Obesogenic Environment

I ran across a new term today in the latest book I am reading by Darrin Nordahl (2009) entitled Public Produce which lays out the argument of how public lands may need to be used to grow food for communities if the agribusiness trends continue.  A term that appeared as the author was sharing data on how given the choice between spending $1 on a 400 calorie burger or a fresh peach those who live in impoverished areas will pick the burger to "get more for their food dollar" and that is indeed true when looking at the high obesity rates in the US.  Access to fast food over fresh food in far too many American cities has led the Center for Disease Control to label the American society as "obesogenic" which is a condition resulting from "environments that promote increased food intake, nonhealthful foods, and physical inactivity."  This claim is not so ridiculous when the data are presented as Nordahl is doing in his recently published book.

The question to all of us today is, "what are we going to do about it?"  Are we doing outreach in impoverished neighborhoods to show people how to eat better on tight budgets?  Are we active in our own classroom trying to motivate students to do their part and make a difference?  Or, is it business as usual as we condone the business practices of the fast food industry which may be profitable but at a cost to the American society, especially taxpayers who have to underwrite the ignorance of consumers and the greed of producers?  I know that I am doing my part by bringing disturbing trends to the awareness of my students.  I do not "warm up" to fast food merchants interested in hiring students.  I certainly do not support these businesses in my community.  The truth be told, if we do not stand up and do the right thing our industry will continue to pedal its crap to cash strapped ignorant consumers and instead promote local, healthy alternatives.

If wanted to read an article on obesogenics in the Public Health Nutrition Journal check out:
http://journals.cambridge.org/download.php?file=%2FPHN%2FPHN12_03%2FS1368980008002450a.pdf&code=e65b3c61318146d7e051a6bcc1b17fc3

Here is the intro to that paper which may inspire you to read further:

Understanding the determinants of diet and physical activity behaviour and how to measure them are necessary either in intervention studies or in policies aimed at the prevention of obesity. Environmental change is a prime driver of the obesity epidemic, a phenomenon termed the ‘obesogenic environment’(1,2). Worldwide we are experiencing a rise in food availability, food accessibility and sedentariness, which are all factors tightly coupled to overall economic growth and development.  More specifically, obesity has been causally linked to the high consumption of soft drinks(3), large portions of energy-dense fast foods(4), skipping breakfast, television viewing, low degree of physical activity and low intake of fruits and vegetables(5,6). These factors are behavioural and can be addressed through health education directed at individuals or groups. Unfortunately, such efforts have not shown much success(7,8)...

Marriott Plans Major Green Initiative

Marriott plans to add more than 450 green hotels during the next five years, a 1,000% expansion of the company's more efficient designs. Each green hotel saves the chain $100,000 in upfront costs, can be designed six months faster, and reduces water and energy consumption 25%. The company's first green hotel will open next summer in Pittsburgh.

According to Treehugger, It looks like Marriott's green hotel trial program has been a resounding success--so much so, that over the next five years, the company plans on expanding its green hotel initiative by 1,000 percent. A new green design will now be embraced on over 450 upcoming hotels--and the plan will save the company $100,000 dollars on each hotel, cut water and energy consumption by 25%, and shave 6 months off the required design time.

To read more visit:
www.treehugger.com/files/2009/11/marriott-expand-green-hotels-1000-percent.php

Mathmetical Themed Comics

This was on a listserv I am on from one of the participants, Ted Panitz, from Cape Cod Community College, today.

For a numbers of years I saved comic strips dealing with math and learning/teaching concepts, problems and conundrums. In particular I was impressed with how much comic strip writers understand about our math anxieties and how you can play with and manipulate math concepts. When I started i thought i would find a few but as you will see there are an incredible number of strips and they still keep coming.


I like to share these with my students to make a point about their attitudes or approaches to learning. I have put them on my web site at: http://tpanitz.jimdo.com/ted-s-clean-jokes-file/comics/

I flipped through some of them and they are pretty good and may assist you in your efforts to teach math to culinary arts and hospitality students.

Report on "Greening Retail"

There is a recent report on the green efforts of retailers such as Tesco, Wal-Mart, Woolworth and other global brands.  If doing research on green efforts in foodservice this research could be good as part of a literature review to establish benchmarks or best practice comparisons.  The report was produced by a sustainability expert Wendy Williams, and located on the blog for the National Retail Federation.  If you want a synopsis of the report based on an interview with Ms. Williams visit the blog:
http://blog.nrf.com/2009/11/04/sustainability-expert-wendy-evans-discusses-greening-retail/

To view a copy of the report visit:
http://www.greeningretail.ca/Research/1526-GreeningRetailSummary-Oct21_SM.pdf

Of course, the thing that bothers me the most is that unlike the retailers mentioned in the report, restaurants keep doing things like pumping packaging out the door that cannot be recycled or offer the customer an opportunity to purchase a reusable bag for their take out order.  Or, the bags are not offered for those who want to take home a doggie bag so that when the customer returns they can take their leftovers home in their own bag which cuts down a restaurant's costs on paper and plastics for those who cannot finish a meal that is three times the normal portion size.  Hell, I still get things to go in styrofoam containers!  But of course, these things do not come to mind in the foodservice industry especially when you have complete and utterly corrupt lobbyists like Rick Berman fighting to keep restaurants stuck in the past instead of running a modern day sustainable restaurant, let alone any, hospitality business.

Refreshing Indeed!

I am in the UK doing tourism research.  I always make it a habit of checking the local markets and the city market in Cardiff. It is refreshing to be in a culture that does not think beef and pork are only the tender and less tender muscle cuts.  A wander through the local market finds the beef monger displaying wares that include every single piece of an animal that can possibly be eaten like the brains, hearts, tongues, and more.  Seeing the whole pig in a display case from the tales to the head is also refreshing.

I have to ask those of us in culinary arts and hospitality education what we are doing to promote the muscle and offal of animals for public consumption, starting in the classroom and portrayed on the Food Network.  The complete and utter waste involved in growing and processing a living being and using a small percentage of the carcass is something we have to turn around.  We are a nation of immigrants who all used to eat every bit of an animal and now we eat so much less increasing the waste I just mentioned.

So please do your part to restore the virtues of home economics in our students and get them to cook and enjoy the whole animal.

By the way, I enjoyed my first taste of razor clams today.  What a treat and offered here in the fish market.