Africa’s forgotten fruits hold great potential
February 3, 2008
Posted in Food
Africa’s “lost fruit crops”, such as baobab and maroela, are an untapped resource that could be used to combat malnutrition and boost environmental stability, says a new report from the US National Research Council.
The maroela tree, for example, is a “nutritional powerhouse” which produces fruits that are high in vitamin C and nuts high in protein and minerals. Oils extracted from the nuts are used in high-priced skin care products.
The fruit of the baobab contains a pulp that can be dried into a powder high in protein, vitamins and minerals, the report says. “The powder is stirred into warm water or milk to create a healthy drink, and also beaten and dried into thin pancakes.”
The report says that fruit production in Africa is dominated by species introduced from Asia and the Americas, such as bananas, pineapples, and papayas, but with scientific and institutional support, Africa’s native fruits could make a much greater contribution to nutrition and economic development.
Food for thought
June 25, 2007
Posted in Food
If you haven’t yet seen Peter Menzel’s extraordinary photographs from the book “Hungry Planet: What the World Eatsâ€, now’s your chance. Time magazine online has created a photogallery using 15 of his images. They’re fascinating shots of ordinary families from around the world – from California to China to Chad – surrounded by the food they eat in a week. The captions tell how much each family spends a week on food: from the refugees in Chad’s $1.63 to the German family of four’s $500. These pictures say more about what’s happening to people’s diets in the modern world than any number of words could. Briefly, it would appear that the more “westernised†the family, the harder it is to spot a fresh fruit or vegetable among their weekly shopping – and the more the packaging mounts up. To see the pics go to Time’s website.
“Hungry Planet: What the World Eats” by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio, Ten Speed Press, 2005.
Britons are developing a taste for organic foods
June 21, 2007
Posted in Food
British retail chain Asda, a unit of Wal-Mart, has tripled the number of organic lines it offers, from 325 to 1,000, in the past 18 month in response to a rising demand for organic foods in Britain, Reuters reports.
At the Reuters Consumer and Retail Summit held in London, Andrew Higginson, finance and strategy director for another British retailer, Tesco, said, “After years and years and years of just wanting to spend less on food to free up money for other things they [consumers] are actually reprioritising things and saying actually I want to buy better food.â€
The demand for organic food is outstripping the local supply in Britain and some retailers are having to import organic goods, the summit was told.
For the full Reuters story click here
Let them eat hake
June 11, 2007
Posted in Food
Sea Harvest frozen hake fillets have been certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) as a sustainable fish product. The company, which is based in Saldanha Bay on South Africa’s west coast, can now display the MSC’s blue eco-label on their products.
The MSC is an independent non-profit organisation founded in 1997 to find a solution to the problem of overfishing. It has developed an environmental standard for well-managed and sustainable fisheries. For a list of fisheries that are MSC certified go to the MSC’s website.
For more click here
Good food guide for fish lovers
June 11, 2007
Posted in Food
South African seafood lovers who want to be ecofriendly have never had it so easy. Thanks to the Southern African Sustainable Seafood Initiative (Sassi), information about the types of fish it’s fine to eat and the types that should avoided is just an SMS away, or rather a FishMS.
So, if you’re sitting in a restaurant and you want to make sure the linefish of the day isn’t a vulnerable species, simply text the name of the fish to the number 079-499-8795. You’ll be sent back a message telling you whether the fish’s status is green, orange or red as well as a few words about why.
Health: Pass the popcorn, it’s good for your heart
May 10, 2007
Posted in Food
Including whole grains in your diet – which very few people seem to do – can “significantly†reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to research conducted at a US medical school.
“Consuming an average of 2.5 servings of whole grains each day is associated with a 21% lower risk of cardiovascular disease compared to consuming only 0.2 servings,†according to Dr Philip Mellen, the lead author of the research, who was quoted in a press release.
Whole grains don’t appear to be a big part of your average American’s diet, though. “A nutrition survey conducted between 1999 and 2000 found that only 8% of US adults consumed three or more servings of whole grain per day and that 42% of adults ate no whole grains on a given day,†the press release said.
The findings are based on an analysis of seven studies, conducted between 1966 and April 2006, and involving more than 285,000 people.
What is a whole grain?
“A grain is ‘whole’ when the entire grain seed is retained: the bran, germ and the endosperm. The bran and germ components are rich in fibre, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and healthy fats. These are the parts removed in the refining process, leaving behind the energy-dense but nutrient-poor endosperm portion of the grain. Examples of whole grain foods include wild rice, popcorn, oatmeal, brown rice, barley, wheat berries and flours such as whole wheat,†according to the press release.
