Love whorts

Lughnasa (31 July-1 August) is one of the more obscure traditional festivals in Ireland. It leaves very little trace on our collective unconscious, unlike Samhain and Imbolc, which continue to be celebrated as Hallowe'en and St. Brigid's Day respectively. Lughnasa is a more mysterious beast altogether.

The traditions surrounding the event are recounted in Máire MacNeill's seminal work The Festival of Lughnasa. Named after Lugh, a Celtic god of the Tuatha Dé Danann, it was the occasion for feasting, matchmaking and feats of strength and valour at the elaborate Óenach Tailtenn, the legendary games of Tailtiu.

Little remains today of the magnificent celebrations which once surrounded Lughnasa. The Sunday beforehand has long been known as 'Garland Sunday' or 'Reek Sunday'. Today, it is best known as the day when thousands of pilgrims climb Croagh Patrick in County Mayo. In the past, young people would climb hills and pick 'whorts' (whortleberries, also known as 'huckleberries' in the United States). This was a common name given to the wild blueberry or Vaccinium myrtillus, which was also called the bilberry or fraughan (fraochán). These would be baked into a pie or made into a garland as a gift from a girl to her admirer.

This year on Reek Sunday I went on a hike in the Dublin Mountains with the hope of finding these wild berries. As my trusty Collins Gem Food for Free guidebook, written by foraging legend Richard Mabey states: 'Widespread and locally abundant on heaths and moors... The shrub grows low, often largely concealed by dense heather', I feared that I might be on a fools errant. Nevertheless, as it was a beautiful, sunny day, I was looking forward to an enjoyable hike in the mountains in the fresh air.

I won't divulge the exact location of the hill, but it was a fairly energetic walk and it was only by chance that I found a cluster of whort bushes at the crest of the hill. Suffice to say that I was overjoyed. The first taste of the berry is something to remember; they are sweet and tangy like blackberries. To my taste, they are nicer than the cultivated variety.

I found this recipe for blueberry sponge cake, replacing the usual blueberries with my foraged wild whorts.

The cake turned out to be a delicious, perfect with vanilla ice-cream and shared amongst loved ones as a fine way to celebrate Reek Sunday. Happy Lughnasa!

 

Summer and the Elderflower

In Ireland, we are coming to the end of our elderflower season. For a few precious weeks in June and July, roadsides and hedgerows are alive with a profusion of white blossoms from the elderberry tree (Sambucus nigra).

We will have to wait a few more months before the harvest of juicy black berries are ready to be made into jams, jellies and syrups. In the meantime, the elderflower can be turned into a number of different and delicious recipes.

I had never picked elderflowers before. Like many people, I never saw their use as an ingredient. Though not as multipurpose as the berry, I found a number of recipes to experiment with. After harvesting a bumper crop from along the banks of the Royal Canal in Dublin, I decided to try my spin on some recipes I found online.

The first of these was Elderflower Pancakes. After washing the elderflower heads, I pulled the heads into small branches. I made an ordinary pancake batter; my favourite recipe is as follows:

100g white spelt flour
300g Avonmore Lactose-free milk
1 large organic free range egg
Add elderflower branches to taste

The taste is somewhat sharp and a little acrid, so I recommend serving with honey or syrup. I had mind with Crowe's Organic Bacon and fresh Irish strawberries.

Another handy use for elderflower is Elderflower Cordial:

15-20 elderflower heads
300g caster sugar
3-4 lemons 
600ml water

Wash elderflower heads and remove petals. Melt sugar in boiling water and add syrup to elderflower petals. Add lemon juice leave overnight to infuse and pour into sterilised bottles. Store in fridge for up to six weeks.

Elderflower cordial can be used to make delicious desserts such as elderflower and lemon sorbet. It can also be added to lemon juice, club soda and ice and garnished with mint for a refreshing summer drink.

Why saving seeds might save our food future

It seems fair to say that most of us don't give much of a thought to where our future food supply will come from. In the relative privilege of the Western world, we waste food in appalling amounts, secure in the knowledge that there will always be more. We have cut ourselves off from the sources of our food, selecting the choicest cuts of pre-cleaned, pre-packaged and pre-processed meat, grains and vegetables, not sparing a thought for the labour and resources involved in their production, or what happens to the stuff we don't use. We have been conditioned to expect a neverending supply of food, which has contributed to an unprecedented rise of obesity in Europe. On the other end of the scale is the widespread scourge of malnutrition, which is the largest single contributer to childhood mortality in the world.

We feel safe from such problems, and why wouldn't we? There's always a Tesco, or a Supervalu, or a Dunnes Stores open nearby when we need to nip out for a bottle of milk or a sliced pan. It seems impossible to imagine that issues like peak oil and global warming might impact our shores, but the warnings are dire. Climate change will undoubtedly alter the hydrologic cycle, which has the potential to irrevocably undermine food security.

Earlier this year, the EU implemented a new directive entitled 'On the production and making available on the market of plant reproductive material (plant reproductive material law)', which aims to limit the sale of unlicenced seeds. The consequences of this law are frightening. It threatens biodiversity and the large variety of vegetables and fruits that are available by decreasing the number of heritage seeds in circulation. Large seed producers will benefit over small co-operatives, farmers and gardeners, many of whom rely on sharing seeds which might fall outside the EU's strict definitions.

Due to lobbying by food campaigners, a last-minute loophole was placed into the directive:

Article 14(1) shall not apply to plant reproductive material where all of the following conditions are fulfilled:

(a) it is made available on the market in small quantities by persons other than professional operators, or by professional operators employing no more than ten persons and whose annual turnover or balance sheet total does not exceed EUR 2 million;

(b) it is labelled with the indication 'niche market material'. 

At first glance this looks like a success, but the since when did our collective seed heritage and future biodiversity become 'niche'? Surely, this is something that effects everyone.

Irish Seed Savers is a non-governmental organisation that was founded in 1991 in order to maintain a bank of traditional Irish seed varieties, many of which are not commercially available. Thanks to the insertion of the above mentioned codicle, this group would not seem to be threatened by the EU directive. However, this law is part of a larger pattern, one which threatens the campaign to preserve our seed heritage. Recently, Irish Seed Savers announced that cuts in necessary grants from the Department of Agriculture have endangered their ability to continue to function. This is a damning indictment of the Government's attitude towards our future food security.

It's time for us, growers and consumers alike, to understand the role we have to play. Reducing the obscene amount of food that we wast is one crucial step. Tesco has just pledged to amend their current wasteful policies which mean that 40% of the apples on display end up being thrown out,  and just under half of bakery items are discarded. We also have to change the way we look at food. Fruit and vegetables that aren't visually attractive never make it into the stores, often ending up being dumped or fed to animals. Public pressure on supermarkets to stop these wasteful practices is the only way to get them to budge.

We also have to realise that preserving seeds, whether from vegetables bought in the supermarket - tomatoes peppers, potato tubers, apples and so on - or from the plants that we grow, is an important step in guaranteeing our own food independence. Nothing less than our own survival is at stake.

Indigenous Irish bread

Bread is referred to as the 'staff of life' and so it is in Ireland, where bread has been an integral part of the national diet for millenia. In early Irish law, wheat meal was the most highly prized type of flour. Because Irish wheat was traditionally low in protein and gluten, yeast never played a role in traditional Irish bread-making. Irish bread seems to have been unleavened until relatively recently. In the 19th century, bicarbonate of soda first became available, creating the most quintessential Irish bread - soda bread.

Buttermilk left over from churning is an essential part of soda bread. The lactic acid contained within it reacts with the bicarbonate of soda to create carbon dioxide bubbles. Unlike yeast bread, this method does not require kneading. As well as the savoury loaf, sweetened fruit breads such as barmbrack can be made using raisins, sultanas and spices. Types of griddle cake known as soda farls are popular in Ulster, where bread dough is flattened into a circular shape before being cut into four pieces and fried on a dry pan.

Though soda bread is the most recognisable form of Irish bread, there are a number of yeast breads associated with Ireland. The changeover from soda to yeast can be credited to (or blamed on) the Irish Yeast Company, run out of an unassuming and rather tumbledown building in College Street in Dublin. It was started in 1890 and supplied many of the bakeries in Ireland with yeast for much of the 20th century. This period saw a transformation from soda baking to yeast, which was imported from England. During this time, a range of new bread recipes appeared which have become inextricably linked with Irish cuisine. Ireland has also been beset with an epidemic of caeliac disease, probably due to the modern addiction to high-protein, high-gluten white flour, imported from countries like Germany and Canada.
 
Batch bread - also known as turnover loaf - is characterised by is fluffy, chewy texture and hard baked brown crust. It gets its name from the tradition of baking it in batches, and the cutting the loaves up after baking. This resulted in the bread having a crunchy, crumbly crust on top, but not on the sides.

The turnover loaf is differentiated from batch bread by its boot-like shape and was particularly associated with Dublin. In Thomas Street there were bakeries which specialised in turnover loaves - a testment to its popularity with the Dublin clientele. Many Irish children remember eating it spread with butter and sprinkled with sugar as a particular treat.

Blaa is a white roll which is particularly associated with Waterford. It resembles a bap, except that it is square in shape and has a characteristic chewy consistency and crunchy exterior. They can be eaten plain with butter or with any kind of sandwich filling, or as a breakfast roll.

The Woodstock Café in Phibsborough occasionally serves a burger with a blaa as burger bun. While the origin of the blaa is disputed, it has become a staple Waterford export, and part of a growing appreciation for the indigenous bread of Ireland.

The search for the guilt-free sausage

Since the end of my decade-long flirtation with vegetarianism over a year ago, it seems fair to say that I've become something of a meat-freak. With the zeal of a true convert, I began to enjoy bacon and beef once more, secure in the knowledge that Irish meat was - on the whole - safer and less ethically shady than meat produced some other countries. (Let's skip over the whole horsemeat scandal for a second.) Abstaining from meat was a health choice, rather than a moral one, so my decision to backslide into carnivorism was due - among other reasons - to my interest in Ireland's indigenous food culture.

However, as someone concerned with what she eats, and anxious to promote a sustainable food economy, I can no longer deny that eating meat is a potentially unsafe practice. Let's not kid ourselves, if you're eating meat in this country, it's likely you've been eating animals fed on GM grain. According to GM-Free Ireland, Ireland is the EU's highest importer of genetically modified animal feed.

The stealthy creep of GM feed into our diets has been ongoing for years. A huge boon to the GM campaign in Ireland was the Irish Government's go-ahead to Teagasc's field trial of GM potatoes. This has been accompanied by the media's mindless parroting of biotech PR (complete with distasteful evocations of the Famine). Public ignorance and apathy concerning the issue has been encouraged by the deep pockets of biotechnology companies which has helped fund a ceaseless barrage of pro-GM propaganda in the media.   

What has been less widely talked about is the fact that something like 80% of the world's animal feed supply comes from genetically modified maize and soya. Due to EU legislation, it is not required to label products derived from GMO feedstuffs. Many supermarkets believe that complying with these regulations is sufficient to allay people's justifiable concerns about GM. In a recent correspondence with Superquinn's Customer Service Co-ordinator concerning their meat labelling policy, I received the following response:

'Superquinn operates a robust traceability system and has led the way in assuring our customers of the safety of our food products for many years. All of our meat is of Irish origin, operating to strict standards endorsed by the Bord Bia quality assurance scheme. All of our products are clearly labelled and we have a GM policy that all our supplier comply [sic] with. All of our products comply with EU GM labelling requirements.'

As a result, large sections of the public believe that the food they eat is GMO-free, whereas much of the time it is nothing of the sort. The claim by GMO supporters that animals fed on GM feed are safe for human consumption is in serious doubt. As the report 'GMO Myths and Truths' shows, not only is GM feed detectable in the animals that consume it, it has been shown to survive in the blood of pregnant women who consume it, as well as the blood supply to their foetuses.

How can we avoid consuming meat tainted by GM? Well, we can avoid eating meat altogether. Vegetarianism is still a safe option in Ireland, where GM crops are not currentlygrown (apart from Teagasc's ridiculous experiment). If you are unwilling to take that route, then contact your meat supplier, whether it is your local butcher, supermarket or farm. Demand clearer labelling so that you can choose whether or not you want to eat meat raised on GM feed. Contact the government and let them know that GM feed is not acceptable, that claims of traceability and transparency must include the feed that animals are reared on.

In the meantime, organic meat seems to be the safest option. The growth of organic meat over the last decade has meant that organic beef and chicken are growing more freely available. However, suppliers of non-GM pork in Ireland seem be rarer than hen's teeth. It helps to know your farmer, as they will be able to tell you where they source their feed. Unfortunately for those who live in Dublin, John Downey's Organic Butchers in Terenure no longer supply organic sausages. Luckily, Coolanowle Meat Suppliers in Carlow supply organic pork, lamb, beef and chicken. You can order online, or if you are slightly scared of their delivery charges, you can catch them on Sundays in Dún Laoghaire Food Market.

Their sausages can vary in taste quality. The first time I tried them, they were delicious, but the second time I was slightly disappointed. However, their bacon, white pudding and diced lamb are second to none.

If you think organic meat is too expensive in these times, well, I would suggest that good health and peace of mind are worth paying a little extra for.

In praise of Ardrahan

Ardrahan is a semi-soft, washed-rind cheese. It has been produced by the Burns family on their farm in Kanturk, Co. Cork since the 1980's. It has a mild, nutty flavour that favours those like myself, for whom soft cheeses can be a bit stinky and uninviting. Ardrahan is made from vegetarian rennet and contains only 25% fat, which lessens the guilt I feel when scoffing it.

I first fell in love with it last Christmas, when I tried them spread over Digestive biscuits. The sweetness of the biscuits and the slight saltiness of the cheese was just heaven. I have also discovered that it goes wonderfully in omelettes, such as this one that I discovered today:

• 5 free range eggs
• 2 medium eggs
• 2 medium potatoes
• handful of spinach
• splash of milk
• seasoning
• Ardrahan cheese to taste

Preheat oven to 200C. Mix eggs and milk and season. Fry the onions in a little olive oil until soft. Add potatoes and soften, followed by the spinach for a few seconds. Add the egg mixture and the cheese and place in the oven for 10 minutes.

The omelette is deliciously fluffy and creamy - the Ardrahan adding a nice savoury contrast to the eggs - and has become my all-time favourite omelette recipe.

The horsemeat scandal and the future of the meat industry

The horsemeat scandal rumbles on, with revelations that food producers Nestlé and Bird's Eye have joined Findus in recalling beef products found positive for containing horse meat. Despite these companies playing down the food safety implications of the issue, the controversy seems to widen every day, drawing in increasing numbers of food suppliers. This furore has raised alarming questions about the safety of meat products and the trustworthiness of major producers, in addition to animal welfare issues.

The scandal has swept across Europe, affecting countries like France, Italy and Germany. The latter country seems to view the issue less seriously than others; its Development Minister Dirk Niebel suggesting that the tainted meat be given to the poor. His comment that 'We can't just throw away good food' underlines a fundamental misunderstanding around this matter, that it is just a few regulatory authorities getting in a tizzy over mislabelling. The human health implications are disturbing. While there is nothing inherently unsafe about consuming horsemeat, the animals involved were not raised to be eaten. Horses are frequently dosed with the anti-inflammatory drug phenylbutazone, which has it has been known to cause aplastic anaemia in humans. 

What this controversy will mean for the meat industry in Europe is as yet unclear. What is clear is the urgent need for improved traceability at all stages of meat production and processing. French President Françoise Hollande has called for compulsory labelling and full traceability of meat used in processed food on a European level. The lacklustre response from the Irish Government and fact that several Irish producers have been implicated have led to calls for a sea change in the meat industry. However, it was the Food Safety of Ireland's tracing system that brought this matter to light to begin with, exposing some major flaws in meat safety and accountability criteria among European producers.

What we need is stricter adherence to the laws that already exist, and to me, the best way to achieve this is to process Irish meat in Irish factories for consumption at home and abroad. On average, Ireland exports 216,000 head of cattle per year, a practice which is not only cruel and stressful for the animals, but helps prevent a fully-fledged meat production industry from developing in Ireland.

Ireland has ancient associations with cattle and herding. It is internationally renowned for producing quality grass-fed beef, and this reputation may be materially damaged by this fiasco, which may not be a public health scare, but is certainly public relations disaster. An end to live exports would mean a massive boost to the economy in Ireland. Instead of sending our resources overseas, we should be adding value to them right here in Ireland. In doing so, we would create a food industry that would not only create jobs in farming, processing and packing, it would boost other service industries like delis, butchers, restaurants and local supermarkets, not to mention ancillary industries. Profit would remain in Ireland. Jobs would be created. Communities would thrive.

When animals are slaughtered and processed far from where they were reared, accountability and oversight is often absent. This is why scandals like this one happened, and may well happen again.

The Great Coddle Controversy

Anyone who has ever heard Dublin folk talking about coddle will know how divisive the topic can be. I have overheard people engaged in passionate debates about the best way to cook the famous dish.  To those who don't know, coddle is a recipe uniquely associated with inner city Dublin. It is a stew-like dish which consists of  basic vegetables like onions and potatoes in addition to the main ingredients, bacon and sausages. To many people, coddle is an evocative meal, one that conjures memories of childhood dinners. Others simply enjoy its indulgent quality. When done well, coddle can be a sophisticated dish, its flavoured developed through slow cooking. It was Jonathan Swift and Seán O'Casey favourite meal, according to report.

To working-class people in the past, Dublin coddle was a hearty, nourishing meal made up of leftover meat. Today, it is comfort food to many who grew up with the dish, and who still insist that only they know the proper way to prepare it. Some insist on white coddle, in which the ingredients are boiled together, while others prefer the dish to be flavoured with a stock cube or gravy browning. To the former group, this is tantamount to heresy. 'Real Dubliners don't eat brown coddle,' I heard one work colleague comment.

What is the difference? Well, the addition of stock gives the meal more of a stew-like flavour than coddle puritans are comfortable with. It turns out that fans are just as picky when it comes to the vegetables included in the recipe. I read furious online comments which read:  'Boo, no carrots! Sacrilege, Carrots in Irish Stew not coddle' and 'these people who are putting carrots in a coddle must be the same sorts who put beans in a full irish breakfast. Culchie infiltrators.' Tomatoes are another eccentric ingredient that some add to the pot. There seem to be no end of twists and variations on the classic recipe, each claiming to be their Granny's authentic Dublin coddle. Myself, I have no ethical problem with people adding tinned peas or cracking a dozen eggs over the top. Like language, food develops its own local dialects and variations over the years.

Many find the idea of throwing sausages and rashers into a pot and boiling them with onions and potatoes to be disgusting. This was my initial thought, but as a true student of food culture, I felt it my duty to try it out. My recipe was adapted from this, and I couldn't resist adding a drop of stout as suggested by the Wikipedia page:

* 250g unsmoked back bacon cut into lardons
* 250g sausages
* 3 medium onions
* 750g peeled potatoes
* 500ml water/stock
* chopped parsley
* drizzle of O'Hara's or other stout

In a heavy-bottomed pot, lay chopped onions on the bottom and layer the other ingredients. Season each layer with pepper. Add water/stock, Guinness and parsley. Cover tightly, bring to the boil and simmer very gently for 2-5 hours to allow flavour to develop.

Best served with soda bread or quickly boiled cabbage and a glass of the remaining stout.

It may not look like much, but it's surprisingly delicious. The flavour is helped by the generous addition of pepper, and the stout adds a nice undertone and helps cut through the salt. The sausages were not at all slimy as I had feared, but rather melted delightfully in the mouth. Highly recommended.

The Ignorance surrounding GM is not just on the part of its opponents, but also its advocates

I got into a lively debate with a chemistry graduate at a recent public talk given by a representative of Teagasc on 'Biodiversity Options' in Irish farming. Perhaps it was impolitic of me, but I couldn't resist asking the speaker on her views concerning Teagasc's aggressive pro-GM stance. She had no apparent views, but nonetheless a mini-debate was triggered, threatening to side-track a pretty anodyne discussion. Was it wrong of me to bring this up? I am yet to be convinced, given that this was talk on biodiversity where the term 'biodiversity' appeared to be viewed as a mere sales term.

In any case, this graduate was eager to educate me on the intricacies of genetic engineering – thinking me ignorant on the topic. I countered by suggesting that what biotech was trying to do was cheat natural selection. He responded by stating, and here I am paraphrasing, 'Given the choice between change happening in six generations and one, I will choose one'. But, I objected, we don't know the medium- to long-term effects of GM food on the human body or the environment. A woman, whom I took to be a classmate of his, dived in, ready to inform me all about GM. She had, after all, recently completed her thesis on the subject. So I challenged her to produce the raw data from human cellular and genetic testing which shows that GM food has no negative impact on health. She could not.

I wondered how someone could write an entire thesis on something without having the raw data concerning its health effects on hand. I wondered further, how someone could advocate something as being safe without having this data. How can you place your implicit trust in a group of corporations, based solely upon their word? Then I was reminded of a quote from Aaron Sorkin's paean to the folkloric notion of nobility and honesty in politics - The American President, when Michael Douglas's President Andy Shepherd finally lets loose on hawkish Republican Bob Rumson, played by Richard Dreyfuss:

I've been operating under the assumption that the reason Bob devotes so much time and energy to shouting at the rain was that he simply didn't get it. Well, I was wrong. Bob's problem isn't that he doesn't get it. Bob's problem is that he can't sell it!

True enough, scientists have grants to obtain and jobs to secure, and going against the apparently unimpeachable probity of biotech companies would appear to be career suicide. They see a problem: increasing famine and drought, climate change and population growth, not to mention a vocal section of society that seems happy to live with their heads in the sand regarding these matters. They see scientific progress as major instigator of the forward momentum of humankind. In a world with diminishing resources and finite space, why should science not be the answer to our collective prayers?

Unfortunately, since the industrial revolution, scientific inquiry and ethics have become increasingly estranged from each other. Science appears to be inextricably linked with the relentless growth of the corporation in modern times. Efficiency and the bottom line seem to be the guiding star of the scientific world. This is the only way I can explain the amorality surrounding the involvement of scientists in the ever-deadlier pursuit of war. The Nazis were not the only monsters in the mid-20th century, as the people of Japan, Vietnam, Cambodia and many other unfortunate battlefields can testify.

It may seem simplistic to state that science has replaced god in people’s lives, but there is an unavoidable truth in this. Since Darwin unlocked the genius of natural selection, scientists have seemed insatiable in their desire to go one better than nature, and in doing so have shown their fundamental scientific illiteracy. The pro-GM lobby likes to call opponents scientific luddites. However, in attempting to surpass the excruciatingly gradual and seemingly cruel nature of the evolutionary process, the biotech industry is itself guilty of this cardinal sin. It is not us who are ignorant of science. We want the evidence. All we want is to know if what you are eager to force down our throats is safe. Is that too much to ask?

In the light of the Environmental Protection Agency's green light to a trial of genetically modified potatoes in Ireland, we are seeing a chilling trend in recent times which has heralded a more aggressive campaign than ever to force GM onto our plates. A recent court ruling in France lifted a temporary ban on modified maize developed by Monsanto, stating: "no specific scientific evidence, in terms of risk to human and animal health or the environment". Since when do those proposing something no longer have to present evidence to support their contention? Why do those questioning it suddenly have to shoulder the responsibility of producing evidence? It's like a theist demanding that an atheist prove that God doesn't exist – a logical fallacy.

Indeed, it seems that governments are placing an unwarranted amount of faith in the statements of corporations. If GM food is safe, why does the biotech industry not produce this evidence, but rather make it nigh-on impossible to access it? What are they hiding and why? Could it be that the anecdotal evidence from farmers and campaigners around the world is true - that GM crops contaminate non-GM crops by cross-pollination, that the failure of GM crops to thrive in India has caused hundreds of farmers of commit suicide?

The EPA and the Irish Government are not interested in such evidence, however compelling. They are only concerned about quick fixes and the appearance of progress. The scientific research being done into polyculture and small holdings as a solution to the growing food crisis is of little matter to them. Like our friend Rob Rumson, their only concern is that they might have trouble selling it.

Ireland's wild palette

In a time when food security is becoming an increasingly fraught issue, when organic growers are being pushed further into the margins and the onslaught of genetically-modified foods is growing ever more vicious, increasing our individual and national self-sufficiency is vital. The intrinsic unsustainability of so-called conventional farming as well as constant instability in oil prices could soon herald crisis which threatens the ready availability of food in our shops and supermarkets. 

As more information has become available about the health dangers caused by artificial pesticides, insecticides and fertilizers, as well as the untold harm caused by GM foods in our diets, the popularity of the movements such as organic and grow-it-yourself has increased greatly in recent years. Allotments and community gardens have once again become staple sights in our urban landscape and new concepts such as guerrilla gardening have helped to brighten up sites left vacant after the collapse of the building industry.

In addition to such initiatives, many have returned to raiding nature’s larder as a means of broadening the variety of foods in their diets, as well as recapturing the simple pleasures of gleaning mushrooms, nuts, roots and wildflowers – long-forgotten past-times to many.

For thousands of years, Irish people have supplemented their diets by taking advantage of the many types of free food that nature provides. Necessity meant that many had to turn to foraging in order to combat the uncertainty of the Irish climate which meant that food could be scarce. Poverty and strife meant that people became increasingly dependent on what they could forage from the wild. 

In early times, seaweed was harvested both as a natural fertilizer and as a nutritious food. The spring tide closest to St. Brigid’s day was known as Rabharta na Féile Bríde, and was considered the most favourable tide of the year for collecting seaweed. Dilisc and Carraigín are two examples of Irish seaweeds which historically helped supplement the Irish diet as they are full of nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, iron, protein as well as vitamins A, C, D, E, K and B12. Today, they are exported around the world for use in food and cosmetics, as well as being an excellent natural fertiliser.

Long considered the bane of well-manicured lawns, the dandelion is a tenacious foe to many gardeners and often falls victim to chemical weed-killers. However, few are aware of what beneficial aid it can be to organic gardeners. The deep roots of the dandelion also taps nutrients sourced from deep within the soil and brings them up to the surface. Dandelion tea is a wonderful organic feed which can give plants like tomatoes an extra boost. The leaves of the dandelion can be boiled or simply eaten raw in a salad. They are a natural super-food, filled with essential vitamins and minerals such as beta-carotene, vitamins A and C, iron, calcium and protein, among others. As well as being decorative, the flowers can also be eaten raw or cooked.

In Ireland, many people overlook the painful stings which nettles cause because of their healthful properties. When young shoots are picked early in spring, they can be added to water and drunk as a soothing and relaxing tea which helps calm acid indigestion. They can also be boiled in a soup or blanched to remove the sting and used as an alternative to spinach or other cooked greens in many recipes. They are a delicious source of anti-oxidants, as well as vitamins A, C and E, calcium and iron. 

Also unjustly ignored as a food source due to their spiny and forbidding appearance is the humble thistle. Young shoots can be eaten in salads, and roots can be chopped and fried. Always wear gloves and take care when harvesting as they can give you a nasty sting.

 

It goes without saying that one should only forage for food on land which has not been chemically sprayed or is located too close to roads. Be sure that you source wild foods from areas away from toxic dumping or effluent pipes. In order to safely enjoy the healthful benefits of these foods, know what you are picking. Stay away from unfamiliar weeds or mushrooms, and by all means buy a reputable guide to plants and familiarise yourself with the ones that are safe to eat. 

I recommend the seminal ‘Food for Free’ by Richard Mabey as a starter primer. It was originally limited to English plants but the new edition features Irish plants as well. From time to time, the Organic Centre in Leitrim runs courses on ‘Foraging for wild herbs and plants’, taught by Joerg Mueller. Keep an eye on their website for this and other interesting courses.

Teagasc plans GM potato trial in Ireland

Teagasc - The Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority yesterday announced its intention to apply to the Environmental Protection Agency for a licence to test GM potatoes for their resistence to blight. This should come as no surprise to those who have been monitoring Teagasc's alarmingly pro-GM stance in recent years. They are responsible for the cunningly titled website http://www.gmoinfo.ie/ (thereby ensuring ease of access through search engines for anyone using the terms 'GMO in Ireland'). It claims to be a resource which aims to 'support your understanding of the issues associated with GM crop cultivation' but scratch the surface and it is an unapologetic propaganda site for genetically modified crops.

This appears to be the latest step in the Irish government's recent campaign to reverse the 2009 ban on the growth of GMO crops and the commitment of the previous Fianna Fáil/Green Party coalition to preserve Ireland's status as a 'GMO-free country'. Early in 2011, two weeks before leaving office, in a craven sleight of hand, Fianna Fáil Agriculture Minister Brendan Smith announced that Ireland would now support EU proposals to introduce GMO products into the foodchain.

In December 2011, Fine Gael Ministe for Agriculture Simon Coveney highlighted the fact that GMO products had been effectively sneaked into the Irish diet through animal feed for years, and emphasised the importance of a wider public understanding of the role which GMO food played in Irish agriculture. This may have been merely a prelude to this latest police action by Teagasc - an attempt to foster apathy and acceptance in the public.

This action by Teagasc is the boldest move yet by an Irish government body to foist this untested and potentially dangerous product of Frankenstein science onto an unwilling public. In their press release, they even cynically envoke the Irish Famine as a valid reason for embarking on the trial:

"After decimating the Irish potato crop in the 1840s and sparking the Great Famine, the organism (Phytophthora infestans) which causes late blight disease remains a very real threat to Irish potato growers. As new, more aggressive strains of the pathogen have arrived in Ireland over the last 4 years, farmers have had to adapt by increasing the amount of fungicides applied but this is not sustainable; especially in light of new EU laws designed to reduce the amount of chemicals that are applied on our crops."

This is an emotional ploy, similar to the unconscionable claim that GMO foods will feed the starving of the world. The Irish Famine was caused in part by an enforced monoculture and deliberate destruction of biodiversity and food culture. Wherever the disastrous experiment that is genetically modified food has been attempted, a similar destruction of biodiversity and enforced monism of agriculture has followed.

The horrors of GMO have been most clearly demonstrated in India, among which is the recent epidemic of suicides among farmers due to the devastation done to their lives and traditional farming methods by globalization and the imposition of GMO. The damage being done by genetic engineering in agriculture has been courageously brought to light by the pioneering work of campaigner Dr. Vandana Shiva.

 
With this attempt to introduce genetically modified potatoes to Ireland, it appears that Teagasc, hand in hand with the GM lobby is taking the most brazen and deliberate step to enslave our farmers to Monsanto and other giants of genetic engineering.

Food Sovereignty: what it means for Ireland

During Latin American Week in 2009, I attended “The bittersweet taste of globalised food” - a day of talks and workshops run by the Latin American Solidarity Centre. One of the speakers was the Mexican agrarian campaigner Alberta "Bety" Cariño Trujillo - a year before she was tragically assassinated by paramilitaries in Oaxaca, Mexico in April 2010. During a workshop we were asked to brainstorm ways in which food sovereignty could be applied to the Irish context. Through an interpreter, Bety suggested adopting the potato as a symbol in the same manner as maize has been used in Mexico. 

The potato is, of course, not indigenous to Ireland but originates closer to Bety's own homeland. However, it occurs to me that her suggestion was the seed from which this blog developed. Her dedication towards campaigning for agrarian movements and maintaining the integrity of indigenous food in the face of corporate dominance was an inspiration that drove me to think about the whole area of food culture. Bety believed wholeheartedly in food sovereignty - a topic which has received scant attention in public discourse. By its nature, it is a nebulous concept, defined thusly by the Declaration of Nyéléni:


"Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems."


It is the democratic essence of this concept that poses such a threat to corporate interests. It should be of no surprise that food campaigners, particularly in Latin America, live their lives under constant fear of violence. The global food industry is predicated on the notion that consumers must have as little control as possible over where their food is sourced. By distancing populations from food sources, the supermarket chains which now dominate the market demand dependence from their customers and in turn, from the producers who rely on them.


In Ireland, the topic of food sovereignty has barely been mentioned amongst the debates about Peak Oil and the mass return to the soil predicted in the wake of recession. Like concepts such as food culture and the Slow Food movement, it is a concept that few are familiar with. Perhaps this is due to a belief that such concerns are removed from the lives of ordinary people - a foodie fad that has little place in our current straitened times. However, as an island nation we are at the mercy of rising oil prices and other threats. Farming and rural life in general are now held in disdain by many - the vestige of a poverty-stricken past. The move away from agriculture has spelled disaster for many rural areas, but the increasing reliance upon supermarkets has also sounded the death knell for many artisanal and family-run businesses which formed the backbone of small communities.

The triumvirate of Tesco, Supervalu and Dunnes Stores dominate the Irish food market, which in itself demonstrates how divorced Irish people have become from the rural backbone of the food industry. Tesco alone rakes in a wider profit margin in Ireland than in any other country in the world, according to analysts. Oddly, Tesco - like its main rivals - does not disclose its profits in this country.

An example of how active and aware the people of Latin America have become concerning food issues is seen in the Peruvian government's recent ratification of a 10-year moratorium on the import of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs). On the other hand, the Irish government has shown itself to be characteristically meek in the face of big business. In 2009, the cultivation of GMOs was banned and a 'voluntary' label for non-GM food introduced. Despite this, GM products continue to be imported from countries such as Argentina, Brazil and the U.S   in the form of animal feed. We have Bertie Ahern to thank for engineering the pivotal vote which allowed Monsanto corn to be imported into Europe, after being aggressively lobbied by members of the U.S. congress during the 1998 St. Patrick's visit to Washington. I queried the Department of Agriculture about their advocacy of GM products and received this reply:

"The marketing of GM crops within the EU is strictly controlled by legislation which has been jointly adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers. Any company wishing to place on the market a food or animal feed containing a GM ingredient must go through a robust assessment and authorisation process involving the European Feed Safety Authority."


It's likely that most Irish consumers are unaware that the meat products they consume are fed on genetically modified feedstuffs. The Irish government has clearly decided that it will sneak these unwelcome products into people's diets my hook or by crook. Proponents for GM claim that it is a necessary measure for feeding the world's hungry. 'Suicide genes', inserted into crops to prevent them from reproducing (a twisted form of copyright protection) deny farmers the right to save seeds - a freedom they have enjoyed for centuries. Farmers who adapt to genetically modified crops are forced to buy GM seeds, fertilizers and pesticides in perpetuity. Author Raj Patel, author of 'Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System', argues that investing in rural workers is the key to ensuring self-sufficiency. Encouraging and fostering the independence and self-reliance of farmers and small holders everywhere is the only way to ensure that food remains an inalienable right enjoyed by all.     

In recent years, Irish organizations like Grow it Yourself have sprung up as a means of support and information for people eager to take control of their own food supply. However, what is missing at the heart of such movements is a philosophy based on an indigenous Irish food ethic. In Mexico, the Zapatista Agrarian Indigenous Movement is known by the acronym MAIZ. The driving force behind this grassroots campaign is maize and its importance to the diet and food culture of Mexico.


In Ireland, we cannot point to the potato as our indigenous food as Bety Cariño suggested. We can, however, rediscover a vast tradition of food history all but forgotten in our collective struggle for cultural amnesia. Centuries of deprivation, war and famine have stunted the development of a food culture, preventing its evolution to the same level of sophistication and artistry seen in other European countries. We have lost our love for simple fresh ingredients, preferring to look for convenience, or else to imitate the styles of other cultures. Luckily, Irish Seed Savers, a seed bank dedicated to conserving native Irish strains has managed to rescue many unique varieties which would otherwise have been lost. Their commitment to maintaining the integrity of Irish food species and continuing a food tradition which is centuries old runs contrary to the prevailing ideology which states that Irish people must look outward for validation in all matters, including food matters. Surely eating - the most fundamental of all human functions and a ritual which helps affirm social bonds like none other - is more vital than this? 
 

Raw milk: the latest battle line in the war on food

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland, self-described 'statutory, independent and science-based body, dedicated to protecting public health and consumer interests in the area of food safety and hygiene' has recently recommended that the government reinstate a ban on raw, unpasteurized milk, previously rescinded by the EU in 2007. Pasteurization is a process promoted by French chemist Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), involving heating milk and rapidly cooling it as a means of slowing microbial growth. It also extends the shelf-life of dairy products, but has been widely adopted due to claims of health benefits, including preventing diseases such as tuberculosis, brucellosis, diphtheria, scarlet fever and Q-fever. 

Though milk contains relatively few bacteria, it is susceptible to contamination from other sources. Anyone who has left a carton of milk open in the fridge overnight will know how readily it absorbs food flavours. In addition, cows can transmit a wide variety of diseases to humans through their milk. However, pasteurization has become a controversial subject, partially due to the fact that, as well as removing dangerous pathogens, it also destroys beneficial enzymes. Furthermore, many campaigners have asked why the public should not be allowed to choose between raw and pasteurized milk. Surely basic health and hygiene precautions would prevent many of the illnesses potentially linked to raw milk?

No, says Dr Wayne Anderson, the FSAI’s Director of Food Science and Standards, referring to studies conducted in Britain which show a decrease in diseases related to raw milk in Scotland following a similar ban there. However, a group including farmers, artisan cheesemakers, restauranteurs and others are campaigning against this proposed ban, claiming that: 

"everyone has a right to choose to drink one of Ireland’s premium products which has a rightfully esteemed place in our food heritage. Informed consumers should have the right to decide for themselves what they eat and drink".

The attack on raw milk has been a high-profile one of late. Rawesome Foods of Venice California, a co-operative movement which supplies raw milk to its dues-paying members, has been raided twice in one year. On August 11, armed federal agents stormed the building, arresting owner James Stewart and leaving humdreds of gallons of raw milk to spoil. Stewart and his colleagues were availing of a legal loophole, entering into a 'herdshare' agreement with farmers, whereby they were paid to feed and milk the co-op's goats. The private nature of the co-operative by-passed regulations prohibiting the sale of raw milk to the public.

Attacks against the freedom of consumers to choose what they buy are nothing new of course. There has been a chilling trend in recent times which suggests that a war is being waged by the food industry, bolstered by government muscle. What is at stake is most basic of human rights - the right to access nourishment, as established by Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states:

"Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food."

In recent years, there has been a concerted campaign to sneak GMO food onto our plates without our knowledge, and to limit the types of health supplements and herbal remedies which we are allowed to consume. Gingko Biloba and St. John's Wort are currently available in Ireland only on prescription, despite there being no evidence that they pose a serious threat to public health. It is a proven fact that prescription medicines are a far great danger to the population. In the U.S., the number of deaths caused by prescription medication dwarfs those that result from traffic accidents.

The mooted ban on raw milk in Ireland constitutes an attack on the fundamental rights of the Irish public to control what we consume.We have to ask, do we want authorities such as Food Safety Authority of Ireland to have autonomy over our health? Are we children who cannot be trusted to make sensible choices about our eating habits (when such choices are provided of course)? Or is this yet another front on which the war against food is being fought - a subtle yet sinister ploy to further minimize out options, reducing our ability to sustain ourselves in the face of increasing corporate control over food supplies?

Rapeseed: the key to reducing our dependence on foreign oil?

Like many people, I am addicted to olive oil. Cold pressed extra virgin olive oil to be exact - golden, limpid nectar of the gods that it is. In saying so, I freely admit that I have been affected by foodie propaganda. Despite all the health benefits attributed to olive all - high levels of monounsaturates, omega 3 and 6 etc. - I doubt that any of us can honestly say that we spend all that extra money on cooking oil for the good of our health. There is a certain kudos associated with its use; after all, a salad dressing made with Spry Crisp n' Dry doesn't quite have the same ring to it.

Its apparently miraculous benefits have meant that it has been part of Jewish, Muslim, Catholic and Orthodox Christian ceremonies for centuries. Olive oil seems to conjure up images of sunbaked groves, of old widows in black shawls on their way to Mass, of the aching blue of the Mediterranean. In the midst of a schizophrenic Irish summer, even an action as simple as drizzling the amber liquid over salmon steaks evokes a pungent fantasy about a lazier, sunnier life.

However, in our quest for sustainability, shouldn't we question the wisdom of using a product which originates over 1000 miles away - even one so multifunctional and beneficial as olive oil? In recent years, rapeseed oil has been touted as a sustainable, healthy alternative. Irish companies such as Donegal Rapeseed Oil Co., Drumeen Farm and Derrycamma Farm are now producing oil for the Irish market.

Rapeseed, or Brassica napus is cultivated for animal feed, biodiesel, in addition to its uses as oil for human consumption. In its natural form, rapeseed is unpalatable due to its high levels of glucosinolates, a natural chemical compound which contains nitrogen and sulfer. Blucosinolates are found in large quantities in other brassica plants such as brocolli, Brussels sprouts and cabbage and are characterised by a bitter taste, but are believed to be inhibitors of certain types of cancer. It has been claimed that rapeseed oil contains some of the highest levels of monounsaturates among oils currently on sale, and has low quantities of saturated fats.


Breeding techniques have reduced amounts of glucosinolates in rapeseed in order to render the taste more pleasant; however, this has the effect of decreasing its beneficial properties, in addition to those of Erucic acid, the omega-9 fatty acid contained within the plant. Since high doses of erucic acid can be toxic to humans, and has even been implicated in health scares, not least its alleged connection with autism, rapeseed oil was not consumed by humans until the 1970s.


This new strain of rapeseed oil was developed in Canada, where it is known as canola. However, the growth of canola has been mired in controversy, as much of Canada's canola has seen heavily contaminated by genetically modified crops. Drumeen Farm's Second Nature Oils pledge to produce rapeseed oil containing: 'no potentially hazardous chemicals, synthetic fertilisers or  use of genetically modified seeds'. The websites of Donegal Rapeseed Oil Co. and Derrycamma Farm contain no information about GM. The rather toothless nature of the Irish ban on genetically modified crops ('voluntary GM-free label'?) might render any GM-free promises meaningless.

Surely, the cultivation of rapeseed oil in Ireland must be a good thing. It provides a local, healthy alternative to olive oil, stimulates industry and goes some way towards encouraging sustainable product choices.

For more information on rapeseed oil in Ireland, see here.