Weekly Food Scoop – August 11th, 2011

Food varieties extinction is happening all over the world—and it’s happening fast. In the United States an estimated 90 percent of our historic fruit and vegetable varieties have vanished. Of the 7,000 apple varieties that were grown in the 1800s, fewer than a hundred remain. In the Philippines thousands of varieties of rice once thrived; now only up to a hundred are grown there. In China 90 percent of the wheat varieties cultivated just a century ago have disappeared. Experts estimate that we have lost more than half of the world’s food varieties over the past century.

THE GMO FILM PROJECT tells the story of a father’s discovery of GMOs through the symbolic act of poor Haitian farmers burning seeds in defiance of Monsanto’s gift of 475 tons of hybrid corn and vegetable seeds to Haiti shortly after the devastating earthquake of January 2010.

In this month-long drill of health in the U.S. government’s boot camp, despite screaming at myself to follow the rules and also hating them simultaneously, I’ve come out stronger, happy to eat healthy food more often. But only because I’ve realized I needed to establish a built-in pressure-release valve to allow the beer and grease to flow, to let my slob hang out.

The new seeds will initially target the 250,000-acre market for fresh corn in the eastern U.S., Madere said. Monsanto is in discussions with companies that would can or freeze the corn, she said.

Vegetables contain high levels of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that can strengthen and protect your heart. By including more heart-healthy vegetables in your diet, you will significantly reduce the risk of heart-related illnesses. Here are the top 10 heart healthiest vegetables: