Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
hi keith. no i didn't follow your link, but i'm already pretty familiar with health problems that have been linked to high fructose intake. so, no dis. :) still, i do think that the wording of that paragraph was. . .ill-considered. she simplistically (and somewhat inaccurately in terms of chronology, as you pointed out) associated hfcs with increasaed obesity, by ommitting any reference to the deterioration of nutritional and exercise habits as a whole. for example the fact that refined sugars constitute an increasing proportion of the average diet while exercise is diminishing. this language does carry the suggestion that those other factors are less important, perhaps even irrelevant. on the subject of the codex decision, a google search returned quite a number of links. i found that dr. dean's piece was fairly in accord with a number of other sources insofar as potential consequences of recent developments. clearly, the outcome of the rome meeting is not encouraging, and clearly we should all be concerned and raise our voices. after your reply to my post, i took another look at the 'kiss your health goodbye!' piece to re-examine my interpretation. in light of what i read from other sources, all of which were also opposed to the rome decision, i was even more struck by dr. dean's tone. she paints a big brother-type picture which is not the reality. at least not yet. there is still a ways to go, and other avenues to pursue besides attempting to influence the deliberations of codex; who, and fao (e.g. see http://www.alliance-natural-health.org/index.cfm?action=newsID=181). my reading also only reinforced the jingoistic impression i got the first time. if you like, i can break down her language point by point, but it's late and i can't go into that length at the moment. i will say, though, that she repeatedly mentions the role of germans, germany, and the eu in the process, as though they were synonymous with the real motive force, the pharmaceutical giants. at the same time she glosses over the fact that the codex commission, which consists of 85 member nations *including* the u.s. and canada, voted *unanimously* to adopt the guidelines. nevertheless, these are potentially serious developments. it's important to spread the word, and i can't accuse dr. dean of not doing that. after all, i'm now aware of it when 24 hours ago i wasn't. :) -chris b. ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
[Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/072005A.shtml The Tragic Abuse of Corn By Kelpie Wilson t r u t h o u t | Perspective Wednesday 20 July 2005 The wheel it has circled, time without end, Old life remembers, and welcomes the grain. For the corn and the seed are one and the same, That which has been, will be again. -- from Demeter's Hymn by Lyn Hubert They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all others, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn. -- Job 24:6 It was one of those things that you can't quite believe is real. I was flipping through a magazine and saw an ad for a stove that burns corn kernels. For heat. Corn is food, not fuel, I thought, but the ad assured me that Corn is replenished annually. It is a never-ending energy source, and thus is the new alternative fuel of choice. Something about it felt very wrong to me. Burning food does not seem respectful. Especially when there are two billion people in the world who don't get enough to eat. But it is more than that. Corn production uses tremendous amounts of fossil fuel for mechanized labor, irrigation, drying, transport and fertilizer. I sincerely doubted that corn as a fuel could be renewable on a sustainable basis. Almost one quarter of America's farmland grows corn - maize. At nine billion bushels a year, it is our single largest crop and uses vast amounts of water, pesticides and fertilizer. Erosion and toxic runoff from the fields pollute waterways and kill fish in the Gulf of Mexico where a plume of pollution from the Mississippi Delta creates an ever-expanding dead zone. Raising corn the way we do it today depletes the soil of nutrients and creates an addiction to nitrogen fertilizer made from natural gas. Since natural gas prices went up a few years ago, we are producing less and less fertilizer here and importing more of it from the Persian Gulf. Now we must worry about food security as well as energy security. Burning corn in a stove may seem bizarre, but it is no more bizarre than fermenting and distilling it into ethanol to burn in our cars. As gas prices go up, people are looking to ethanol and other biofuels to substitute for oil. Unfortunately, it is a bad bargain - one that is being encouraged by giant agribusiness firms like Archer Daniels Midland and Monsanto that reap huge profits from corn and taxpayer's wallets. Corn is already America's most heavily subsidized crop, sucking up about $10 billion a year (according to OXFAM) along with all that water and fertilizer. About 13 percent of the corn crop is now devoted to ethanol production, but that would increase dramatically if the Energy Policy Act of 2005, now in a House-Senate conference committee, were to pass. The Senate version of the energy bill would require US ethanol production to more than double - from 3.3 billion gallons in 2004 to 8 billion gallons by 2012. Subsidies hide the true monetary cost of production, but the big accounting scandal here is the energy accounting. A study by Cornell ecologist David Pimentel and UC Berkeley engineer Tad Patzek found that when all the inputs to farming and ethanol production are accounted for, ethanol uses 29 percent more fossil fuel energy to produce than it yields in your gas tank. This figure does not include the work to restore the soils and waterways degraded and polluted by industrial agriculture. In a separate report, Patzek estimated that the energy cost of restoration is seven times the energy output of the ethanol. On the global warming front, Patzek found that the corn ethanol produced in 2004 would generate 11 million more tonnes of CO2 than would be emitted by burning the equivalent amount of gasoline instead. The best way to combat global warming would be to retire more farmland and help restore it to natural grasslands and forests, which are the most effective sinks for carbon sequestration. The energy bill title that increases ethanol production is called Renewable Content of Motor Vehicle Fuel. It defines renewable fuel as fuel that is produced from grain, starch, etc., that is used to replace or reduce the quantity of fossil fuel present in a fuel mixture used to operate a motor vehicle. By this definition, ethanol is clearly not a renewable fuel. Not only does it not replace any of the fossil fuel used to operate a motor vehicle, it actually increases the quantity of fossil fuel used because the ethanol embodies so much fossil fuel in its production. We would use less fossil fuel and produce less greenhouse gas by burning the fossil fuel directly in the motor vehicle. John McClelland of the Corn Growers Association, and Michael Graboski of the Colorado School of Mines, have disputed a previous analysis by Pimentel. They say Pimentel's figures are outdated; corn output today is higher and energy inputs are lower
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
And all of it because a bad language interpretation at the end of WWII. When the Americans, after winning, asked the Germans what they most needed to avoid starvation, they answered Korn (Rye), which the Americans interpret to Corn (Maise) and started to send loads of it. The Germans was very sad about it, not only did they loose the war, but the Americans gave them animal food to eat. Outside US, Corn is an animal staple feed and is not normally used by people, this even today. Even poor people do not eat animal food, if they are not forced to do so. Why do the Americans stubbornly send animal food to the starving people of the world and expect them to be grateful about it. In most cases it is taken as an insult. Except for US, burning Corn, that are not used for animals, is a great idea. To heavily subsidize production of animal food is not a great idea and you must be American to do so. Not only that, the Americans eat the animal food themselves, food which will make the rest of the world think about pigs and they say that the Americans are rich?! LOL This has been going on for 60 years now, do not tell me that the Americans are flexible and understanding. Hakan At 03:53 PM 7/25/2005, you wrote: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/072005A.shtml The Tragic Abuse of Corn By Kelpie Wilson t r u t h o u t | Perspective Wednesday 20 July 2005 The wheel it has circled, time without end, Old life remembers, and welcomes the grain. For the corn and the seed are one and the same, That which has been, will be again. -- from Demeter's Hymn by Lyn Hubert They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all others, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn. -- Job 24:6 It was one of those things that you can't quite believe is real. I was flipping through a magazine and saw an ad for a stove that burns corn kernels. For heat. Corn is food, not fuel, I thought, but the ad assured me that Corn is replenished annually. It is a never-ending energy source, and thus is the new alternative fuel of choice. Something about it felt very wrong to me. Burning food does not seem respectful. Especially when there are two billion people in the world who don't get enough to eat. But it is more than that. Corn production uses tremendous amounts of fossil fuel for mechanized labor, irrigation, drying, transport and fertilizer. I sincerely doubted that corn as a fuel could be renewable on a sustainable basis. Almost one quarter of America's farmland grows corn - maize. At nine billion bushels a year, it is our single largest crop and uses vast amounts of water, pesticides and fertilizer. Erosion and toxic runoff from the fields pollute waterways and kill fish in the Gulf of Mexico where a plume of pollution from the Mississippi Delta creates an ever-expanding dead zone. Raising corn the way we do it today depletes the soil of nutrients and creates an addiction to nitrogen fertilizer made from natural gas. Since natural gas prices went up a few years ago, we are producing less and less fertilizer here and importing more of it from the Persian Gulf. Now we must worry about food security as well as energy security. Burning corn in a stove may seem bizarre, but it is no more bizarre than fermenting and distilling it into ethanol to burn in our cars. As gas prices go up, people are looking to ethanol and other biofuels to substitute for oil. Unfortunately, it is a bad bargain - one that is being encouraged by giant agribusiness firms like Archer Daniels Midland and Monsanto that reap huge profits from corn and taxpayer's wallets. Corn is already America's most heavily subsidized crop, sucking up about $10 billion a year (according to OXFAM) along with all that water and fertilizer. About 13 percent of the corn crop is now devoted to ethanol production, but that would increase dramatically if the Energy Policy Act of 2005, now in a House-Senate conference committee, were to pass. The Senate version of the energy bill would require US ethanol production to more than double - from 3.3 billion gallons in 2004 to 8 billion gallons by 2012. Subsidies hide the true monetary cost of production, but the big accounting scandal here is the energy accounting. A study by Cornell ecologist David Pimentel and UC Berkeley engineer Tad Patzek found that when all the inputs to farming and ethanol production are accounted for, ethanol uses 29 percent more fossil fuel energy to produce than it yields in your gas tank. This figure does not include the work to restore the soils and waterways degraded and polluted by industrial agriculture. In a separate report, Patzek estimated that the energy cost of restoration is seven times the energy output of the ethanol. On the global warming front, Patzek found that the corn ethanol produced in 2004 would generate 11 million more tonnes of CO2
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Hakan Falk wrote: And all of it because a bad language interpretation at the end of WWII. When the Americans, after winning, asked the Germans what they most needed to avoid starvation, they answered Korn (Rye), which the Americans interpret to Corn (Maise) and started to send loads of it. The Germans was very sad about it, not only did they loose the war, but the Americans gave them animal food to eat. Outside US, Corn is an animal staple feed and is not normally used by people, this even today. Even poor people do not eat animal food, if they are not forced to do so. Why do the Americans stubbornly send animal food to the starving people of the world and expect them to be grateful about it. In most cases it is taken as an insult. Except for US, burning Corn, that are not used for animals, is a great idea. To heavily subsidize production of animal food is not a great idea and you must be American to do so. Not only that, the Americans eat the animal food themselves, food which will make the rest of the world think about pigs and they say that the Americans are rich?! LOL This has been going on for 60 years now, do not tell me that the Americans are flexible and understanding. Hakan To view maize as strictly animal food could be considered insulting to those native to this (American) continent, some of whose legends speak of it coming to them from Sky-Father as a gift. Indeed evidence shows that corn has been cultivated in Mexico 7000 years ago, though what its origins are, no one is sure. There seem to be no wild varieties of corn. To be sure, the sacredness of corn is ignored by those who hybridize and genetically alter it, changing its characteristics from those that evolution and Sky-Father designed. But even in 1492 when the first seeds were brought to Europe, their value must have been seen as something worth loading aboard and bringing with the first explorers back to their homelands. I do however recall the difficulty my mother had, when I was a child and growing up in Germany, in obtaining corn on the cob for family meals. Germans did (do?) view maize as an animal fodder, and we were likely looked down upon for eating it. And now, after reading labels, I discover that the WVO I've been retrieving from behind the restaurant that has allowed me to gather their waste, is 100% corn. My pickup loves it too. doug swanson ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
ok, so is pimentel now using current data or not? if the answer is no, then the question becomes is this chick legit? the blurb about corn syrup is pretty over the top. -chris In a message dated 7/25/05 8:04:45 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: . . .In any case, Pimentel's new report with Patzek is based on current data and still reaches the same conclusion - ethanol uses more energy than it yields. They say investments in solar energy and vehicle fuel efficiency are where we should put our money. . . . . . .HCFS is an industrial product that was perfected in the 1970s and introduced into the food system in the early 1980s. Almost immediately, Americans started putting on weight, with obesity doubling by 2000. ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Keith - I'm still an avid reader of biofuel.com. I planted corn in my backyard garden this year to better appreciate corn and mother corn. Is it GMO'd corn seed. Who knows. But I now understand that if my family existed on homegrown ag and fruit products we could stay body lean as nature intended. For example, I have to wait until the crops are ready for harvest. This means I have to moderate my food intake and conserve until harvest. I work the land and wait patiently. I curb my desire and try to resist going to the local store to buy frozen pizza; and HFCS juices. But I then think about my other fellow humans who don't have the opportunity to think frozen pizza or even have the water to grow mother corn. Keep up the good work, P. Wolfe --- Keith Addison [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/072005A.shtml The Tragic Abuse of Corn By Kelpie Wilson t r u t h o u t | Perspective Wednesday 20 July 2005 The wheel it has circled, time without end, Old life remembers, and welcomes the grain. For the corn and the seed are one and the same, That which has been, will be again. -- from Demeter's Hymn by Lyn Hubert They are exalted for a little while, but are gone and brought low; they are taken out of the way as all others, and cut off as the tops of the ears of corn. -- Job 24:6 It was one of those things that you can't quite believe is real. I was flipping through a magazine and saw an ad for a stove that burns corn kernels. For heat. Corn is food, not fuel, I thought, but the ad assured me that Corn is replenished annually. It is a never-ending energy source, and thus is the new alternative fuel of choice. Something about it felt very wrong to me. Burning food does not seem respectful. Especially when there are two billion people in the world who don't get enough to eat. But it is more than that. Corn production uses tremendous amounts of fossil fuel for mechanized labor, irrigation, drying, transport and fertilizer. I sincerely doubted that corn as a fuel could be renewable on a sustainable basis. Almost one quarter of America's farmland grows corn - maize. At nine billion bushels a year, it is our single largest crop and uses vast amounts of water, pesticides and fertilizer. Erosion and toxic runoff from the fields pollute waterways and kill fish in the Gulf of Mexico where a plume of pollution from the Mississippi Delta creates an ever-expanding dead zone. Raising corn the way we do it today depletes the soil of nutrients and creates an addiction to nitrogen fertilizer made from natural gas. Since natural gas prices went up a few years ago, we are producing less and less fertilizer here and importing more of it from the Persian Gulf. Now we must worry about food security as well as energy security. Burning corn in a stove may seem bizarre, but it is no more bizarre than fermenting and distilling it into ethanol to burn in our cars. As gas prices go up, people are looking to ethanol and other biofuels to substitute for oil. Unfortunately, it is a bad bargain - one that is being encouraged by giant agribusiness firms like Archer Daniels Midland and Monsanto that reap huge profits from corn and taxpayer's wallets. Corn is already America's most heavily subsidized crop, sucking up about $10 billion a year (according to OXFAM) along with all that water and fertilizer. About 13 percent of the corn crop is now devoted to ethanol production, but that would increase dramatically if the Energy Policy Act of 2005, now in a House-Senate conference committee, were to pass. The Senate version of the energy bill would require US ethanol production to more than double - from 3.3 billion gallons in 2004 to 8 billion gallons by 2012. Subsidies hide the true monetary cost of production, but the big accounting scandal here is the energy accounting. A study by Cornell ecologist David Pimentel and UC Berkeley engineer Tad Patzek found that when all the inputs to farming and ethanol production are accounted for, ethanol uses 29 percent more fossil fuel energy to produce than it yields in your gas tank. This figure does not include the work to restore the soils and waterways degraded and polluted by industrial agriculture. In a separate report, Patzek estimated that the energy cost of restoration is seven times the energy output of the ethanol. On the global warming front, Patzek found that the corn ethanol produced in 2004 would generate 11 million more tonnes of CO2 than would be emitted by burning the equivalent amount of gasoline instead. The best way to combat global warming would be to retire more farmland and help restore it to natural grasslands and forests, which are the most effective sinks for carbon sequestration. The energy bill title that
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Phillip Wolfe wrote: Keith - I'm still an avid reader of biofuel.com. I planted corn in my backyard garden this year to better appreciate corn and mother corn. Is it GMO'd corn seed. Who knows. But I now understand that if my family existed on homegrown ag and fruit products we could stay body lean as nature intended. For example, I have to wait until the crops are ready for harvest. This means I have to moderate my food intake and conserve until harvest. I work the land and wait patiently. I curb my desire and try to resist going to the local store to buy frozen pizza; and HFCS juices. But I then think about my other fellow humans who don't have the opportunity to think frozen pizza or even have the water to grow mother corn. Keep up the good work, P. Wolfe If you look for heirloom seeds, (google it to find it on the continent of your choice) you'll be getting seeds that haven't been hybrided. As far as cross-pollenation that might have occurred, I suppose only those which were grown in a controlled (greenhouse) environment could be guaranteed GM free. Eliminating risk may be impossible, but reducing it is still an option! doug swanson ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Greetings, The heirloom gardeners list at yahell has an anual seed swap, as well as a seed bank. If you can collect seed this fall, wildcraft seed does qualify. I had it easy, trumpet vine is a weed at my place, grows wild all over but is expensive at the nursery. I found this an ecconomical way to switch over to open pollenated seeds. There are also several other seed swaps on the internet, this is where I got my oily black sunflower seeds. I am patiently waiting for my corn to be ready, as well. I planted late as my onions were put in late. Late is something you don't want to be in a garden, you never seem to catch up with yourself. Bright Blessings, Kim At 10:38 AM 7/25/2005, you wrote: Phillip Wolfe wrote: Keith - I'm still an avid reader of biofuel.com. I planted corn in my backyard garden this year to better appreciate corn and mother corn. Is it GMO'd corn seed. Who knows. But I now understand that if my family existed on homegrown ag and fruit products we could stay body lean as nature intended. For example, I have to wait until the crops are ready for harvest. This means I have to moderate my food intake and conserve until harvest. I work the land and wait patiently. I curb my desire and try to resist going to the local store to buy frozen pizza; and HFCS juices. But I then think about my other fellow humans who don't have the opportunity to think frozen pizza or even have the water to grow mother corn. Keep up the good work, P. Wolfe If you look for heirloom seeds, (google it to find it on the continent of your choice) you'll be getting seeds that haven't been hybrided. As far as cross-pollenation that might have occurred, I suppose only those which were grown in a controlled (greenhouse) environment could be guaranteed GM free. Eliminating risk may be impossible, but reducing it is still an option! doug swanson ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
ok, so is pimentel now using current data or not? if the answer is no, then the question becomes is this chick legit? She's just fooled by the current data bit, like everyone else is. It is not current data, see the message I posted yesterday: http://sustainablelists.org/pipermail/biofuel_sustainablelists.org/200 5-July/001738.html [Biofuel] Cornell on ethanol, biodiesel, hydrogen energy efficiencies http://snipurl.com/ghth the blurb about corn syrup is pretty over the top. Not really, the stuff is a disaster. HFCS certainly has much to do with the rising plague of obesity, and worse. ... introduced into the food system in the early 1980s, not quite accurate, as others are saying about corn as food, and it was really the trading system that it was introduced to, worldwide. This was just after sugar farmers among others in many 3rd World countries had been pushed by the World Bank et al into capital-intensive methods on the assurance of US market prices for sugar of around 25c, which dropped to 6c when HFCS got a foothold. Exit several 3rd World rural econonies, with resultant famines in some cases. You should perhaps have a look at what Surgeon-Captain Cleave has to say about refined carbohydrates, and this was before the rise of HFCS: http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library.html#cleave Best wishes Keith -chris In a message dated 7/25/05 8:04:45 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: . . .In any case, Pimentel's new report with Patzek is based on current data and still reaches the same conclusion - ethanol uses more energy than it yields. They say investments in solar energy and vehicle fuel efficiency are where we should put our money. . . . . . .HCFS is an industrial product that was perfected in the 1970s and introduced into the food system in the early 1980s. Almost immediately, Americans started putting on weight, with obesity doubling by 2000. ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Doug, One thing is viewing corn (maize) as animal food, and other thing is the actual use of it. I will never try to deny the Americans the right to eat corn (maize) and I was only talking about the perception and customs in different countries. It is realities, like it or not, and I think it is a large difference between having an opinion and expect people to eat something that they regard as animal food. Most of the people have never met an American and know little about them. Yes, corn (maize) is very old and its most common use is as food for animals. I do have to admit that I do enjoy corn on the cob with butter and many foreigners with me. Maize flower is also excellent to use for sauces. Hakan At 03:19 PM 7/25/2005, you wrote: Hakan Falk wrote: And all of it because a bad language interpretation at the end of WWII. When the Americans, after winning, asked the Germans what they most needed to avoid starvation, they answered Korn (Rye), which the Americans interpret to Corn (Maise) and started to send loads of it. The Germans was very sad about it, not only did they loose the war, but the Americans gave them animal food to eat. Outside US, Corn is an animal staple feed and is not normally used by people, this even today. Even poor people do not eat animal food, if they are not forced to do so. Why do the Americans stubbornly send animal food to the starving people of the world and expect them to be grateful about it. In most cases it is taken as an insult. Except for US, burning Corn, that are not used for animals, is a great idea. To heavily subsidize production of animal food is not a great idea and you must be American to do so. Not only that, the Americans eat the animal food themselves, food which will make the rest of the world think about pigs and they say that the Americans are rich?! LOL This has been going on for 60 years now, do not tell me that the Americans are flexible and understanding. Hakan To view maize as strictly animal food could be considered insulting to those native to this (American) continent, some of whose legends speak of it coming to them from Sky-Father as a gift. Indeed evidence shows that corn has been cultivated in Mexico 7000 years ago, though what its origins are, no one is sure. There seem to be no wild varieties of corn. To be sure, the sacredness of corn is ignored by those who hybridize and genetically alter it, changing its characteristics from those that evolution and Sky-Father designed. But even in 1492 when the first seeds were brought to Europe, their value must have been seen as something worth loading aboard and bringing with the first explorers back to their homelands. I do however recall the difficulty my mother had, when I was a child and growing up in Germany, in obtaining corn on the cob for family meals. Germans did (do?) view maize as an animal fodder, and we were likely looked down upon for eating it. And now, after reading labels, I discover that the WVO I've been retrieving from behind the restaurant that has allowed me to gather their waste, is 100% corn. My pickup loves it too. doug swanson ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
keith, no doubt refined carbos have their health effects. i was just referring to the implication (whether intentional or not) that hfcs introduction is wholly responsible for the horrible rates of obesity. as though eating and exercise habits, and the whole plethora of other very bad additives in our foods were irrelevant. i found the other posting, about the codix alimentarius, had a similarly over-simplistic feel to it. don't get me wrong, i don't presume to deny or question the basic thesis. i really don't know much about the specifics i.e. just what the codix is, and how the wfo or who or wto or world bank are connected. but i *do* know that there is a pretty high awareness of health issues in europe, and things like alternative medicine and herbal/vitamin suplemments are pretty well accepted by the mainstream of society. so, the implications or consequences of these rules can't be so cut and dry (not to say that the potential isn't there, either). and all of this language about 'our liberty' and 'our independence', and references as to how this official and that other official are german, it's all very jingoistic. that kind of stuff just really grates with me and my immediate reaction is to ask how much of this article's content is disinformation or misinformation. anyway, enough ranting. . . . best, -chris In a message dated 7/25/05 2:13:02 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: the blurb about corn syrup is pretty over the top. Not really, the stuff is a disaster. HFCS certainly has much to do with the rising plague of obesity, and worse. ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Norton AntiSpam] Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
I probbly missed the message but U do realize that we do not eat the same corn we feed the animals in the USA? Corn-on-the-cob and canned or frozen corn at the grocery store come from sweet corn. The corn you grow in your garden also is a variety of sweet corn. But the most abundant type of corn grown in the United States is actually field, or dent, corn. Almost all of the corn you see in farm fields is dent corn. Unlike sweet corn, dent corn has a hard outer portion about the thickness of your fingernail. The inner portion of the corn kernel is soft and floury. Dent corn is used to make starches, oils, livestock feed, ethanol fuel and many other products like crayons, paints and paper. Dent corn also is used to make corn syrup sweeteners and other ingredients that appear in all kinds of foods from soft drinks to baked goods. Ray J Hakan Falk wrote: Doug, One thing is viewing corn (maize) as animal food, and other thing is the actual use of it. I will never try to deny the Americans the right to eat corn (maize) and I was only talking about the perception and customs in different countries. It is realities, like it or not, and I think it is a large difference between having an opinion and expect people to eat something that they regard as animal food. Most of the people have never met an American and know little about them. Yes, corn (maize) is very old and its most common use is as food for animals. I do have to admit that I do enjoy corn on the cob with butter and many foreigners with me. Maize flower is also excellent to use for sauces. Hakan At 03:19 PM 7/25/2005, you wrote: Hakan Falk wrote: And all of it because a bad language interpretation at the end of WWII. When the Americans, after winning, asked the Germans what they most needed to avoid starvation, they answered Korn (Rye), which the Americans interpret to Corn (Maise) and started to send loads of it. The Germans was very sad about it, not only did they loose the war, but the Americans gave them animal food to eat. Outside US, Corn is an animal staple feed and is not normally used by people, this even today. Even poor people do not eat animal food, if they are not forced to do so. Why do the Americans stubbornly send animal food to the starving people of the world and expect them to be grateful about it. In most cases it is taken as an insult. Except for US, burning Corn, that are not used for animals, is a great idea. To heavily subsidize production of animal food is not a great idea and you must be American to do so. Not only that, the Americans eat the animal food themselves, food which will make the rest of the world think about pigs and they say that the Americans are rich?! LOL This has been going on for 60 years now, do not tell me that the Americans are flexible and understanding. Hakan To view maize as strictly animal food could be considered insulting to those native to this (American) continent, some of whose legends speak of it coming to them from Sky-Father as a gift. Indeed evidence shows that corn has been cultivated in Mexico 7000 years ago, though what its origins are, no one is sure. There seem to be no wild varieties of corn. To be sure, the sacredness of corn is ignored by those who hybridize and genetically alter it, changing its characteristics from those that evolution and Sky-Father designed. But even in 1492 when the first seeds were brought to Europe, their value must have been seen as something worth loading aboard and bringing with the first explorers back to their homelands. I do however recall the difficulty my mother had, when I was a child and growing up in Germany, in obtaining corn on the cob for family meals. Germans did (do?) view maize as an animal fodder, and we were likely looked down upon for eating it. And now, after reading labels, I discover that the WVO I've been retrieving from behind the restaurant that has allowed me to gather their waste, is 100% corn. My pickup loves it too. doug swanson ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org
Re: [Norton AntiSpam] Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Ray, Thanks for the lesson, I did actually not realize this difference and in this case the sweet corn is very rare in Europe or the world outside of US. The common crop would be dent corn, but I think that there are not many outside of US, who know the difference. Apart from occasional corn on the cob, it is not a human food resource and certainly not a staple food for humans. Spain, where I live, grow a lot of dent corn and Spanish rarely eat corn. Sweden, where I come from, do not grow or eat a lot of corn, I do not have any experiences from any other country than US, where corn is a human staple food resource. It is always fun and valuable to learn more and this list is a gold mine. It is so many knowledgeable people on the list and from so many countries, that it is easy to get addicted to the list. Hakan At 12:50 AM 7/26/2005, you wrote: I probbly missed the message but U do realize that we do not eat the same corn we feed the animals in the USA? Corn-on-the-cob and canned or frozen corn at the grocery store come from sweet corn. The corn you grow in your garden also is a variety of sweet corn. But the most abundant type of corn grown in the United States is actually field, or dent, corn. Almost all of the corn you see in farm fields is dent corn. Unlike sweet corn, dent corn has a hard outer portion about the thickness of your fingernail. The inner portion of the corn kernel is soft and floury. Dent corn is used to make starches, oils, livestock feed, ethanol fuel and many other products like crayons, paints and paper. Dent corn also is used to make corn syrup sweeteners and other ingredients that appear in all kinds of foods from soft drinks to baked goods. Ray J Hakan Falk wrote: Doug, One thing is viewing corn (maize) as animal food, and other thing is the actual use of it. I will never try to deny the Americans the right to eat corn (maize) and I was only talking about the perception and customs in different countries. It is realities, like it or not, and I think it is a large difference between having an opinion and expect people to eat something that they regard as animal food. Most of the people have never met an American and know little about them. Yes, corn (maize) is very old and its most common use is as food for animals. I do have to admit that I do enjoy corn on the cob with butter and many foreigners with me. Maize flower is also excellent to use for sauces. Hakan At 03:19 PM 7/25/2005, you wrote: Hakan Falk wrote: And all of it because a bad language interpretation at the end of WWII. When the Americans, after winning, asked the Germans what they most needed to avoid starvation, they answered Korn (Rye), which the Americans interpret to Corn (Maise) and started to send loads of it. The Germans was very sad about it, not only did they loose the war, but the Americans gave them animal food to eat. Outside US, Corn is an animal staple feed and is not normally used by people, this even today. Even poor people do not eat animal food, if they are not forced to do so. Why do the Americans stubbornly send animal food to the starving people of the world and expect them to be grateful about it. In most cases it is taken as an insult. Except for US, burning Corn, that are not used for animals, is a great idea. To heavily subsidize production of animal food is not a great idea and you must be American to do so. Not only that, the Americans eat the animal food themselves, food which will make the rest of the world think about pigs and they say that the Americans are rich?! LOL This has been going on for 60 years now, do not tell me that the Americans are flexible and understanding. Hakan To view maize as strictly animal food could be considered insulting to those native to this (American) continent, some of whose legends speak of it coming to them from Sky-Father as a gift. Indeed evidence shows that corn has been cultivated in Mexico 7000 years ago, though what its origins are, no one is sure. There seem to be no wild varieties of corn. To be sure, the sacredness of corn is ignored by those who hybridize and genetically alter it, changing its characteristics from those that evolution and Sky-Father designed. But even in 1492 when the first seeds were brought to Europe, their value must have been seen as something worth loading aboard and bringing with the first explorers back to their homelands. I do however recall the difficulty my mother had, when I was a child and growing up in Germany, in obtaining corn on the cob for family meals. Germans did (do?) view maize as an animal fodder, and we were likely looked down upon for eating it. And now, after reading labels, I discover that the WVO I've been retrieving from behind the restaurant that has allowed me to gather their waste, is 100% corn. My pickup loves it too. doug swanson ___ Biofuel
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Hello Chris keith, no doubt refined carbos have their health effects. Why not go and have a look at what Cleave says about it? http://journeytoforever.org/farm_library.html#cleave i was just referring to the implication (whether intentional or not) that hfcs introduction is wholly responsible for the horrible rates of obesity. She didn't imply that. It is a major cause though. As I said, it's a disaster. as though eating and exercise habits, and the whole plethora of other very bad additives in our foods were irrelevant. She didn't imply that either. i found the other posting, about the codix alimentarius, had a similarly over-simplistic feel to it. don't get me wrong, i don't presume to deny or question the basic thesis. i really don't know much about the specifics i.e. just what the codix is, and how the wfo or who or wto or world bank are connected. but i *do* know that there is a pretty high awareness of health issues in europe, and things like alternative medicine and herbal/vitamin suplemments are pretty well accepted by the mainstream of society. Which costs big pharma a pile in perceived lost sales and lost markets. This move to curtail it and hijack it has been going on for more than 10 years, and the only factor I've seen in it is big pharma acting true to form as a greedy bully. so, the implications or consequences of these rules can't be so cut and dry (not to say that the potential isn't there, either). and all of this language about 'our liberty' and 'our independence', and references as to how this official and that other official are german, it's all very jingoistic. You might see it that way, but AFAIK the Codex move has been centred in Germany, which already had restrictive laws in place favouring big pharma, in which this guy seems to have played a leading role. that kind of stuff just really grates with me and my immediate reaction is to ask how much of this article's content is disinformation or misinformation. Or merely perhaps that you're over-reacting and it's mostly in the eye of the beholder? Best wishes Keith anyway, enough ranting. . . . best, -chris In a message dated 7/25/05 2:13:02 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: the blurb about corn syrup is pretty over the top. Not really, the stuff is a disaster. HFCS certainly has much to do with the rising plague of obesity, and worse. ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
Re: [Biofuel] The Tragic Abuse of Corn
Hi Phillip Keith - I'm still an avid reader of biofuel.com. I planted corn in my backyard garden this year to better appreciate corn and mother corn. Is it GMO'd corn seed. Probably not, more likely a hybrid. Try to get open-pollenated corn, or heritage corn better. Who knows. But I now understand that if my family existed on homegrown ag and fruit products we could stay body lean as nature intended. Yes! Though it's easy to produce too much, and eat too much too because it tastes so good. But it's very unlikely that it could make you obese. Whatever you do it will be more balanced and less toxic than processed junk from the food industry. For example, I have to wait until the crops are ready for harvest. This means I have to moderate my food intake and conserve until harvest. I work the land and wait patiently. I curb my desire and try to resist going to the local store to buy frozen pizza; and HFCS juices. But I then think about my other fellow humans who don't have the opportunity to think frozen pizza or even have the water to grow mother corn. A well-balanced outlook, Phillip, IMHO. Keep up the good work, And you too. Best wishes Keith P. Wolfe --- Keith Addison [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/072005A.shtml The Tragic Abuse of Corn By Kelpie Wilson t r u t h o u t | Perspective snip ___ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
