Davenport Garden Center owner Dennis Valente drizzled maple syrup over sweet potatoes in the cafeteria kitchen while a group of sixth-graders topped pizza crusts with pesto they'd made using basil from their school garden.
Kids and their parents loaded up compostable plates and cups with samples of Otsego County apples, Delaware County cheese, butternut squash lasagna and chicken quesadillas, while local children's musician Skip West strummed his guitar.
The Greater Plains FROG (Friends of Regional Organic Gardening) Food Festival at my daughter's elementary school last weekend was a celebration of food the way food should be: nurtured with care in gardens and on small farms, free of unnecessary drugs and chemicals, using sustainable practices and techniques.
It was about as far as you could get from the genetically engineered salmon debated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration earlier in the week.
Developed by Massachusetts-based AquaBounty Technologies Inc., the salmon would be produced by transplanting part of a gene from an eel-like fish called an ocean pout into the growth gene of a Chinook salmon, and then transferring this genetic material into the fertilized eggs of a North Atlantic salmon.
The resulting salmon, famously dubbed "Frankenfish" by Alaska Sen. Mark Begich, grows during the summer and winter (unlike ordinary salmon), reaching full size in half the time it takes for natural salmon and consuming less food in the process.
Though preliminary FDA findings deemed the genetically modified salmon safe to eat, environmental and consumer advocates have urged the FDA to proceed with caution. Environmentalists fear the impact on ocean ecosystems if some of the genetically modified salmon escape their inland tanks. Consumer advocates are concerned about the possible health implications — including allergies and increased cancer risk — of consuming largely untested genetically modified animal products.
Of course, genetically engineered food is not new. For years, Americans have been eating more foods than we may realize made from sugar beets, corn, soybeans and other crops genetically fortified to resist pests, disease and weed killers — not to mention dairy products from cows given bovine growth hormone. However, FDA approval of AquaAdvantage salmon would mark the first time genetically modified animals would be legal to sell for human consumption, and this could pave the way for more corporate science experiments.
If the FDA does approve the fish, it should require labels indicating that the salmon is genetically engineered. Consumers have a right to know where the food they are putting into their shopping carts came from and how it was produced.
Proponents of the genetically engineered salmon say fisheries are becoming depleted, and new farming methods are needed to keep up with global demand.
I can certainly see the benefits of science and technology when it comes to finding new and better ways to feed the world. Genetically engineered seeds and crops may be crucial in the future, as the world's population grows and our natural resources dwindle. However, messing with the ecosystem seems counterproductive. And somehow, I don't imagine the folks at AquaBounty Inc. angling to market their fish to homeless shelters and undeveloped countries. More than likely, they are simply looking to capitalize on growing demand at the supermarket (how many times have you heard about the health benefits of the Omega-3 fatty acids found in salmon?) by engineering a larger supply that's cheaper to produce.
I'm a fan of salmon, but I'd rather limit my consumption than take a chance on a product that seems, well, a little fishy.
I hope the FDA thoroughly studies the risks of introducing genetically engineered animals into the food supply.
In the meantime, I will be picking apples, stockpiling squash and adding local products I tried for the first time at the school festival to my shopping list.
Becoming a "locavore" is looking better every day.
Lisa Miller is a freelance writer who lives in Oneonta. She can be reached at lisamiller44@hotmail.com.
Lisa Miller
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Lisa Miller
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Supersized salmon? No thanks
- Lisa Miller
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Being a parent is a constant learning process
I am sitting cross-legged on the floor in the dressing room, waiting for Allie's dance number to be called. The cave girl costume has been donned, the jazz shoes double-tied, the hair pulled back, the requisite dab of lipstick applied.
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Healthy doesn't have to mean expensive
Half of Americans will be obese by 2030 if current trends continue, according to a report released last week in the British medical journal The Lancet.
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A family era ends with close of Potter series
As Harry Potter fans the world over flock to theaters for the final screenings of the final film in the eight-part series, I'm marking the end of an era myself, reading the last pages of the last book to my last child.
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Independent stores make up for loss of Borders
For many small communities, the Borders store at the nearest mall was the only place to browse and buy a variety of books, beyond the few titles offered in Walmart bestseller and bargain racks.
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Untethered from the cable box
I never imagined it would be so easy to be cable-free.
- Saturday, June 11, 2011
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On cells, sprouts and sodas
It figures. Six weeks after we dropped our landline, the World Health Organization issued a warning that radiation from cell phones might cause brain cancer. Meanwhile, the ultimate health food, organic bean sprouts, is being blamed for one of the deadliest E. coli outbreaks in recent history.
- Saturday, May 21, 2011
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End of the world as we know it? I feel fine
If you're reading this article after 6 p.m. and the ground is not shaking beneath your feet, then Harold Camping was wrong. Again.
- Sunday, May 1, 2011
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Song lyrics are an odd measure of attitudes
It was the third rainy weekend in a row, and I was scrolling through comments to a post by MSNBC blogger Melissa Dahl about a new study linking song lyrics to cultural changes.
- Saturday, April 9, 2011
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Parenting adventure takes a turn
On Friday, my 13-year-old daughter, Abby, will embark on the biggest adventure of her life.
- Saturday, March 19, 2011
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Japan devastation: Powerful reminder of our limitations
The images were surreal. People screaming from higher ground as they watched the relentless wave of brown water sweep up houses and topple power lines. Cars and boats floating like bath toys. Aerial photos of flattened villages, with crumpled roofs jutting out of the debris-laden landscape and orange-suited rescue workers like ants on a mountain of twigs.
- Saturday, February 26, 2011
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As food prices rise, sustainability makes more business sense
Frustration with high food prices is among the underlying causes of the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, and a global food crisis may be brewing.
- Tuesday, February 8, 2011
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National agenda needed to advance green technology
In his State of the Union address, President Obama issued a call to action for Americans to "out-innovate" the rest of the world and build on our history of doing "big things." Green technology is the next big thing, and it's our best hope to reinvent ourselves as competitors in the global economy. But we won't get there without a comprehensive national agenda supported by all parties -- political, yes, but also businesses, consumers, educators and students.
- Saturday, January 15, 2011
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Shootings remind us of need to teach children to hope
They should have been chattering about spelling tests and Hannah Montana songs. But instead, the two second-graders in my backseat were talking about the shooting of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. They had heard about it at school and were commiserating over the "sad" and "creepy" news as we drove home for a play date.
- Friday, December 3, 2010
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Marketing tactics could get kids to eat healthy foods
In a new twist on the "Super Size Me" fast-food diet experiment, the executive director of the Washington State Potato Commission ate nothing but spuds for 60 days.
- Saturday, November 13, 2010
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'Oneonta 360' captures essence of our area
The fact that Oneonta's new branding campaign has generated so much controversy shows how passionately people feel about this place. One thing everyone might agree on is that the essence of Oneonta cannot be easily conveyed in a few words or a logo. However, photographer Stephen Joseph makes a fascinating attempt to capture it in his new book, "Oneonta 360." If you haven't seen it yet, stop by Huntington Library, where one two-page spread is on display each day.
- Saturday, October 23, 2010
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Stem cell research must move forward
Robert Edwards of Britain received the Nobel Prize in medicine earlier this month for research that led to the birth of the first "test-tube baby" in 1978. Hugely controversial 32 years ago, Edwards' work is now lauded as a medical breakthrough that has brought immeasurable joy to the families of the 4 million babies born through in vitro fertilization.
- Saturday, October 2, 2010
- Saturday, September 11, 2010
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Chobani yogurt: Nothing but good for the area
I'm in love with Chobani. True to its marketing slogan, this locally made, Greek-style yogurt is, indeed, "nothing but good." First of all, it's delicious: thick, creamy, fruity and sweet (but not too sweet).
- Saturday, August 21, 2010
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Summer is a perfect time to unplug
Last month, I wrote about the rewards of disconnecting from information technology during a weeklong family camping trip. Since then, I've picked blueberries, skipped rocks, curled up with my 6-year-old and a pile of books, walked in the woods, and spent a gorgeous day at the lake picnicking with friends and watching the kids swim.
- Saturday, July 31, 2010
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There's no multitasking while camping
I am sitting in a log cabin in the woods, soaking up the peace and quiet. We've just finished a family game of ladderball, and my husband is taking a nap while the kids play a board game with my sister at the picnic table outside.
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Being a parent is a constant learning process
