Friday Faves No. 92

We went into the history vaults for this week's image: Atomic Whiskey. "This whiskey of the future now" the label brags. "Aged 30 days by radiation...This is the world's first whiskey to be aged by atomic materials. It's 30 day process is equivalent to 40 years of standardized 19th century aging." Distilled in Oak Ridge, Tennessee (home of the Manhattan Project). I'd love to see the guys on Mad Men get this account.

French government endorses Burgundy vineyards, Champagne for UNESCO status "'We are different... 'It's not because we are French, it's because of our geology, our climate and centuries of knowledge.'" (Decanter)

A Degree in Beer, Wine, and Kombucha “When I tell people that I'm doing fermentation sciences, they're like, 'Oh, you're just drinking beer.'”  (Atlantic)

Artisan toast — now how much would you pay? The $4 slice of toast, a trend started in San Francisco, was probably due for some international mocking. "Is pricey toast a symbol of everything that's wrong with a trend-obsessed food culture? Or are well-made basics worth paying for?" We eat DIY artisan toast in our own kitchens all the time. And if a baker can get people with disposable cash to pay up... (Guardian)

The headline Bringing sexy (cabbage) back flashed in our inboxes this week. Talk about turning basics into hip food. Maybe it's time for trendy kale to take a seat. (Tasting Table)

Friday Faves No. 90

• Converting Old Dutch Tourist Boats Into Floating Greenhouses (above) It's a plan that perfectly suits its location. "The project’s name is Boatanic, a play on boat, botanic, and the Titanic — a reference to the global eco-crisis O’Sullivan sees on the horizon. It’s still in its planning phase, but when completed he foresees a combination of CSA, dockside sales, and wholesale deliveries." (Modern Farmer)

• France's national library of grape varieties under threat "The current sandy location protects the original rootstocks against disease such as phylloxera, meaning most of the vines are non-grafted. But, according to INRA, the site is under threat from rising sea levels, meaning potential damage to the vines from salt water flooding." (Decanter)

• Long live our seasonal obsession! Le Festival Du Cookie in Paris (Food Arts)

• How a Chest of Ancient Grains in Sweden Changed Baking History “A farmer today isn’t free,” says Niklasson. “Farmers are dependent on the seed distributors and since the modern seeds don’t have the right resistances, they are dependent on pesticide producers, and since the pesticides kill the healthy microbes in the soil, they are also dependent on the fertilizer companies. At Gutekorn we are some of the last free farmers.” (Modern Farmer)

• The Ceramic Canvas — a look at plating. "To illustrate and explore the current state of the plate, we asked 11 New York City chefs to put together a dish that exemplifies their visual style, and to explain the inspiration that went into each. Their answers ran the gamut. " Complete with fancy slide show. (New York Times)

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 86

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• Got high temperatures and constant sunlight? Start a roof-top algae farm like these in Bnagkok that grow "super food" spirulina (above). EnerGaia is the company that's making it happen, and they want to feed you their vitamin and protein-rich brew in everything from smoothies to pasta. (Design Boom)

• Wine under attack in France? What's the world coming to? Alas, the tone of a new campaign to tax wine as a health risk sounds awfully American. “Gastronomy, art de vivre, wine in moderation – this is still the majority of the French, but there is a real minority that wants to make illegal everything that could possibly be harmful." Sigh. (Wine Spectator)

• And while that might be shocking, let's just file this under Hell No: sexy food-themed Halloween costumes. (Laughing Squid)

• Food start-up incubator Local Food Lab (not the kitchen space kind of incubator, but based on the business training model tech firms use) is expanding its offerings to reach more entrepreneurs with a new Ask Me Anything series that interviews experts. (Full disclosure — we've been mentors with LFL since its first session over a year ago.)

• Keeping our communities safe for doughnuts is an important civic duty. Cops in the small town of Clare, Michigan took their mission so seriously the bought their local bakery so it wouldn't go out of business. The bakery now operates under the genius name Cops and Doughnuts. (American Food Roots)

• The news that people in the seafood industry have known for years is hopefully coming into the mainstream: farmed salmon is a lot better than it used to be and not every producer is the same. The article doesn't get us all the way there, but it's a step in the right direction. Even Seafood Watch can admit: “Our understanding of the science has changed, and production practices have changed....Some of the older concerns are less of a concern.” (Washington Post)

• From Senegal to the American South: a Charleston chef traces the roots of his favorite Southern dishes back to West Africa. "'The contributions of Africa to beloved dishes like gumbo, jambalaya and collard greens are monumental,' he says. They are dishes born of the terrible legacy of slavery that, as he puts it, "need to find their true voices again." (Food & Wine)

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 83

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• What if sausages grew on trees? One upon a time (above), in a 1970's German food fair, they did. (Retronaut)

• Fast casual chain Chipotle sponsors a short movie and game targeting Big Ag: "According to Chipotle, the game encourages players to 'tilt and tap your way through four unique worlds to protect vulnerable veggies, rescue caged animals, and bring fresh food to the citizens of Plenty, all while dodging the menacing Crowbots.'" (NPR)

• Offshore wind farms and shellfish could be a good economic match. "A small trial using seabed cultivation has already been carried out within the North Hoyle array by Welsh mussel company Deepdock Ltd, who showed that such an operation is both practical and viable, with no negative impacts on the wind farming operation." (Seafood Source)

• Latino winemakers are a growing group in California, making the generational transition from pickers to winemakers. “'All of us have come from the ground up,' said Rafael Rios, 46, the group’s president, whose father came to the Napa Valley under the bracero program, a series of guest-worker agreements between the United States and Mexico. 'We know how it feels to be in the fields in 90 degrees.'” (New York Times)

• We posted about the Four Season's food truck just last week, but we can't get enough of what their food and beverage departments are up to. A global chef s'mores-off is an awesome way for a brand to have some fun while addressing an iconic treat. (Taste)

• First there was the Cronut, and then the world went food mash-up crazy. A Cheetos macaron? Oh, my. (LA Times)

• In a new world of armchair farming, we found ourselves watching GoatCam, a livestream of adorable baby goats. (Modern Farmer)

Sing Along Snacks: Stomp Them Grapes

It's never too early or too late for a snack, so crank up that volume on your computer.

Winemakers all over are in harvest-mode (or getting there soon). In honor of that, we're sending out a little vintage country with Mel Tillis singing Stomp Them Grapes. (The video is a bit rustic, but then, so is the song.)

"Stomp, stomp them grapes and make that wine
Put it in a bottle, boys, and ship it on down the line"

A Visit to Long Meadow Ranch

Long Meadow Ranch, an organic farm in the Napa Valley, graciously hosted us for an in-depth tour of the property and a great discussion of food and food systems in California and beyond. 

The world Long Meadow Ranch has created is an inspiration and a beautiful example of what can be done when dedication, ideals and resources are brought together. 

They maintain over 650 acres with a mix of gardens, orchards, vineyard, olive groves and pasture land for their herd of Highland cattle (the largest in North America). They make their own wines, press their own olive oil and run the restaurant Farmstead where you can taste everything they produce.

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 78

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• Chefs as media celebrities is old news. Now chefs are becoming comic book heroes (see right). "According to the folks at Marvel, 'Fanboys and foodies are very much alike. There are similar mentalities to both kinds of fandom.' Foodies collect culinary experiences—often displayed in digital pictures—oozing with the same glory and excitement found in the eyes of fanboys (geek culture aficionados) who collect comic books." (Food Arts)

• Thursday, August 15 would have been Julia Child's 101st birthday. In her honor, her hometown, Pasadena, is celebrating with the launch of a citywide cocktail competition. (LA Times) This PBS Digital Studios video remix of her sayings from her centennial is still amazing. Bon Appétit!

• This week also saw the Glorious 12th in the UK, the day when grouse shooting seasons begins and the first birds start showing up at restaurants, with preparations ranging from the traditional to the innovative like oloroso-marinated grouse and grouse tandoor-roasted in a fennel seed and star anise marinade. (Flavour First)

• A new app, Drync, lets you scan the label of a wine you're drinking and buy more of it right then. Get the app (Fast Company)

• Ever wonder how sake gets made? The Birth of Sake, a documentary in progress and looking for more crowd funding by Erik Shirai, gives a peak into the ancient process. View a short video about the project (Food Tech Connect)

• Bring on the foodie jobs: Le Cordon Bleu, in collaboration with Southern Cross University in Australia, has launched a new online postgraduate degree, the Master of Gastronomic Tourism. (Edinburgh Foodie)

• In the interest of keeping it super-local, beer can now be made right where so much of it gets consumed: on campus. Newcastle University is to set up the UK’s first student-run microbrewery. (Drinks Business)

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 77

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• Sushi Cat Island (above, full video here), courtesy of Japan. Sometimes, it doesn't help to ask why. The world, and internet videos, are mysterious.

• Ecologists Turn To Planned Grazing To Revive Grassland Soil "'When I learned about it, that style of grazing, the basis was everybody was producing more grass," said Andrews, a fifth-generation cattle rancher in eastern Colorado. "It's hard, as a producer, to argue with more grass. Because we never have enough grass.'" (NPR)

• Monday was National Oyster Day and it's never too late to celebrate. Chef Chef Eric Woods of Blue Water Grill gives a quick Oysters 101. (CNN/Eatocracy)

• The Ultimate Guide to Pinterest, "the site drives more referral traffic than Google+, YouTube, and LinkedIn combined." (Fast Company)

• The most exciting/disgusting food story of the week (depending on your point of view) is the world's first lab-made hamburger that was debuted in London and bankrolled by Google co-founder Sergey Brin. (Guardian)

• Craft beer — the rising tide that lifts all boats: All kinds of businesses ride the wave with local breweries "You look at the (beer) businesses popping up, you’re not seeing any of them going out of business and a lot of them are in peculiar spots." (Register-Guard)

• “Global Appetites: American Power and the Literature of Food” An interview with author Allison Carruth explores the intersections of food production and power: "My argument is that we cannot understand a concept like globalization or history of the U.S. rise to becoming superpower without looking closely at changes in how we grow and consume food." (Modern Farmer)

• An affordable housing project in the Bronx has a sparkling urban hydroponics farm on its roof, built by the company Sky Vegetables. (Agri-Tecture)

• The trailer for A Year in Burgundy (a documentary film on Burgundy winemakers that Polish has done publicity and promotion for) has been viewed 11,000 times by people in 128 countries. Have you seen it yet?

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 76

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

Estonia barley bread and Latvian midsummer cheese, from Clouds

• From what started as a trickle of enthusiasm a decade ago, Scandinavian food is now getting its own festival, North — The Nordic Food Festival in New York City this October. (Honest Cooking)

• We find there's a lot to love from the countries up against the North Sea and the Baltic — fresh summer berries, earthy grains, tangy dairy, lots of cake. This week we wandered through some gorgeous Lithuania food blogs (some days the internet is magic like that) and found Clouds, a composite magazine with an English edition.

• How much sense do boycotts really make? Sometimes, not much. Bars across the U.S. and around the world are boycotting Russian products—particularly Stolichnaya vodka—to protest the Russian government’s passage of laws discriminating against gay citizens and rights advocates. But as Stoli points out: a company is not a government, and doesn't necessarily have much sway. The company has also publicly supported gay rights. (Forbes)

• Vineyard growth plan for 'Bordeaux of China' raises concerns for animal habitats and livelihoods of villagers who switch to grapes "Pandas are squished into the last little upland refuge that hasn't been converted into agriculture....A species that has lost so much habitat can't afford to lose more." (Guardian)

• In the struggles of farm and food labor, this week, fast food workers went on strike across America to demand higher wages. "'These companies aren’t magically going to make our lives better,” said Terrance Wise, who earns $9.30 an hour after working for eight years at a Burger King in Kansas City, plus $7.40 an hour at his second job at Pizza Hut. “We can sit back and stay silent and continue to live in poverty or, on the other hand, we can step out and say something and let it be known that we need help.'” (New York Times)

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 69

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• "When words just aren't enough, say it with bacon..." urges this jewelry-spoof commercial (above). "All you have to do is listen, and bacon will show you the way."

• NPR gave a little positive attention for the concept of multi-trophic aquaculture, the growing of companion species in the same area for a healthier ecosystem.

• You don't have to eat threatened species to be enabling their trade. The Dutch have said "No" by blocking the transfer of whale meat from Iceland in the Port of Rotterdam. "The State Secretary’s announcement sends a clear message to the whalers that they cannot expect it to be business as usual in Europe. The Netherlands’ initiative to launch a code of conduct could be decisive in closing down Europe to the transfer of carcassess of these endangered majestic creatures."

• Good news: the young folk don't want to eat anonymous junk. The Millenials are spending differently and restaurant chains are trying to woo the younger generation. "Between the proliferation of artisanal food trucks and items like cupcakes made of Valrhona and Callebaut chocolates and topped with a fondant daisy for $2.75 at Georgetown Cupcake, or Fresh Direct’s offering of “heritage” pork from the Flying Pigs Farm in upstate New York, millennials tend to spend their dining dollars sparingly and in a more calculated way."

• France might make industrial cooking establishments call themselves what they are: "In a fight back against a rising tide of boil-in-a-bag meals and other gastronomic horrors, France is to consider a law change that would limit use of the word “restaurant” to establishments that use proper ingredients prepared on the premises."

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 68

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• Newcastle Libraries has posted a cache of UK historical images, like the fishing photos above, to Flickr. Pictured above: At left, a studio portrait of a Fisherman from Cullercoats taken c.1890. The man is wearing a waterproof coat souwester and cork life-jacket. At right, an 1897 studio portrait of Maggie Brown a Fishwife from Cullercoats. Maggie Brown is wearing her 'best' clothes which include a printed cotton or silk blouse with matching apron. A silk square is worn to fill the neckline of her blouse.
  

• Drink trends: beet cocktails like the Beet Me in St. Louis with beet-infused gin, honey and tarragon, and growing US enthusiasm for port, especially aged tawnies.

• Some forgotten foods of the UK (from cookies to sheep) are making a come back with help from Slow Food UK's Chefs Alliance. Says Carina Contini, of Centotre in Edinburgh: “The special ingredient is always the story. Understanding where ingredients come from and how they got there allows us to connect with our environment and food chain and we love sharing this knowledge with our customers.” 

• On U.S. farms, women are taking the reins says a new report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service. Many are career-changers looking for a different kind of life and a way to make a difference. “We are seeing more beginning farmers coming in and I think the trend is going to continue. Women are [already] outnumbering men in owning smaller farms.”

• The romance version of farming spreads further into pop culture with a boom in farm-lit. "Thanks to the economy, picket fences and scruffy farm hands have replaced stilettos and cute i-bankers in literature aimed at women....And in this era of Brooklyn backyard chickens, farmer's markets-as-social events, Anthropologie aprons and hipsters baking homemade bread, what's more aspirational than running away to a farm?"

• Breaking News from Financial Times summit: rich people still super rich, keep trying to sell them expensive stuff "The good news is that the people who buy the products you make are doing much better than everyone else by a very big margin and nothing in the crisis has changed that,” said Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator on the Financial Times.

• When trademark law goes bad: First Chick-fil-a sued those nice Vermont kale enthusiasts, now the Economic Development Department of the State of New York is suing a New York coffee shop over a  riff on it's I ♥ NY logo. Apparently, local pride is going to cost you.

• We've all been hearing about colony collapse disorder and the crisis of dying bees. In China now it’s gotten so bad they are hand-pollinating blossoms in orchards. A new film called More Than Honey explores the issue (click for trailer).

• Food waste — one of the most persistent issues in our ability to feed the world and husband resources. Worldwide, nearly one quarter of all calories produced are going uneaten (infographic), either from spoilage at production on later. One San Francisco-area teen has taken matters into his own hands and founded the tech platform Waste No Food, which help restaurants make timely donations of their surplus food. Leading area restaurants like Manresa have joined in.

• Detroit's Urban Agriculture Ordinance that passed on April 15 has opened the city for urban aquaponics. Two new facilities are underway for tilapia, catfish and blue gill — although the finer points of regulation still have to be worked out. "The city is in the process of coming up with a process,” for approving fish farms, says Kathryn Underwood of the City Planning Commission. “We don't even have all of the forms quite in place yet for all of things that need to happen. We're riding a bike and building it at the same time.”

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 65

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• Discover global cuisine through the kitchens of grandmothers with this excellent photojournalism project Delicatessen with love by Gabriele Galimberti. Each photo features a  grandmother with her signature dish as both ingredients and finished product. At right, grandmothers from Egypt, Haiti and Latvia.

• The GM food debate gets even uglier as Monsanto threatens to sue the state of Vermont. "Lawmakers in Vermont are looking to regulate food labels so customers can know which products are made from genetically modified crops, but agricultural giants Monsanto say they will sue if the state follows through."

• Looking to unload a châteaux? Christie’s is capitalising on the thirst for wealthy Chinese consumers to buy wineries by opening the world’s first estate agency for would-be vineyard buyers.

• Luxury food producers take note and come up with ways that you can take advantage of this style. Jaeger-LeCoultre tempts female consumers with emotional marketing, and they do a great job of it. “'Jaeger-LeCoultre’s strategy behind this campaign is connecting with their target market’s emotions on various events and occurrences that happen throughout their life, and focusing on the positive perspective that they can continuously reinvent themselves,' Ms. Strum said." Notice that nothing is said about watches in the full two minutes.

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 62

• A new local food and beverage consciousness has come to Ghana. "'We are trying to create a new atmosphere here, and to rejuvenate our sense of identity," said Kofi Owusu-Ansah, 39, who founded Republic with his brother Raja last year. 'If you look at our spirits, you will find not one single import – the base for all our cocktails is local-made sugar cane spirit akpeteshie.'" Curious about all the African food you don't know about? Check out the new project My African Food Map.

• Russians are now trying to get back to their former, healthier cuisine. "'We want to inspirate [sic] the old Russian traditions with new feelings and ideas," Akimov says. "In Europe, it [local food] is about health and sustainability. In Russia, it's more than that. It's an opportunity to revive whole regions.' LavkaLavka and its partners aren't just resurrecting their country's indigenous foods – they are reinvesting in the people who grow them."

• In Florida, you don't have to go out of your way to find exotics — just go out your back door. The giant African land snail is the latest eco-invader. (yes, everything really weird happens in Florida) If you want to make good use of the invaders by turning them into dinner, food writer Tim Hayward of the Guardian UK visits an African restaurant in south London for a cooking lesson (video).

• What we will probably all be eating soon and probably should be already: edible insects. London-based company Ento wants to convince you to give this sustainable protein a try.

• Insects are also helping us figure out what we should be eating. A young (high school aged young) scientist in Texas is working with fruit flies to more closely examine the effects of organic food on their systems. "By nearly every measure, including fertility, stress resistance and longevity, flies that fed on organic bananas and potatoes fared better than those who dined on conventionally raised produce."

• And not to freak you out that the world is actually coming to an end, but climate change is going to mess up winemaking in a big way. Global warming will make it difficult to raise grapes in traditional wine country, but will shift production to other regions.

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 54

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

Here come the Snakes!

Sunday, February 10 is Chinese New Year and the beginning of the Year of the Snake.

• A big part of Chinese New Year is the food. In Shanghai, you can Eat your way through the culinary back streets.

• If you want to take the New Year literally, don't let us stop you. Meet Hong Kong's snake soup kings (with crazy/awesome photos, including the one above)

• You can do it at home: 8 steps to cook a snake

• And you can forage them yourself: Survival tips on choosing and cooking snake in the wild

• And what pairs with snake? China is set to become the sixth largest wine producer in the world by 2016. 

 Happy New Year & Bon Appétit!

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 52

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• Do we really even need to explain what's wrong with the packaging above? Let's just say that a trip to the store this week pushed us a purse too far, and pulling together these examples was way too easy.

• Fresh Air talks with Paul Lukacs about his new book Inventing Wine, A New History Of One Of The World's Most Ancient Pleasures. (link to audio) Your fast fact for the day: "Lead, in fact, will sweeten wine, so lead was used for thousands and thousands of years."

• Whisky makers are taking notice of their largest untapped market, even in Scotland: women. Glasgow women say whisky is no drink for old men. "Long typecast as the definitive male tipple, whisky has a growing appeal for women enthusiasts and in Glasgow a new women's whisky club has been set up, to the delight of distillers." A message to distillers from a couple of whisky-loving women: don't get cute with us. Shoes and purses are lovely, but they do not belong in packaging for grownups. (For what not to do, see above.)

• And for the wackiest cross over of the week for all you girls out there, you can now buy perfume that allegedly smells like dough, brought to you by Pizza Hut. But will you smell cold and stale in the morning?

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 47

 weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• A piece of movie magic that you can eat, melting Wicked Witch of the West Cookies by Death by Cupcakes.

• On Point talks with New Yorker writer Adam Gopnik (radio link) on not just what we eat, but how we eat. The meaning of food and sharing is discussed in his book The Table Comes First: Family, France, and the Meaning of Food which argues that "the real meaning of food lies in continuity" and that "we need to think more about what goes on around the table."

• A strange twist on equality: Real Life Swedish Chef Told to Scale Back on School Lunch Deliciousness

• Wine in a box, wine in fake designer handbags, now wine in a can. Hmmm.

• If the idea of wine in a can makes you want to reach for a beer, a Scottish company has unveiled a 65% proof beer called Brewmeister Armageddon, the world's strongest.

• Campus Farms are springing up all over and now will have help from a new resource called Campus Farmers. '“There’s a great new trend of students growing their own food on college campuses. They’re very excited, but they often have no idea where to begin,” Nicole Tocco, East Coast fellow for the Bon Appétit Management Company Foundation, tells TakePart. “This will be a place where they can post questions, blog posts, status updates and more. There will be a resource section to show them how to get started.”'

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 45

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• Pop culture food spin-offs abound with two new cook books. There's 50 Shades of Chicken (right) for when you feel the need to truss something, and The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook for when you want to indulge your landed gentry side.

• Shining light of the urban food movement Growing Power has announced a $5 million grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to fund “community food centers” aimed at relieving hunger in five of the nation’s poorest areas: Detroit; New Orleans; Forest City, Ark.; Shelby, Miss.; and Taos, N.M. As Grist reported: "Growing Power’s urban projects are frequently the subject of news reports, but the rural ones are rarely described. In the case of the Mississippi Delta, for instance, Allen says, 'Most of the land has gone over to industrial agriculture. It’s devastated those towns, because most of the people used to have their own farms.' Now, he says the area is plagued by drugs, much in the way many urban areas are. And that’s all the more reason why Growing Power’s model can make a difference."

• Rural food deserts really do exist. There may be wide open spaces, but not a decent grocery store in sight. “There’s a lot of people that don’t eat well here...There’s a lot of poor people, too.”

• Fishing in New England is declared a disaster: “Despite fishermen’s adherence to catch limits over the past few years, recent data shows that several key fish stocks are not rebuilding.... Low levels of these stocks are causing a significant loss of access to fishery ­resources with anticipated revenue declines that will greatly affect the commercial fishery.”

• One agricultural sector on the rise is wine. PBS Newshour profiled a community college in Walla Walla, Washington that has created a winemaking degree that "fosters economic, environmental and cultural sustainability in and around the city of Walla Walla where vineyards continue to sprout."

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 44

weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• As we have noted to ourselves many times while making our way through through a refrigerated warehouse in the early morning hours, fish and glamour rarely go together — until we saw the Fishwives Club range of wines from South African (right).

• We can never resist a happy cow story: Where Cows Are Happy and Food Is Healthy fits the bill with video of all the big noses and long eyelashes you could want.

• What do you give to the person who has everything? Sea cucumebers are the answer in China. "Much of the demand is driven by the gift trade. One of Bo’s customers, Lin Xiaojian, founder-owner of a welding company, explained he was buying two RMB 590 (US$93) 1-kilogram portions. 'People are spending a lot more on health these days,' explained Lin, before adding that the sea cucumbers were in fact gifts for local officials he’s hoping will give contracts to his firm. 'I used to buy expensive rice wine but these days the fashion is for sea cucumbers … few ordinary people buy them to eat, it’s for gifting to government and army officials to keep good relations with them.'”

• In Bristol, UK "a community-led "fish allotment" scheme to farm fresh fish and vegetables in the city is being trialled in Bristol."

• US Presidential election time is coming soon. The candidates give a taste of their views on food issues, and will have more to say on September 25 when both candidates will be addressing the Clinton Global Initiative in New York.

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 33

 weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

 

• We thought the bacon sundae was weird, but in the Netherlands, there's hamburger eye shadow.

• Urban cleanup that earns farmer's market vouchers with a new "trash for food" exchange in Mexico City sounds like a win-win.

• A vertical urban farm in an old meatpacking plant that's also a food business incubator, The Plant in Chicago has lots of space and big plans.

• Another idea that we're excited about: Local Food Lab, a California based incubator and collaborative workspace for early stage sustainable food and farm startups.

• Farming indoors starts to sound like a pretty good idea with crazy weather events like the hailstorm that wiped out Champagne's southern Côte des Bar region. "The damage is estimated at 130% because at least 30% of the 2013 crop will also be affected."

• There's a lovely series from the site Wine Searcher called When We First Met with personal stories of wine and how people have interacted with it. The profile with English writer Matt Walls caught our eye: "Sometimes, particularly with pinot noir, the wine just goes into a bit of a sulk. Nobody knows why. If you open it when it’s in a mood, there’s nothing you can do. It won’t play. You just have to give up. That’s what we had to do with that bottle, and it’s the most expensive bottle of wine I ever bought."

• By helping to spread the message that farming can make for a fulfilling and meaningful life in the 21st century, the Greenhorns and NYFC are hoping to attract a few more new recruits: "It's one of those jobs that provides endless opportunity to create positive change while making a living. As farmers, we're tasked every day with environmental stewardship, sustainable business development, preserving culture, and providing nutrient rich food for our families, friends, and neighbors. Although it can be fraught with stress and exhaustion just like any job, it's an incredibly rewarding way of life," says 32-year-old Brad Halm of the Seattle Urban Farm Company in Washington State. 

• Hands Off our Special Regions, says the European Commission to an American initiative calling for the unfettered use of what are currently protected food and drink monikers, such as Parmesan and port. How 'bout we put some creativity into creating new names. One of our favorites: Quady Winery's Starboard, a port-style wine made in California.

• Some feel that an old name is what's holding back a good fish. In the U.K., Sainsbury is trying to boost pollack's popularity through a new name artsy packaging.

• The best packaging innovation might be edible. "WikiCells is rooted in the way nature has always delivered nutrients: in a digestible skin."

• And from the wild world of innovation, Air Canada Flew Plane Using 50% Cooking Oil Biofuel for First Time

Friday Faves — notes from the new gastroconomy, No. 32

 weekly round-up of our favorite finds from the front lines of food

• What the Pork Fairy might get as a tattoo, on the cover of Lucky Peach food journal.

• "Driven by a growing awareness that the only thing local in most “local” beers is the water, microbrewers all over the country have begun using regional hops, fruits and honey. Now, many are taking the next logical step and snapping up local grains." Malters Bring Terroir to the Beer Bottle: Mr. Stanley (profiled in the article) "hopes the malt revival can stem the tide of hop-heavy pale ales, enabling craft brewers to focus on malt’s sweet, rich character and, in turn, open up a new kind of terroir for American craft brewers to explore."

• Terroir aside, the future of farming may be up in the air. Microbiologist Dickson Despommier talks about the concept of skyscraper farming. (audio clip) With increasing problems of soil pollution in China especially, many people worldwide may have no other choice.

• June 11 was World Day Against Child Labor. Consider The Children in Our Fields and The food movement’s final frontier: Taking care of workers

• Put you money in bottles? French funds turn to wine as safe-haven investments. "Numerous studies have shown that great wines have, since 1950, consistently outperformed financial markets."

• AgLocal wants you to have meat from small-scale farms, accessible by smartphone. KC-based Startup Takes Aim at Meat Distribution Paradigm

• It's Pastured Poulty Week in Atlanta and Athens, Georgia with over 30 chefs serving pastured birds to introduce them to the public. Chefs explain, that means new education for both customers and staff: “A few years ago we were able to get a very small supply from a gentleman in South Georgia, and when we would serve it, people would say things like it, ‘It’s too flavorful’ — which was funny to me, because, you know, this is what chicken actually tastes like. It made us realize that,  if we were going to change people’s minds about the product, we would have to do it with some education attached.”

• The Guardian asks: Should we be eating more goat? "When goats are bred for dairy farming, the billies are killed at birth. Why not rear them free-range for meat instead? Says one farmer: "The idea of treating my billies as a waste product doesn't sit comfortably."

• For those who want to eat less meat, or none at all, there may be better options in the future. Twitter cofounders Evan Williams and Biz Stone are investing in a vegan meat company called Beyond Meat.