianism might be undesirable, both economically and environmentally. While the post raises some interesting points, I agree with the first commenter’s point: Few are advocating the extreme local-only position that’s attacked in this post. What many enviros and Slow Food people DO argue is that “you should try to consume more of what’s in season in your region and less of what had to be shipped long distances.”

>> Somewhere between Slow Food and irradiated spinach lies the many non-recyclable bags of “healthy” chips consumed by Grist’s Tom Philpott. Kettle Organic Chipotle Chili Barbecue chips won top honors.

>> Lastly — The latest idea for sustainable eating: Nixing cafeteria trays. Proponents of de-traying say the practice will save food and water while fighting obesity. (via grist)

Photo by Nickster 2000

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