why we grow a garden

we grow a garden because we love to eat well.

mindy and i love to cook at home, but we also love to eat out.  mostly i think we just love to eat.  but i'm fed up with not knowing what i'm being fed when i eat out.  i can browse through a menu of mostly prepared food products and know that i don't want to eat pig anus posing as calamari.  and i don't want to eat sushi that smells of bleach or any other toxic cleaning product.  i don't want anything that is not what it is claiming to be.  please.

i think growing a garden (not just owning plants, but sowing, watering, weeding, and generally caring for them) is the best way to start being healthier.  knowing the source of what you are eating is just as important as reading the 'nutrition facts' and 'ingredients' labels.  probably more so, because there are lots of nasty shit that companies don't have to list and the nutrition facts are an out-dated reference guide to buying ONLY processed crap.  also, restaurants don't have to tell you ANYTHING about what you are actually eating.  

one of my favorite midwestern experience is watching the sysco truck pull up to a restaurant, unload a palette of boxes.  then drive 2 buildings down and repeat.  then repeat again.  whether it's italian, mexican, asian-fusion, or some other fancypants niche shithole, it all comes off the same truck, from the same food service company.  and frankly, that is unacceptable.

we grow a garden because we recognize that it is worth it to eat locally and ethically grown/raised REAL food.  if you want to be conscious about what you are putting in your mouth, it's always best to prepare it yourself. we grow a garden as stewards of the earth and to cultivate a sense of responsibility for our consumption.

Here are some great links/information on the topic of food fraud if you'd like to learn more:
... 11 most fraudulent foods
... Counterfeit food
... Food Fraud Database