[opinion from Asheville Citizen-Times]

Thousands of peer-reviewed climate scientists agree that global
warming is a very real threat to our existence, yet the concept is
still being challenged. Wealthy and powerful business interests have
put a stranglehold on meaningful federal legislation that would help
reverse the warming of our planet. In the last presidential election,
the environment was barely mentioned. Local governments have been
taking the lead, resulting in some progressive laws. Industry is
slowly responding to consumer demand by producing hybrid cars, energy
efficient appliances, wind and solar power systems, green building
products, etc. These advances are important, but still fall far short
of the changes needed to reverse the damage that has been done.
...
Actually, there is something everyone can do which doesn't take any
extra money or an act of Congress, and will significantly effect
climate change. What is ironic is that "environmentalists" steer clear
of the idea and rarely mention it, probably not wanting to make the
change themselves, or appearing too out of the mainstream. I read
about this important environmental action in a London newspaper; it
has been ignored in the United States, even though the research was
done here.

What is this human activity that is more important than driving an
eco-friendly car? It's what you put into your mouth. Jonathon Porritt
stated in an article in the Guardian on Jan. 4 that, "Researchers
Gidon Eshel and Pamela Martin at the University of Chicago have
calculated the relative carbon intensity of a standard vegan diet in
comparison to a U.S.-style carnivorous diet, all the way through from
production to processing to distribution to cooking and consumption.
An average burger man (that is, not the outsize variety) emits the
equivalent of 1.5 tonnes more CO2 every year than the standard vegan.
By comparison, were you to trade in your conventional gas-guzzler for
a state-of-the-art Prius hybrid, your CO2 savings would amount to
little more than one tonne per year."
(http://geosci.uchicago.edu/~gidon/ papers/nutri/nutri.html)
Eliminating animal products from your diet significantly helps the
planet, not to mention your health and the animals.
...
The science is clear. A vegan diet is more effective in reducing CO2
emissions than driving a hybrid car. A vegan diet can also eliminate a
major source of methane, which, according to EarthSave, is
"responsible for almost half of the global warming impacting the
planet today." It's time that environmental groups and the government,
at all levels, embrace what is a highly effective strategy for
reducing global warming, advocating a vegan diet.

Most environmental groups can barely spit out the words, "eat lower on
the food chain," but they would better serve the earth if they made
veganism the cornerstone of their global warming campaigns. They
should be shouting about it, but, instead, won't even have the
conversation.

Adopting a vegan diet is as easy as shopping in a different aisle at
the grocery store or ordering from a different section of the menu
(www.GoVeg.com).

Terri David is an 18-year vegan living in Asheville. She has a B.S. in
psychology from the University of Wisconsin and an MBA from
Northwestern University. She can be reached at
terri_david@....

--
full story:
http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060401/OPINION03/60330\
083/1123

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WASHINGTON--A scientific review in April's Nutrition Reviews shows
that a vegetarian diet is highly effective for weight loss. Vegetarian
populations tend to be slimmer than meat-eaters, and they experience
lower rates of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and other
life-threatening conditions linked to overweight and obesity. The new
review, compiling data from 87 previous studies, shows the weight-loss
effect does not depend on exercise or calorie-counting, and it occurs
at a rate of approximately 1 pound per week.

Rates of obesity in the general population are skyrocketing, while in
vegetarians, obesity prevalence ranges from 0 percent to 6 percent,
note study authors Susan E. Berkow, Ph.D., C.N.S., and Neal D.
Barnard, M.D., of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
(PCRM).

The authors found that the body weight of both male and female
vegetarians is, on average, 3 percent to 20 percent lower than that of
meat-eaters. Vegetarian and vegan diets have also been put to the test
in clinical studies, as the review notes. The best of these clinical
studies isolated the effects of diet by keeping exercise constant. The
researchers found that a low-fat vegan diet leads to weight loss of
about 1 pound per week, even without additional exercise or limits on
portion sizes, calories, or carbohydrates.

--
full story:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-04/pcfr-nsr033106.php

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[from Iowa City Press Citizen]

Alyson Powers had written occasional letters to the editor involving
issues she was passionate about, but this was a letter-writing
campaign of much larger proportions.

With hundreds of letters from people and groups at the University of
Iowa to school administrators, Powers helped the university switch
from buying battery cage eggs to cage-free ones.

For her work, Powers won the Humane Society of the United States'
Award on March 23 for Excel-lence in Animal Advocacy.
...
Powers said she saw the Humane Society working with egg suppliers,
universities, cooking schools and grocery stores to get them to change
to cage-free eggs and thought, "We need to bring that to the
University of Iowa."

"The University of Iowa could make a strong statement against farm
factory cruelty by supporting cage-free egg farmers," she said.

--
full story:
http://www.press-citizen.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060402/NEWS01/60402030\
6/1079

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PINSAC, France -- In the courtyard of her farm, Marie Annick Andral is
sorting dandelions. With spring just around the corner, she has
decided to eat dandelion salads for a few days to feel less tired.

Just minutes before, she was force-feeding the 200 ducks she is
raising on her farm to make "foie gras" -- liver pate -- as she does
twice a day, seven days a week. Around her, several hens are walking
on the grass. These are not for commercial use, though -- they are for
Mrs. Andral's family.
...
Geographically speaking, Pinsac is far from the county of Ain, where
the first bird carrying the H5N1 virus in France was discovered just
over five weeks ago. According to regulations adopted in mid-February,
however, every single farm bird in France must be kept indoors to
prevent the spread of bird flu.
...
Out of respect for the foie gras production methods of her parents,
from whom she and her husband took over the farm in 1973, Mrs. Andral
raises goslings and ducklings in a nearby field for about three months
before the monthlong force-feeding begins.

"If I cannot raise my ducks and geese outside, then my methods of
production will no longer exist," said Mrs. Andral. She still has
about two months before she has to worry about the bird-flu
restrictions. The year-end holidays, when she makes about 65 percent
of her annual sales, are over, and it's too early for the tourists to
arrive.

--
full story:
http://washingtontimes.com/world/20060401-094906-1696r.htm

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By Mike Lockey, London: Sikh schoolchildren in Britain have recently
been the victims of a food fiasco that involved halal meat, intended
for Muslims in the outer London borough of Redbridge, being given to
the Sikhs as well.
...
As Jagtar Singh said: "The problem is that there is still a lot of
confusion over the Sikh diet. Sikhs who are baptised are vegan, others
eat meat but, according to our code of conduct, halal meat is
completely out of the question".

"We are less proactive than the Muslims in explaining our religious
requirements. When we go out we tend to stick to vegetarian food
because it is easier. There needs to be legislation which identifies
Sikhs as a distinct ethnic group with specific needs," Singh added.
He, however, did not explain how such legislation would stop an
incident like the one in the Redbridge primary schools.

After all, as a spokesperson from Initial Catering Services pointed
out: "We provided halal mutton to certain schools because parents had
requested it. We also provided fish and vegetarian options for those
who didn't want to eat the halal meat, such as the Sikh children but
some of the Sikh children ate the meat unaware of its source".

--
full story:
http://www.newkerala.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=35590

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[opinion from Morning Sentinel]

My sister is a vegetarian. She is not totally strict about it but
generally avoids eating any meats. Many restaurants offer several
vegetarian entrees and clearly vegetarian is increasing as a diet
choice for many Americans.

Is it healthy to be a vegetarian? The short answer is yes. Here's what
the American Dietetic Association says about a vegetarian diet: "A
well planned vegetarian eating style can be helpful, nutritionally
sound and beneficial for the prevention of certain diseases."

That's a pretty strong endorsement but you have to note that the
emphasis is on a well-planned vegetarian diet. Vegetarian diets may
easily lack several key nutrients such as protein, iron, calcium and
certain vitamins and minerals. It is very important to provide for
those extra nutrients.
...
Recent studies suggest people who follow a vegetarian diet tend to
have less fat in their diet. Some studies have shown that people who
eat a meatless diet may live longer. Another study found a decrease in
the risk of death for vegetarians and a sixth study found no link at
all.

So what does this really mean? We know that increased fats and
cholesterol and some of the products found in meats are associated
with increased heart disease risk as well as possibly increased risk
of cancer. Therefore, it is likely that a truly meatless, healthy
vegetarian diet may increase lifespan.

If you're thinking of switching to a vegetarian diet, start with what
you already know. Make a list of the meals you prepare on a regular
basis. Some of these may already be meat free such as spaghetti or
vegetable stir fry. Next, pick out dishes that easily become meat free
with a couple of substitutions. For example, make vegetarian chili by
leaving out the ground beef and adding more black beans or soy.

Dr. Stephen Sears, MD, is an infectious disease specialist, Senior VP
of Medical Administration and Chief Medical Officer for MaineGeneral
Health.

--
full story:
http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/2584909.shtml

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[from Morning Sentinel]

You've heard the catch phrases such as mad cow disease, bird flu, or
E. coli. But how much do you really know about these health scares?
Here's the rundown on the most common "fad scares," with expert
opinions about real concerns versus hype.

Mad Cow Disease

What it is: Mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy
(BSE), is a progressive, degenerative, ultimately fatal disease
affecting the central nervous system of adult cattle. The exact cause
is unknown, but scientists generally believe it results from
infectious forms of a type of protein called prions, which are
normally found in animals.
...
Why it matters: The disease is scary mostly because it's always
lethal. However, experts agree the risk it poses to public health is
extremely low. According to Caroline Smith DeWaal of the Center for
Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) in Washington, "Mad cow disease
poses a minimal risk to U.S. consumers. Very few cattle have been
found to be infected. Even in Europe, where many cattle were infected
and entered the food supply, only 150 people contracted the human
form."

Risk level: Very low.

How to avoid it: Unfortunately, there is no way to cook or prepare
meat to eliminate the risk.
...
Bird Flu (from eating fowl)

What it is: Avian influenza, or "bird flu," is a contagious disease
caused by viruses that normally infect birds and, less commonly, pigs.
However, on rare occasions, avian flu has crossed the species barrier
to infect humans. According to Miller, this is particularly true of
the highly virulent H5N1 strain, which is spreading rapidly among fowl
and which, it is feared, could become a pandemic strain.

--
full story:
http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/2569269.shtml

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From:
http://www.israel21c.org/bin/en.jsp?enDispWho=Articles%5El1272&enPage=BlankPage&\
enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=object&enVersion=0&enZone=Health

FYI, Mark
Blogsite:  http://www.soulveggie.com

------
"Fresh lemon grass fields in Israel become mecca for cancer patients
By Allison Kaplan Sommer   April 02, 2006

A drink with as little as one gram of lemon grass contains enough
citral to prompt cancer cells to commit suicide in the test tube.

Israeli researchers find way to make cancer cells self-destruct

Ben Gurion University

At first, Benny Zabidov, an Israeli agriculturalist who grows
greenhouses full of lush spices on a pastoral farm in Kfar Yedidya in
the Sharon region, couldn't understand why so many cancer patients
from around the country were showing up on his doorstep asking for
fresh lemon grass.

It turned out that their doctors had sent them.

"They had been told to drink eight glasses of hot water with fresh
lemon grass steeped in it on the days that they went for their
radiation and chemotherapy treatments," Zabidov told ISRAEL21c. "And
this is the place you go to in Israel for fresh lemon grass."

It all began when researchers at Ben Gurion University of the Negev
discovered last year that the lemon aroma in herbs like lemon grass
kills cancer cells in vitro, while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

The research team was led by Dr. Rivka Ofir and Prof. Yakov Weinstein,
incumbent of the Albert Katz Chair in Cell-Differentiation and
Malignant Diseases, from the Department of Microbiology and Immunology
at BGU.

Citral is the key component that gives the lemony aroma and taste in
several herbal plants such as lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus),
melissa (Melissa officinalis) and verbena (Verbena officinalis.)

According to Ofir, the study found that citral causes cancer cells to
"commit suicide: using apoptosis, a mechanism called programmed cell
death." A drink with as little as one gram of lemon grass contains
enough citral to prompt the cancer cells to commit suicide in the test
tube.

The BGU investigators checked the influence of the citral on cancerous
cells by adding them to both cancerous cells and normal cells that
were grown in a petri dish. The quantity added in the concentrate was
equivalent to the amount contained in a cup of regular tea using one
gram of lemon herbs in hot water. While the citral killed the
cancerous cells, the normal cells remained unharmed.

The findings were published in the scientific journal Planta Medica,
which highlights research on alternative and herbal remedies. Shortly
afterwards, the discovery was featured in the popular Israeli press.

Why does it work? Nobody knows for certain, but the BGU scientists
have a theory.

"In each cell in our body, there is a genetic program which causes
programmed cell death. When something goes wrong, the cells divide
with no control and become cancer cells. In normal cells, when the
cell discovers that the control system is not operating correctly, for
example, when it recognizes that a cell contains faulty genetic
material following cell division, it triggers cell death," explains
Weinstein. "This research may explain the medical benefit of these herbs."

The success of their research led them to the conclusion that herbs
containing citral may be consumed as a preventative measure against
certain cancerous cells.

As they learned of the BGU findings in the press, many physicians in
Israel began to believe that while the research certainly needed to be
explored further, in the meantime it would be advisable for their
patients, who were looking for any possible tool to fight their
condition, to try to harness the cancer-destroying properties of citral.

That's why Zabidov's farm - the only major grower of fresh lemon grass
in Israel - has become a pilgrimage destination for these patients.
Luckily, they found themselves in sympathetic hands. Zabidov greets
visitors with a large kettle of aromatic lemon grass tea, a plate of
cookies, and a supportive attitude.

"My father died of cancer, and my wife's sister died young because of
cancer," said Zabidov. "So I understand what they are dealing with.
And I may not know anything about medicine, but I'm a good listener.
And so they tell me about their expensive painful treatments and what
they've been through. I would never tell them to stop being treated,
but it's great that they are exploring alternatives and drinking the
lemon grass tea as well."

Zabidov knew from a young age that agriculture was his calling. At age
14, he enrolled in the Kfar Hayarok Agricultural high school. After
his army service, he joined an idealistic group which headed south, in
the Arava desert region, to found a new moshav (agricultural
settlement) called Tsofar.

"We were very successful; we raised fruits and vegetables, and," he
notes with a smile, "We raised some very nice children."

On a trip to Europe in the mid-80s, he began to become interested in
herbs. Israel, at the time, was nothing like the trend-conscious
cuisine-oriented country it is today, and the only spices being grown
commercially were basics like parsley, dill, and coriander.

Wandering in the Paris market, looking at the variety of herbs and
spices, Zabidov realized that there was a great export potential in
this niche. He brought samples back home with him, "which was
technically illegal," he says with a guilty smile, to see how they
would grow in his desert greenhouses. Soon, he was growing basil,
oregano, tarragon, chives, sage, marjoram and melissa, and mint just
to name a few.

His business began to outgrow his desert facilities, and so he decided
to move north, settling in the moshav of Kfar Yedidya, an hour and a
half north of Tel Aviv. He is now selling "several hundred kilos" of
lemon grass per week, and has signed with a distributor to package and
put it in health food stores.

Zabidov has taken it upon himself to learn more about the properties
of citral, and help his customers learn more, and has invited medical
experts to his farm to give lectures about how the citral works and why.

He also felt a responsibility to know what to tell his customers about
its use. "When I realized what was happening, I picked up the phone
and called Dr. Weinstein at Ben-Gurion University, because these
people were asking me exactly the best way to consume the citral. He
said to put the loose grass in hot water, and drink about eight
glasses each day."

Zabidov is pleased by the findings, not simply because it means
business for his farm, but because it might influence his own health.

Even before the news of its benefits were demonstrated, he and his
family had been drinking lemon grass in hot water for years, "just
because it tastes good." "

Josh Hartnett has given up being a vegetarian so he can stick to a
tough training regime.

The actor is currently in Bulgaria preparing to play an ex-boxer in
new movie Black Dahlia. After embarking on a muscle-building regime,
his doctor said he would have to start eating meat.

--
full story:
http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/article/ds31181.html

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*United Poultry Concerns Will Hold Farmed Animal Advocacy Forum in
Columbus, Ohio*



Contact: Karen Davis of United Poultry Concerns, 757-678-7875 or Web:
http://www.upc-online.org <http://www.upc-online.org/>



COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 3 - On April 8-9, United Poultry Concerns (UPC)
will hold a forum at the University Plaza Hotel and Conference Center on
"Using the Media Effectively to Promote Farmed Animal and Vegetarian
Issues." The forum joins people who want to be better communicators for
farmed animals with prominent speakers from Ohio, British Columbia,
California, Virginia, and Washington, DC.



Speakers include Karen Davis, PhD, president of United Poultry Concerns,
Paul Shapiro, director of the Factory Farming Campaign of The Humane
Society of the United States, Bruce Friedrich, director of Farmed Animal
and Vegan Campaigns for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals,
Nathan Runkle, executive director of Columbus-based Mercy for Animals,
and Dr. Sherri J. Tenpenny, CEO of OsteoMed II, a clinic in Cleveland,
Ohio. Dr. Tenpenny will present startling revelations from her new book
/Fowl! Bird Flu: It's Not What You Think/.



Ohio was chosen for UPC's forum because agriculture is Ohio's biggest
industry and Ohio is a landmark for agribusiness-related problems around
the world, including the flow of viral and bacterial pathogens from
mega-dairy-and-egg farms into streams, rivers and lakes. Surveys in 2002
and 2004 showed that, in addition to environmental concerns, Ohioans
care how farmed animals are treated. Jeff Sharp, professor of Rural
Sociology at Ohio State University, will present data from the Ohio
Survey of Food, Agriculture and Environmental Issues describing Ohioans'
views about livestock production and aspects of animal welfare. In one
survey, 81 percent of Ohioans agreed "the well-being of farm animals is
just as important as the well-being of pets," Sharp's team reported.



"The purpose of the forum is to combine substantive information about
bird flu, farmed animal concerns and public attitudes with a 'how-to'
approach to improving activists' communication skills on behalf of
farmed animals and vegetarian alternatives to animal products," said UPC
president Karen Davis.



The Forum includes a showing of the film /The Emotional World of Farm
Animals/, which has been prominently aired on PBS Primetime over the
past year. The forum will be taped to provide opportunities for
publicity via public access television.



Contact Karen Davis, 757-678-7875, United Poultry Concerns, PO Box 150,
Machipongo, VA 23405. Karen@... <mailto:Karen@...>



United Poultry Concerns is a nonprofit organization that promotes the
compassionate and respectful treatment of domestic fowl.
http://www.upc-online.org <http://www.upc-online.org/>











[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[from Arizona Republic]

Plant-based foods are a rich sources of most minerals. But people who
eat only plant-based foods, excluding dairy and eggs, need to make
sure they get enough iron and zinc, dietitians say.

"If a vegetarian consumes a meal rich in vitamin C at the same time
they're eating plant sources of iron, that can double their absorption
of dietary iron," says Linda Vaughan, chairwoman of the nutrition
department at Arizona State University and a registered dietitian. "If
you're having a raisin muffin, you should also have strawberries or
orange juice or cantaloupe. If you're having vegetarian chili for
lunch, you should have tomatoes and green peppers, which are rich in
vitamin C."

It sounds complicated, but it doesn't have to be.

Lindsay Travnicek, 24, of Tempe, has been a vegan since she was 17,
meaning she eats no animal products. She just received a master's
degree in nutrition from Boston University, so she knows about the
ways that foods work together. But she says that getting a wide
variety of foods - especially unprocessed - is the key to good
nutrition rather than daily monitoring of which foods go with which.

--
full story:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/0404minerals0404\
veg.html

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Tired and run down? No appetite? Trouble walking? Depressed or
irritable? Do your hands or feet tingle?

Symptoms like these describe dozens of different disorders. Yet many
people are not tested for one possible cause: a deficiency of B-12, a
vitamin essential to health that is found in meat and dairy products.

Those vulnerable to potentially serious complications from B-12
deficiency are senior citizens, strict vegetarians or vegans,
bariatric and other stomach-surgery patients, and people who take
certain diabetes, heartburn and ulcer medicines.

Others particularly at risk are people who lack a protein that helps
absorb the vitamin. This occurs in those with some autoimmune
disorders and pernicious anemia, a blood disorder.

But there's controversy about the wisdom of routine testing because of
costs and concerns that doctors might find people with low levels of
the vitamin who don't warrant therapy.

Nine out of 10 people with low B-12 levels actually are healthy and
don't need intervention, says Dr. Ralph Carmel, a leading B-12 expert
who is widely published on the topic and who has treated thousands of
patients with the problem.
...
Among vegetarians or vegans, B-12 deficiency "is a viable concern,"
says Suzanne Havala Hobbs, a registered dietitian with the University
of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and a well-recognized writer on
vegetarian issues.

She and others say there's now good information about the deficiency.

--
full story:
http://www.timesleader.com/mld/timesleader/living/14257746.htm

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FYI, Mark

blogsite: http://www.soulveggie.com

-----

From:
http://www.fortwayne.com/mld/newssentinel/14259484.htm

Posted on Tue, Apr. 04, 2006

Driving vegetarian
BY KATHY VAN MULLEKOM
Daily Press (Newport News, Va.)

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - "Patrick Mulligan seldom eats fries but he's glad
they are popular with other people. That goes for tacos and tortillas,
too.

The more vegetable oil is made and used, the more fuel there is for
the car he drives daily.

"If I can find a tortilla manufacturer, I've found gold," he says,
laughing and patting the vegetable oil-powered car he's owned since
late last summer.

Mulligan, 26, loves to slide into his 2003 black Volkswagen Jetta and
start the diesel engine. Once it warms up, he flips a special switch
to let clean soy oil take over the engine's needs.

Sometimes, he pumps into the tank BD20, a biodiesel fuel made from 20
percent vegetable oil and 80 percent diesel. Biodiesel is sold at a
nearby station, he says. Diesel and biodiesel are interchangeable, he
says, sort of like regular and decaf coffee.

"My ultimate goal is to get school systems to run their buses on
biodiesel," he says. "They could make it from the vegetable oil
they're producing at lunchtime."

Sitting in his driveway in Virginia Beach, Va., the hatchback wagon
looks like any everyday car. There's a spare tire strapped to the
roof, four wheels touching pavement and front and back seats to
comfort tushes.

Only subtleties reveal what the car is all about.

When you open the hatch and check where the extra wheel is supposed to
stay, you see a circular, metal storage drum with a cap in the top.
That's where Mulligan stores soy oil. He also keeps a funnel and extra
oil in five-gallon plastic jugs in the cargo area.

"It gets 40 miles per gallon regardless of diesel or veggie," he says.
"And it grumbles like a diesel should."

When you pull up behind him at a stoplight and sniff the air, you
swear fresh fries are sizzling nearby.

"It smells like a deep fryer, it smells good."

When you see his license plate - "Grezer" - you suspect he's dedicated
to his cause.

"I love it when people stop me in the parking lot to ask about my car,
or honk at me with a `thumbs up' while cruising down the highway," he
says. "I hope they drive away and say `Hey, if that guy can do it ...'"

That's why he's a vegetable oil fanatic.

When Mulligan purchased the car for $16,500 on eBay, its owner in
Connecticut had already had Greasecar Vegetable Fuel Systems convert
it. A conversion costs about $800 installed, or $600 for the parts.

His goal is to make an environmental statement - not to save gobs of
money. He dislikes our country's dependency on foreign oil, so he
decided to pay $2.55 per gallon for new soy oil at Costco instead of
always pulling into a gas station.

His commitment to alternative fuels gained speed three years ago when
he took part in a Sustainable Solutions Caravan that wanted to promote
the use of vegetable oil fuels in poor communities throughout Latin
America. He was one of 20 ecological missionaries who drove two 1978
vegetable oil-converted school buses from San Francisco to Costa Rica.

"It was a life-changing experience allowing me to see that
possibilities are only limited by one's imagination and faith," he says.

Back home, he made good on that experience, finding the Jetta, which
is fairly straightforward to operate. Fuel lines from the vegetable
oil tank in the back run under the car to the front engine
compartment. There, the oil goes through an extra filter surrounded by
a heating coil before it's pumped into the main engine. He purchased
the car with 45,000 miles on it last August and has already put 15,000
miles on it without any problems - not even a filter change because he
uses clean oil.

Mulligan's long-term goal is to establish a backyard filtering system
where he can reuse jugs of cooking oil he collects from Pelon's Baja
Grill, a taco specialty shop at the Virginia Beach, Va., oceanfront.
That oil is dark in color and full of sediment that must go through a
fairly large filter before it's the quality fuel he wants. He could
use oil with considerable cooking sediment in it, but he would have to
change the engine's filter about every 100 miles, which is costly and
time-consuming.

"I think it's great he's doing this," says John Muscara, owner of
Pelon's. This time of year, Muscara goes through 50 gallons of canola
oil monthly, but that amount triples during summer. Around the same
time Patrick Mulligan came asking for used oil, two other guys made
similar requests, says the businessman, so he assumes the concept is
catching on. Pelon's and a next-door sushi bar fill two 55-gallon
barrels for a recycling company to pick up as needed.

"Those guys said the concept is working for them, so I think we'll
split the barrels with Patrick and them," says Muscara.

Mulligan's concern for Earth's natural resources goes back to his
environmental geography studies as James Madison University in
Harrisonburg, Va.,where he graduated in 2002. As the recently hired
manager of programs for the upcoming World of Wonders children's
garden at Norfolk Botanical Garden in Norfolk, Va., he hopes to share
that concern through environmental-type educational programs for young
people.

Earth is the only home we've got, and whether we like or realize it,
we're all in it together, he says.

"Alternative fuels are the future," he says. "Our society is extremely
short-sighted and will continue to squeeze that petroleum sponge to
fill our SUVs until there's absolutely none left, at which point we
will all look at each other and say, `Duh!'

"If the technology is here now, why should we wait to use it?"

---

ABOUT THE CAR

How many tanks does it take? The Greasecar system is two tanks one for
diesel (or biodiesel, which is also made from vegetable oil; gas
stations nationwide sell BD20 fuel, he says, which is 20 percent
biodiesel and 80 percent diesel). You also need a second tank for
vegetable oil.

What does it cost? About $800 for the vegetable-oil system installed,
$600 if you install it yourself.

What does oil cost? About $2.55 per gallon for unused soy oil.

What does it get you? About 40 miles per gallon and a better feeling
about less dependency on foreign oil and lowered greenhouse emissions.

Need to know more? Visit Greasecar Vegetable Fuel Systems at
www.greasecar.com. You can also learn more about alternative fuels
through Global Stewards at www.globalstewards.org and the Oliomobile
straight vegetable oil user's board at www.oliomobile.org/eng/index.htm.

Want to make your own fuel? First, read "From the Fryer to the Fuel
Tank: How to Make Cheap, Clean Fuel from Free Vegetable Oil" by Joshua
Tickell."

From:
http://www.peta.org/mc/NewsItem.asp?id=8116

Group Honors Progressive, Health-Conscious City for Great `Green' Eating

For Immediate Release:
April 3, 2006

Contact:
Reannon Peterson 757-622-7382

Salt Lake City — Este, Squirrel Brothers Ice Cream, Oasis Café, and
Evergreen House Café—these popular, vegetarian-friendly Salt Lake
City-area eateries have earned Salt Lake City third place in PETA's
ranking of the most vegetarian-friendly cities in the United States.
PETA's national survey of vegetarian-friendly cities took into account
the number of vegetarian restaurants, nonvegetarian restaurants with
vegetarian selections, top vegetarian and vegan product sales, and
extensive retail selections, and Salt Lake City got high scores in
each category.

From the delicious vegan cheese pizza at Este to the cold creaminess
of peanut butter-banana Tofutti soft serve at Squirrel Brothers Ice
Cream, Salt Lake City is a vegan paradise. For a break from the hustle
and bustle, chill out at the award-winning Oasis Café and feast on
Middle Eastern and American fare. If you're hungry for delicious mock
meat, you'll enjoy everything on the menu at Evergreen House Café, an
all-vegan Chinese restaurant. For delightful desserts, head on over to
Coffee Under the Bridge for vegan cheesecake, muffins, and cookies.
For an even bigger selection of sweet treats and vegan eats, visit one
of the three Wild Oats stores in town: Not only does this
natural-foods marketplace carry tons of vegan versions of ice cream,
chocolates, donuts, and cookies, but its vast variety of mock meats
and faux cheeses is sure to please.

Vegetarian food sales have doubled since 1998, hitting $1.6 billion in
2003, and the market is expected to grow another 61 percent by 2008.
Twenty-four percent of college students ask for vegan options in
school cafeterias, an indication that vegetarian diets are growing in
popularity among young people. The American Dietetic Association has
endorsed vegetarian diets, noting that vegetarians have lower rates of
heart attacks, diabetes, cancer, and obesity.

PETA took population into account and determined a per capita ratio of
vegetarian restaurants. Cities with vegetarian organizations and food
fairs received bonus points. Asheville, N.C., took first place, and
Eugene, Ore., was the first runner-up. Rounding out the top 10 were
Norfolk, Va.; Santa Monica and Santa Cruz, Calif.; Boulder, Colo.;
Madison, Wis.; Athens, Ga.; and Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Salt Lake City is a mecca for people seeking healthy and delicious
vegetarian food," says PETA Director of Vegan Campaigns Bruce
Friedrich. "More and more people are making the switch to a vegetarian
diet, and Salt Lake City restaurants and other businesses are
responding by offering more delicious vegetarian fare that appeals to
everyone."

For more detailed information about the survey, please visit GoVeg.com.

FYI, Mark  blogsite:  http://www.soulveggie.com

[from Korea Times]

SEOUL (Yonhap) ¤Ñ The United States has failed to provide the date of
birth of a cow linked to a third case of mad cow disease on its
shores, a matter that could jeopardize Seoul's resumption of American
beef imports, the government said Wednesday.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry said Washington forwarded
information on the cow Friday but gave no conclusive evidence to
indicate its age.

``The data contained expert testimonies by veterinarians, but we
cannot determine for certain if the cow was born before April 1998,''
said Park Hyun-chul, head of the ministry's livestock bureau.

The date is significant because if the animal was born after this
date, South Korea could halt all efforts to renew imports of American
beef. The date is when new measures to prevent mad cow disease went
into full effect in the United States.

In March, Washington confirmed the discovery of a third case of bovine
spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), better known as mad cow disease.
Seoul placed an import ban on American beef after the first BSE case
was discovered in 2003.

--
full story:
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/biz/200604/kt2006040519470011910.htm

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GRAND RAPIDS -- A dietary revolution took place at Grand Rapids
Community College's culinary school this week.

Kelp, white miso, raw cashews, agave syrup, sucanat, soba noodles,
gluten powder and chickpea flour fused into vegan cuisine was
everywhere as the first Vegetarian Awakening brought the country's
finest vegan chefs to Grand Rapids Community College for a two-day
conference.

Eric Tucker, the premiere vegan chef of San Francisco's Millennium
Restaurant, performed his magic in GRCC's kitchens, along with
actor-activist Woody Harrelson's personal chef, Chad Sarno. Ken
Bergeron, the first chef to win a Culinary Olympics gold medal in
vegetarian cuisine, and Howard Lyman, former Montana cattleman and
vegetarian activist who blew the lid off mad cow disease on the Oprah
Winfrey show, crafted concoctions that had participants licking their
fingers.

"Have you ever heard of the tipping point?" asked Lyman, president of
Voice for a Viable Future. "We're at the tipping point right now. We
want to encourage people to do more of what's right and less of what's
wrong. But the nicest thing is we have people here cooking with love.
That's the beautiful thing about it. You will never teach anybody
anything shouting at them. But what could you do better than to say,
'Come sit at my table and share my food?'"

Lyman, the keynote speaker, described his 1979 temporary paralysis
from a spinal cord tumor his doctor supposed came from the chemicals
he used on his fourth-generation Montana farm.
...
Linda Long, contributing food writer for VegNews and Vegetarian Times
magazines, has documented vegan cuisine's explosion in the industry
and on the street.

"People eat vegan every day," Manhattan's Long said. "They just
haven't labeled it vegan. If it grows up out of the ground, if it
grows on a tree, it's vegan."

"I was in Times Square, waiting for a light, and I overheard one
person say to the other 'What should we eat tonight? Italian, Mexican,
vegan, Chinese?' And I loved it. They considered vegan a cuisine, not
something weird but a great option."

--
full story:
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/features-1/1144248580325280.xm\
l&coll=6

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There is no need to get your hands dirty if you want to enjoy
fresh-from-the-garden vegetables this summer.

You can skip the seed catalogs, sore knees and watering woes that come
with gardening. Registration for Community Supported Agriculture
programs or farm subscriptions is open for the summer season.

The programs offer opportunities for consumers interested in investing
in a local crop of vegetables. Farmers tend to a crop of vegetables,
and members usually receive a batch of these each week, depending on
what is ready for picking.

From spinach leaves in the spring to kohlrabi later in the summer,
each week offers a different selection.
...
Watch for notices about Community Supported Agriculture programs at
your local health food store, co-op or farmers market.

Contact Liz Kohman at lkohman@...

--
full story:
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/ss/taste/8364

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From:
http://www.forbes.com/lifestyle/health/feeds/hscout/2006/04/05/hscout531951.html


Soy Shows Small Reduction in Breast Cancer Risk
04.05.06, 12:00 AM ET

WEDNESDAY, April 5 (HealthDay News) -- Consuming soy may be associated
with a small reduction in breast cancer risk, but the reduction is not
big enough or clear enough to suggest women should be taking soy
supplements.

"When you put it all together, we came up with evidence of a small
protective effect but a lot of reasons to be a little wary of how
accurate that effect may be," said study author Bruce Trock, an
associate professor of urology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

"The bottom line is we don't know if it's helping, hurting or doing
anything at all," added Dr. Jay Brooks, chairman of
hematology/oncology at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in Baton Rouge,
La. Brooks was not involved with the study, which appears in the April
5 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Asian women have lower breast cancer rates (39 per 100,000) than
Western women (133 per 100,000) and, when Asian women migrate to the
United States, their breast cancer rates tend to go up. This suggests
that an environmental factor, perhaps related to diet, is at play.

Attention has zeroed in on soy products (consumed more in Asia) as
they contain high quantities of isoflavones, molecules that affect
pathways that could change breast cancer risk. Indeed, more and more
women are taking high-dose soy or isoflavone supplements because of
their perceived benefits, which include lowering LDL ("bad") cholesterol.

Hard evidence on the subject has been lacking, however.

This paper was a meta-analysis of 18 epidemiologic studies looking at
soy exposure and breast cancer risk, which were published from 1978
through 2004.

When the data was pooled, researchers found a 14 percent relative
reduction in the risk of breast cancer among women who had a high soy
intake. The association was somewhat higher in premenopausal women.

But the studies included in the meta-analysis suffered from a number
of weaknesses, experts said.

For one thing, the studies got their estimates of intake from
questionnaires filled out by the women themselves. "These
questionnaires don't capture everything," Trock said. Soy is
particularly problematic because products differ so greatly and
because soy is also added to various other foods (such as instant
coffee and baked products). "Reported intake is not a good estimate of
real intake," Trock said.

Trock and his colleagues also did not see a dose response. "If
something in our diet is influencing our risk of cancer, there would
be a dose response, meaning more is better, at least up to a point,
and we didn't see that," he said. In fact, Western women seemed to
have at least as much protection as Asian women, despite lower levels
of intake.

It's also possible that soy eaten earlier in life may be most
important. The papers included in this meta-analysis only measured soy
intake later in life.

Studies which rely on more precise measures may help clarify the
picture, but they are expensive to do and take time, Trock said.

In the meantime, Trock said, "women probably should not be taking
these high-dose supplements." One study showed that giving more
refined soy to rats actually contributed to tumor growth.

On the other hand, many soy-based foods have known health benefits.
"If women would like to hedge on the side that it may be protective,
they should eat soy foods like soy milk, soy nuts and tofu," Trock said.

Overall, the findings are not much of a surprise. "Given the
complicated interplay of events and factors that go into developing
cancer, we shouldn't be surprised that one food doesn't give us a
clear signal," Trock said. "We shouldn't expect it to be so simple."

The study is just one of many coming out that are trying to clarify
the role of different supplements or vitamins in the genesis of
cancer. Another study in the same issue of the journal found that low
levels of vitamin D may be associated with an increased incidence of
cancer in general and mortality in men.

This contradicts previous studies which indicated that exposure to
sunlight and increased vitamin D intake might reduce the risk of
certain cancers."

FYI, Mark
Blogsite:  http://www.soulveggie.com

From:
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2006/04/03_organic.shtml

"New organic dining option a first for U.S. campuses

By Liese Greensfelder, Media Relations | 03 April 2006

BERKELEY – At 10:30 a.m. today (Monday, April 3), students at
University of California, Berkeley's Crossroads dining commons will
march into history when they load up their plates with lettuce,
tomatoes and vinaigrette dressing. The organic salads they sit down to
eat will be the first ever to be prepared in a certified organic
kitchen on an American college campus, according to the country's
leading organic certifying organization.

By spring 2007, all four of the dining halls managed by Cal Dining,
one of the campus food services, will offer certified organic salad bars.
Items on salad bar
Salad bar items include a rainbow of vegetables.

From now on, each of the stainless steel pans cradled in ice along
both arms of Crossroads' lazy-V salad bar will be laden with organic
goodies: fresh spinach, carrot and cucumber slices, pasta salads,
kidney and garbanzo beans, bacon bits (okay, they're actually soy),
sunflower seeds, an array of salad dressings, and all the other
fixings a great salad requires. Items that don't meet the organic
standards - breads, soups, olives - will be banished to the end of the
counter, beyond the banners heralding certification.

"This is huge, and it's certainly the mark of the beginning of a trend
in food service toward organic," said Jake Lewin, director of
marketing and international programs at CCOF, the Santa Cruz-based
organization that issued the landmark organic certification.

"While there are numerous colleges and other institutions that serve
some organic food, until now, none has made the leap to being
certified," he said. "What Cal Dining is doing points the way for
other colleges and institutions to go."

Shawn LaPean, director of Cal Dining, said that going organic was a
challenge.

"We wanted to incorporate organic products into our program because
it's the right thing to do for our community, and our customers were
asking for it," he said. "But the student dining committee wouldn't
support an action that might increase room-and-board fees." To hold
down the higher costs that many organic items command, Cal Dining
negotiated with its vendors and struck a deal with a local salad
dressing company owned by a UC Berkeley alumna.
plate of salad
A plateful of organic veggies and dressing

Chuck Davies, Cal Dining's assistant director and executive chef,
spearheaded the drive toward organic.

"At first we thought, 'Okay, we can buy some organic things,'" Davies
said. "But that just didn't feel like it had enough integrity. There
are standards that hold manufacturers and producers to a different
level. My feeling was that people who serve the products should be
held to standards as well."

Davies is referring to the standards set forth in the National Organic
Program, issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2002. Under
the program, any food labeled organic must meet strict requirements.
Regulations also apply to retail food establishments that serve
organic food.

Most of the federal regulations are designed to maintain "organic
integrity" of products from the time they arrive on the loading dock
to the moment they are offered for consumption. The rules are so
exacting that Davies quickly concluded that if Cal Dining was going to
offer a line of organic food, he'd need a separate kitchen.
Fortunately, a small stand-alone kitchen already existed in one corner
of Crossroad's food preparation area.

In September 2005, Davies hired Lorraine Aguilar, a senior in UC
Berkeley's Nutritional Science and Toxicology department, to help
complete CCOF's extensive application. The two created product flow
charts and an audit trail showing from start to finish how organic
products would be handled. They made maps of the kitchen and dining
areas, and outlined how staff would deal with dishwashing and pest
control using only approved products. They wrote a manual for staff
that includes instructions on how to clean equipment, food prep
stations and storage areas, and how to keep organic products away from
countertops, dishes, knives or utensils that have come into contact
with non-organic products. They devised color-coded labels to identify
organic cutting boards, and ordered round, green stickers printed with
the word "organic" to be slapped onto every box of organic goods that
arrives on the loading dock.

Davies submitted the application in December. After a review, an
inspection and requests for a few revisions, CCOF awarded the official
stamp of organic certification to the salad bar kitchen on March 21.
Throwing carrot peels into compost bin
In Crossroads' special organic kitchen, Cal Dining staffer Maria
Ventura pitches carrot peels into a bin destined for the compost pile
rather than the trash.

"Between the training and the paperwork, the fact of the matter is
that organic certification for a restaurant or food facility isn't
easy," Lewin says. "The bottom line is that Crossroads now has a
stringent system for ensuring that there is no commingling of organic
products with non-organic products. It's all about making sure the
end-product really is organic."

Organic certification is just one of Cal Dining's many green business
practices. Since it opened in January 2003, Crossroads has been a
showcase of green design and management. In 2004, it became the first
campus facility certified as a Bay Area Green business by Alameda
County officials. Natural lighting and energy-efficient fixtures cut
electricity consumption. Low-flow water faucets conserve water. Tables
are cleaned with cloth instead of paper. Excess food is donated to a
local homeless shelter, and food scraps are picked up by a local
company to be turned into garden compost.

CCOF, a nonprofit organization formed by a group of grassroots
activist farmers in 1973, is the oldest and largest organic certifier
in North America. It is one of 56 companies in the United States that
the U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated as accredited
certifying agents for organic products and services."

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/05/dining/05well.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

April 5, 2006
Eating Well
Chicken With Arsenic? Is That O.K.?

By MARIAN BURROS
ARSENIC may be called the king of poisons, but it is everywhere: in
the environment, in the water we drink and sometimes in the food we
eat.

The amount is not enough to kill anyone in one fell swoop, but
arsenic is a recognized cancer-causing agent and many experts say
that no level should be considered safe. Arsenic may also contribute
to other life-threatening illnesses, including heart disease and
diabetes, and to a decline in mental functioning.

Yet it is deliberately being added to chicken in this country, with
many scientists saying it is unnecessary. Until recently there was a
very high chance that if you ate chicken some arsenic would be
present because it has been a government-approved additive in poultry
feed for decades. It is used to kill parasites and to promote growth.

The chicken industry's largest trade group says that arsenic levels
in its birds are safe. "We are not aware of any study that shows
implications of any possibility of harm to human health as the result
of the use of these products at the levels directed," said Richard
Lobb, a spokesman for the National Chicken Council.

Chickens are not the only environmental source of arsenic. In
addition to drinking water, for which the Environmental Protection
Agency now sets a level of 10 parts per billion, other poultry, rice,
fish and a number of foods also contain the poison. Soils are
contaminated with arsenical pesticides from chicken manure; chicken
litter containing arsenic is fed to other animals; and until 2003,
arsenic was used in pressure-treated wood for decks and playground
equipment.

Human exposure to it has been compounded because the consumption of
chicken has exploded. In 1960, each American ate 28 pounds of chicken
a year. For 2005, the figure is estimated at about 87 pounds per
person. In spite of this threefold rise, the F.D.A. tolerance level
for arsenic in chicken of 500 parts per billion, set decades ago, has
not been revised.

A 2004 Department of Agriculture study on arsenic concluded that "the
higher than previously recognized concentrations of arsenic in
chicken combined with increasing levels of chicken consumption may
indicate a need to review assumptions regarding overall ingested
arsenic intake."

"When this source of arsenic is added to others, the exposure is
cumulative, and people could be in trouble," said Dr. Ted Schettler,
a physician and the science director at the Science & Environmental
Health Network, founded by a consortium of environmental groups.

Those at greatest risk from arsenic are small children and people who
consume chicken at a higher rate than what is considered average: two
ounces per day for a 154-pound person. The good news for consumers is
that arsenic-free chicken is more readily available than it has been
in the past, as more processors eliminate its use.

Tyson Foods, the nation's largest chicken producer, has stopped using
arsenic in its chicken feed. In addition, Bell & Evans and Eberly
chickens are arsenic-free. There is a growing market in organic
chicken and birds labeled "antibiotic-free": neither contains arsenic.

Dr. Paul Mushak, a toxicologist and arsenic expert, said that the
fact that Tyson stopped using arsenic in 2004 is encouraging. "What
that tells me as a toxicologist and health-risk assessor is that if a
vertically integrated company like Tyson can do that then presumably
anyone can get away from using arsenic."

But there are still plenty of chickens out there with arsenic.

A report by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, based in
Minnesota, examined the levels of arsenic in supermarket chicken and
chicken sold in fast-food outlets and found considerable variation.
None of the samples in the study, collected in December 2004 and
January 2005, exceeded the F.D.A. tolerance levels. (The report is at
iatp.org.)

Dr. David Wallinga, a physician who is the director of the food and
health program for the institute, a nonprofit advocacy group that
promotes sustainability and family farms, tested 155 samples of raw
chicken from 12 producers and 90 samples from 10 fast-food
restaurants. Chicken from five of the brands had either no detectable
levels of arsenic or levels so low they could be from environmental
contamination: Gerber's Poultry, Raised Right, Smart Chicken and
Rosie and Rocky Jr., both from Petaluma Poultry.

None of the fast-food chicken purchased was arsenic-free, but some
had extremely low levels. KFC thighs bought in Minnesota, where the
company's supplier does not use arsenic, had 2.2 parts per billion.
The company would not comment on its suppliers in other states.

The report offers many caveats to the findings, cautioning that the
results "are not definitive" because the sample size is small. The
method used, says the report, "gives a snapshot picture of the
arsenic found in those brands on that one day of testing."

Dr. Mushak described the Wallinga report as a pilot study. "It was
done during a limited time period, with limited geographical reach
and a limited number of sampling, but the information they came up
with is not that far afield from the other information that is out
there," he said, referring to the small amount of research that
preceded Dr. Wallinga's work, including the Department of Agriculture
study.

Dr. Tamar Lasky, an epidemiologist and the lead researcher on the
Agriculture study, commended Dr. Wallinga for taking the initiative.

"We are at the beginning stages of understanding an issue that we,
including scientists, knew very little about," she said.

In the Wallinga study, the chicken from Perdue, Foster Farms and
Gold'n Plump tested positive for arsenic and the companies
acknowledged that they sometimes use it. Trader Joe's samples also
tested positive for arsenic but the company said it would have no
comment.

McDonald's, the country's largest fast-food chain, said it does not
use chicken with arsenic but the test revealed the presence of more
than incidental amounts. Perhaps the chickens were purchased before
the company started demanding arsenic-free chickens a couple of years
ago.

Because there are still many more arsenic-fed than arsenic-free
chickens for sale, consumers can reduce their exposure by buying from
companies that have stopped using arsenic, or by choosing chickens
labeled organic or antibiotic-free. They can also remove the skin
from the chicken treated with arsenic, which reduces levels
significantly.

Copyright 2006 The New York Times Company

April 5, 2006 4:10 p.m. EST
Shaveta Bansal - All Headline News Contributor

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - A study presented at a meeting of the
American Association for Cancer Research linked eating charred meat
with a higher risk of prostate cancer.

A compound, called PhIP, is formed when meat is charred at high
temperatures, as is the case when cooking on a barbecue grill.
Researchers reported that PhIP has been found to encourage the growth
of prostate cancer in rats.

Dr. Angelo De Marzo at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore said,
"For humans, the biggest problem is that it's extremely difficult to
tell how much PhIP you've ingested, since different amounts are formed
depending on cooking conditions."

FULL STORY:
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7003063631

[from Louisville Courier-Journal]

My choice to become a vegetarian more than two decades ago mystified
my friends and colleagues.

They said you won't get enough nutrients to fuel your body,
particularly if you are an avid exerciser, as I was. You'll become
deficient in key vitamins and minerals, like vitamin B12. The first
time you smell a T-bone on the grill, you'll be back.

Or, my favorite -- real men don't eat plants.

I recall serving my sons vegetarian chili, in which the ground beef
was replaced with soy crumbles. They didn't know what they were
eating, but they sure enjoyed it, wolfing down three good-size bowls.

I waited until they had filled their bellies before breaking the news
that their chili contained soy, not beef.

Amazingly, they gave me the squinched-face look that only teenagers
can do and both said, "Yuk!" at the same time. Their innate bias
overrode what their taste buds had told them.

But I'm thankful I was able to hang on, because I can say with
conviction that I believe my becoming a vegetarian saved my life.
...
Over the years, many parents have told me about their children's
decision to switch to vegetarianism. In virtually every case, the
child was a female, usually a teenager.

Boys are not so inclined, of course, because the macho creed our
society imposes on young males and the need to fit in are far too
intimidating.

But things appear to be slanting toward greater acceptance of the
vegetarian way of life -- including younger children and boys.

Experts suggest that messages from movies such as "Finding Nemo" are
having an effect. You may recall the line from Nemo: "Fish are
friends, not food." Music popular among teens that conveys social
themes also may be exerting an effect.

Survey results suggest that in youths ranging from 6 to 17 years old,
about 2 percent are bona fide vegetarians, avoiding all red meat, fish
and poultry. This is admittedly a pretty low number and doesn't
suggest the beginnings of a groundswell of support for a plant-based
diet.

However, another finding is quite encouraging, and that is 20 percent
of teenagers report that vegetarianism is not only acceptable, it's
"in."

--
full story:
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060406/FEATURES03/60\
4060327

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Jonathan Safran Foer, author of the bestselling novel "Everything is
Illuminated," this week released a video in which he argues that the
slaughtering practices employed by modern factory farms are out of
step with the spirit of the kosher laws. The film ultimately calls
upon viewers to consider vegetarianism.

The video, which features interviews with noted rabbis David Wolpe and
Irving "Yitz" Greenberg, was written by Foer and produced under the
auspices of the animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment
of Animals, or Peta. Both a 25-minute version of the film and an
abbreviated version were posted Tuesday at the Peta-sponsored Web site
www.HumaneKosher.com.

The video, titled "If this is Kosher...," is likely to reignite the
debate begun at the end of 2004, when PETA released a stomach-turning
video clandestinely shot at AgriProcessors, the world's largest glatt
kosher slaughterhouse, in Postville, Iowa.
...
The film has two sets of goals: one narrow, one broad. It seeks on the
one hand to take to task those responsible for Postville's failings.
Here Foer singles out the family that owns the plant, the Rubashkins,
and the Orthodox Union, the country's leading certifier of kosher
products. But the film also offers a broader call to action, one
rooted in vegetarianism. In the film, Greenberg, Wolpe and Foer all
discuss their decision to become vegetarians.

"Like most people, I grew up thinking that meat eating was not only
normal but healthy," Foer says early in the film. "[But] as I was
exposed to information and arguments about animal suffering and human
responsibility, I became a vegetarian. It's been more than 15 years,
and I consider this dietary choice — which I make anew with each meal,
and often against my cravings — to be one of the cornerstones of my
ethical life."
...
Foer, for his part, sees grounds for optimism. "For some reason," he
says in an interview posted on the HumaneKosher Web site, "I hold in
the back of my mind that everybody I know is going to be a vegetarian
in 20 years. That's something I really believe."

--
full story:
http://www.forward.com/articles/7618

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CEDAR KNOLLS, N.J. -- When Eggland's Best Inc. launched low-fat,
low-cholesterol eggs in 1992, U.S. egg consumption was at its lowest
point in decades as people spurned cholesterol-rich foods.
...
Compared with regular eggs, Eggland's have 25 percent less saturated
fat, 15 percent less cholesterol and several times more vitamin E and
omega-3 essential fatty acids, which are believed to reduce risk of
heart disease and other disorders.
...
That's accomplished by feeding hens a carefully controlled vegetarian
diet, patented under the unwieldy title, "Egg Compatible With
Cholesterol Reducing Diet and Method of Producing the Same."

--
full story:
http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD%2FMGArticle%2FRTD_Ba\
sicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1137835179806&path=!business&s=1045855934855

SEE ALSO:  Eggman raid panned

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Are you vegetarian or vegan for the animals?
Come to the Veggie Pride!
Meeting in Paris, Saturday the 20th of May 2006 at 2 pm, in front of the
Beaubourg Centre (Centre G. Pompidou, Paris 4th city district; subway station
Rambuteau, Line 11).
Details on the course of this day are at the end of this message.
The Veggie Pride Manifesto
The Veggie Pride: festival of vegetarian and vegan pride
Our aims:
To declare our pride at refusing to have animals killed for our consumption
To refuse to rob sentient beings of their sole possessions, of their very flesh,
of their very lives; to refuse to take part in a concentration camp system which
turns their short lives into perpetual torment; to refuse to do all of this for
the mere pleasure of the palate, for the satisfaction of a habit, of a
tradition: To refuse to do such things should be just plain decency.
However, history does show how difficult it is, when barbarity is the social
norm, to simply say No.
We wish to declare our pride at saying No.
To denounce vegephobia
Instead, they want us to feel ashamed. Vegetarianism is concealed, ignored,
mocked, marginalized and even defamed.
Vegetarianism challenges the legitimacy of the confinement and slaughter of
billions of animals. Just by existing it breaks the law of silence. This is the
reason behind vegephobic mockery and hatred.
Of course vegetarianism is tolerated when it is the harmless sort that claims to
be no more than a private choice, a matter of distaste for meat or of concern
for personal health or the environment. But woe betides us if we openly
challenge the barbarous order!
At first we are laughed at. Caring about chickens and cows is supposed to be
ridiculous. Laughing at a disturbing idea is a way to get rid of it without
having to find logical arguments against it.
But if we do not give in, the laughter turns sour. At first they found us funny,
now they call us monsters. We are traitors to the human species since we would
limit its rights. We are unworthy parents for not teaching our children the joys
of dead flesh. If we care for animals we must be Nazi sympathizers since Hitler
too loved dogs. Our ideas are those of an intolerant cult since they are
different from what others believe.
We are called terrorists; accused of worshipping nature or of breaking its laws.
No argument is too farfetched when it comes to misrepresenting our ideas,
putting us to shame and symbolically rejecting us from society.
We refuse to apologize for our compassion. We are proud to declare that we are
vegetarians. We are no longer willing to feel shame for refusing to kill. We are
here; we are well alive and thinking and will speak out.
To proclaim our existence
All over the world we are millions of humans saying No to this carnage. Few
civilizations have actually taken for granted that eating animals is justified.
But when do you hear about those debates? Mentions of vegetarianism are
systematically missing in textbooks and biographies.
"The man who eats meat or the hunter who agrees with the cruelties of Nature,
upholds with every bite of meat or fish that might is right." - Isaac Bashevis
Singer, Nobel prize in Literature.
By stepping forth we also prove that it is possible to live without meat. We
live without eating cows or pigs, chicken or fish or prawns. And we are as alive
and healthy as anyone else, despite those media-promoted "specialists" whose
science consists of denying the facts. Neither vegetarianism nor Veganism (which
rejects all animal products, including milk and eggs) has any particular
negative effects on health - indeed; current studies tend to show the opposite!
There is no spell that says that to live one must kill. We are not obliged to do
so, neither individually nor collectively. Animal husbandry does not provide
food, since farm animals eat much more than their dead flesh can render. Despite
this, massive public funding supports animal farming and fishing.
To defend our rights
No rights are granted to the animals that are raised and killed for food; but we
who stand on their side do have rights, in principle. We are determined to
exercise our rights in full, because they are our rights, and because they are
theirs - the only rights that they may today, indirectly, enjoy.
We have the right to receive decent meals at school, at work and wherever meals
are served to groups of people. We have the right to raise our children without
forcing upon them the products of the slaughterhouse.
We are not willing to have our taxes used to support the raising and killing and
the fishing for the tastes of others.
We are no longer willing for our actions and our ideas to be systematically
silenced. We no longer accept that the only public voices should be those of the
corporations and intellectuals who defend the consumption of flesh.
We demand an open debate.
"We are the mirror of your guilty consciences
and this mirror will no longer hide"
Faced with images of heaps upon heaps of animals "destroyed" for BSE or
foot-and-mouth disease, we alone felt no shame. We were not shameful for
ourselves. But we felt shame for all others.
Above all, we were sad. However much we insist on asserting our pride in saying
No to barbarity, this brings us no satisfaction. The animals are slaughtered by
the billions. They are held to be dumb, their cries do not count. We shall speak
out for them until the massacre halts.
We are animals
and stand in solidarity with all animals!
Practical details and other information
The Veggie Pride is a demonstration open to all people who do not eat the
animals. Concerning this restriction, check out the Frequently Asked Questions
section on the website.
2.30pm: Start of the demonstration.
We ask for all slogans, signs and streamers to be exclusively centred on
vegetarianism or veganism for the animals. The Veggie Pride being a
demonstration of individuals expressing their pride to be vegetarians or vegans
for the animals, we ask that no initials or names of organizations be reproduced
on the streamers and signs.
4pm: Arrival at the "Fontaine des Innocents" (fountain of the innocent). End of
the procession and preparation of a "happening" symbolizing the ocean of
suffering and death imposed daily on the animals.
4.30 - 5pm: Happening. The demonstration and the happening will be declared in
prefecture in accordance with the law.
After 5.30pm: Various activities.
7.30pm: Start of the after-pride. A party will take place, further details will
be given subsequently on our website. Possibility of accommodation or housing
amongst inhabitants of Paris.
How to get to the Veggie Pride
The SNCF (the French Railway company) proposes worthwhile tariffs for the
tickets taken two months in advance.
To know if a grouped departure is planned from your area, you can contact our
regional delegates.
A small ads service is also at your disposal for your requests of car sharing,
accommodation, etc. Do not hesitate to use it.
Sign the Manifesto!
Even if you cannot come to the demonstration, we invite you to read the text of
the Manifesto (above) and, if you agree with it, to declare that by signing it.
You can sign it on the Web.
You will also be able to sign it during the demonstration.
You can make a donation to the Veggie Pride.
Any donation, even small, will be very welcome.
You can also subscribe to the circulation list by sending a blank email to
vp-fr-subscribe@... or on the list's website.
Help us make known the Veggie Pride by broadcasting this message to your
contacts!
Wishing to see many of you with us on May the 20th,
The organizers of the Veggie Pride

A federal judge has denied a cattlemen group's request for a hearing
on its lawsuit challenging Canadian cattle and beef imports over mad
cow disease concerns. U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull said his
"hands are tied" by an appeals court ruling.

Cebull's order, dated Wednesday, halts the challenge mounted early
last year by R-CALF United Stockgrowers of America to keep Canadian
cattle and beef out of this country. R-CALF claimed, among other
things, that resuming trade would pose a risk to U.S. consumers and
the cattle industry because of mad cow disease cases in Canada.

The United States banned the import of Canadian cattle and beef after
that country's first case of mad cow disease was reported in May 2003.
Since then, Canada and the United States have each reported three
cases of mad cow, which is formally known as bovine spongiform
encephalopathy, or BSE. The first U.S. case was in December 2003 and
involved a Canadian-born cow.

--
full story:
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2006/04/06/news/state/28-cattlemen-lawsu\
it.txt

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If people were to eat more vegetable proteins instead of animal
proteins, this would result in multiple – and much-needed – benefits.
Such a 'protein transition' will positively affect sustainable energy
production, sustainable water use, biodiversity, human health and
animal welfare.
...
Collective vegetarianism is not required, but good-tasting, high
quality meat substitutes ought to be used more often in place of meat.
This is the most important finding of a comprehensive study of more
sustainable protein production by nineteen economists, consumer
researchers, food technologists, sociologists, political scientists,
ecologists and chemists from three universities. The research findings
are published in the book Sustainable Protein Production and
Consumption: Pigs or Peas?

On Wednesday, April 12, the first copy of this book will be presented
to Minister Veerman of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature &
Food Quality. The target audience however is much wider, including all
'stakeholders in the food chain, from policy makers to consumers.'

--
full story:
http://www.physorg.com/news63547941.html

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Original with hyperlinks at:
http://supervegan.com/blog/entry.php?id=115


Veggie Pride, 2007, or bust
by Pamela Rice
April 6, 2006 2:14pm


"All over the world millions of people refuse to condone the killing
of animals for food. But when do you hear about it?"

And so opens the home page of Veggie Pride, the now-annual parade in Paris.

And more power to the Parisians, I say.

The question remains: Why haven't vegans and vegetarians in the rest
of the world jumped on this trend, that is by organizing parades in
our own cities?

People who know me know how I lament to the core how veganism in the
collective mind of the public is so invisible, so non-viable, and
generally so attacked. Other groups would have long established their
own anti-defamation league.

I mean, how could a vegetarian-maligner like Tony Bourdain have
become such a darling? Known for Kitchen Confidential (the book) and
now No Reservations (the Travel Channel), Bourdain fears no one when
he says, "Vegetarians are the enemy of everything good and decent in
the human spirit, an affront to all I stand for."

But his is only the most explicit of the anti-veg sentiment out
there. Much of it is much more subtle but no less destructive.

So, what to do? I say, start yelling!

Enter Veggie Pride-thank you, you uppity people from France. It's a
new idea that hopes to take vegans and vegetarians out of the little
ghetto into which we've been placed.

It's a chance for vegans and vegetarians to make some noise for once.
It's a chance for us to shout out to the world: Our diet is a lot
more than just another peculiar dietary lifestyle. There are profound
reasons why we eat the way we do, and they actually concern all of
us, vegan and meat eater alike.

Veggie Pride day is May 20th this year, in Paris. Next May, let's
have Veggie Pride in New York City.

Or bust. Or shall we continue to walk around with our tails between our legs?

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Anyone who has strolled down St. Marks recently can attest to the
obvious changes that have taken place in the neighborhood over the
past decade.
...
Now, Whole Earth Bakery & Kitchen--another neighborhood mainstay--may
soon shutter.

"The landlord has refused to renew my lease," said owner Peter
Silvestri. "Weve been here since 1991. The neighborhood has changed
significantly over time."
...
Now, according to Mr. Silvestri, the bakery is being forced to close
on May 31, as his ten-year lease expires. But the owner has not given
up yet.

"We have a petition that people are signing, he said. " We have close
to 1,000 names."

--
full story:
http://therealestate.observer.com/2006/04/vegan-bakery-faces-eviction.html

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Great Sage may not be exactly what Benjamin Franklin was looking for,
but he would have enjoyed its chutzpah. After all, the menu promises
not only health and well-being (if not exactly wealth) but wisdom. And
not a word about an early curfew!

Eating wisely inarguably has benefits, although sagacity -- punny or
not -- has yet to be demonstrated. Nevertheless, there are plenty of
good reasons to give an overindulged system a break with a meal at
Clarksville's popular vegetarian cafe, and the hot fudge lava cake is
only a minor one. The Indian vegetable cakes, on the other hand, are a
major plus.

Despite being hemmed into a shopping center shoebox, Great Sage is
quite attractive -- striking and restrained at the same time. The room
is L shaped, with a small bar and stools in the small arm near the
entrance and a long, straight room alongside the kitchen. The ceiling
and ducts are exposed warehouse-fashion; the walls are painted in
spice-market paprika, saffron, turmeric and lime (the restrooms are
spinach green); and the bold colors are ideal backgrounds to a series
of full-color photographs, blown up to poster size, of indigenous
tribes in India, China and Nepal.
...
The entire menu is organic, and nearly all of the dishes are vegan or
can be served in vegan fashion. Vegetarians (who consume dairy
products and eggs) can have dairy cheese or sour cream rather than soy
products, and so on. Several dishes are gluten free (optional), and
some are even soy free (also optional). Even the wines, beers and
drinks are organic, which is not nearly as restrictive or as mediocre
as skeptics might imagine: Lolonis Ladybug Red Old Vines is a favorite
from way back.

In fact, Great Sage is part of a family of succinctly named organic
businesses in the Clarksville Square Shopping Center, including a pet
store (Bark!), a health food store (Roots) and a clothing and home
accessories store (Nest), all of which except the cafe will soon be
replicated in Olney.
...
Salt is intentionally scant in this kitchen, which makes the diet more
accessible to restricted diets, and generally easy to adjust at the
table: The Thai vegetable saute, a generous portion and crisp-tender
and topped with crisped tofu triangles, was betrayed by a too-bland
coconut-peanut curry sauce, but the slightest sprinkle of salt
restored the balance. (A little more heat would have suited the name
better as well.) Likewise, carrot-ginger-almond bisque was a pinch
short, although a bit of citrus -- grated lemon peel, perhaps -- would
have cut the nut even more piquantly.
...
The staff is quite nice, procuring extra crostini with the spread
samplers and often playing Solomon to mixed-diet tables that can't
decide between, say, the hummus and goat cheese with the roasted
veggies, by bringing both. The only downside is that the combinations
can be a bit predictable for a fairly limited menu. If I could mix and
match dishes, I'd top those baked tofu triangles with the coconut
spinach. If Ben could see me now.

Great Sage 5809 Clarksville Square Dr., Clarksville 443-535-9400
Kitchen hours: Open Tuesday-Thursday 11:30-9; Friday and Saturday
11:30-9:30; Sunday 11-9 Prices: Appetizers $3.50-$7.99; entrees
$11.99-$16.99 Wheelchair access: Good

--
full story:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/06/AR2006040600527.\
html

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