Comments on: The Everyday Paradoxes

By: Kids and Vaccinations | Venture Chronicles

Kids and Vaccinations | Venture Chronicles — Fri, 09 May 2008 21:11:51 +0000

[...] are now rare but still serious (and potentially deadly). Just a few days ago I posted about the irrational paradoxes that people often demonstrate through their behaviors, this is just yet another example of [...]

By: Jeff Nolan

Jeff Nolan — Mon, 05 May 2008 19:06:55 +0000

yeah the wild vs. farmed point wasn't lost on me, but without that anecdote… well I wouldn't have had much of a story to retell. In all seriousness, I think what is lost here is awareness of what the global food supply chain looks like, as evidenced by your blueberries story, and what that means for consumers. We're accustomed to fresh produce any time of the year and out-of-season fish any time of the year. I like buying local but it's less about political or economic ideology for me and more about living with respect and awareness of where my food is coming from. I also spend extra to buy good quality foods with the idea being that we eat less when it's more fulfilling and nutritional. These are habits I want to instill in our children not through pontifications or lectures, but through example. Above all I want to be practical. Can't get fresh salmon, that's okay, I'll substitute rock cod or snapper this summer. No big deal.

By: Mark Allerton

Mark Allerton — Mon, 05 May 2008 18:51:05 +0000

I had a similar experience in my local Capers (Whole Foods owned canadian grocer) – overhearing a customer complain bitterly about the price of fresh blueberries. You know, in freaking March, when they have to be shipped halfway around the planet. And of course they _had_ to be organic, for the environment. Somehow this was the fault of horrible american Whole Foods taking over the store (conveniently ignoring the fact that the previous owners were also American) rather than the economics of getting fresh organic blueberries in Canada in March. I almost laughed out loud. That said, your comparison is a bit off – the beef equivalent of wild seafood would be wild caught beef, not anything farmed, no? I think in the end fish farming is going to be the way to go, but current farming practice is generally not good as you point out – Salmon farming has been causing big problems for the wild fish here in BC. This could change – I know one Vancouver seafood restaurant famous for championing sustainable practice has recently started serving farmed Salmon over wild, but they are also very picky about the farming practice.

By: Jeff Nolan

Jeff Nolan — Mon, 05 May 2008 17:16:30 +0000

Fair point Tim, but it seems evident that water policy affects salmon fisheries more than commercial fishing. That issue aside, farm raised fish are higher in mercury, are fed antibiotics, and generally have less nutritional value than wild fish. On top of all that, farm raised salmon are fed food coloring to create a pink flesh color because the pellet food they are fed leaves them more brownish. No thanks, I'll stick with wild fish.

By: Dan

Dan — Mon, 05 May 2008 17:16:15 +0000

It's just the shallowness of thought that gets me from some very smart people. Why is it so hard to look 3 or 4 moves down the chessboard. My sense is people care a lot more about what makes them feel good about themselves, or what they believe are some actionable short term steps they feel that they can take, rather than thinking through the obvious consequences of their actions. I think the other part of the answer on your farmed fish vs. free range chicken would likely be wrapped up in anti-corporate, anti-globalization sentiment. IE – support small local producers and fishermen, not the big corporations who pollute by massive fish farming and agribusiness.

By: Tim

Tim — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:59:48 +0000

The world is definitely an ongoing wonder, and seeing these things is always an insight into what's really going on. That said, I think it can be internally consistent to order grass-fed beef and farm-raised fish; for example, farmed tilapia are thought to be the most ecologically-aware fish to eat (not fishery dependent, not in open-ocean pens that allow mixing of wild & farmed fish), but as far as I know, corn-fed beef isn't ecologically better than grass-fed. There are other metrics which make these choices internally consistent, as well. To be clear, I'm only nit-picking your example.