|
There's
a quote we like to use, to start long dinner table discussions. It comes from
Stephanie Alexander's book Stephanie's Seasons. She says that...
"..true regional
cooking probably no longer exists in any country that has any form of sophisticated
transport and communications."
More >
It seems to be true at least where we live. From our local supermarket we can buy almost any food, from any
season and geographic region, all year round. Greenhouse vegetables from the North,
temperature controlled apples from the South, exotic imported fruit, refrigerated dairy
products. But when we carry home those large out-of-season strawberries or cook asparagus
in winter, there's a growing sense that we're losing something in the process.
It may be that we notice first that the flavour
is different. Products that need to be firm to withstand packing and trucking long
distances have to be picked unripe. It's not until we try the fresh, in
season product, that we have anything to compare it to.
It may also be that we sense the impersonal nature of those branded, factory farm
and
uniform products. (Were they really 'grown' or somehow manufactured?) Do the
growers care about producing food that is low or pesticide free and plant
varieties that have maximum flavour and nutrition? How would I know?
Along with the growth of organisations such
as Slow Food, the Farmer's Markets and organic farming groups, there is an
increasing call for change from the food writers and television chefs who shape our
eating habits. Their message is to eat regionally, and in season.
But how do you change buying habits that are so ingrained? Where do you
start? That's what the Regional Food project has set out to achieve.
We all need help to know what we are really eating, how it is
produced and especially where and when it was produced. We
also believe that information can be presented in a fascinating and
entertaining manner. If you know that, you can then make an informed
choice. We're betting it will be towards regional food.
And we want to do that for every region of Australia. We plan to use
television, radio and print to spread the message, and use our internet
skills to keep the information up to date and accessible all year round.
If that extra knowledge leads
you to contact a grower or producer, or to travel locally or interstate to discover the sources
of that food, then in a small way the Project will have achieved its
commercial goals.
If it also leads to a richer
appreciation of the seasonal cycles of growth and harvest, and a greater
enjoyment of good food, then we will have surpassed any of our personal
aims.
Jan O'Connell & Fred Harden.
Editors, Regional Food. 2005
|
