But we really have some house cleaning to do. In order to take us into that next step where we crack into the mainstream culture and begin the wholesale reshaping of American food, how its produced, processed, procured, cooked and eaten, we’ve got to get a couple of things ironed out. An article I read today by one of our leading lights, Grist Magazine’s Tom Philpott, really got my goat.

You really gotta read the whole thing. What Rob has accomplished here is something very special, illuminating not just the HOW of eating locally but the WHY. As I read through Rob’s posts, I found the little nuggets of wisdom than an experiment like this can unearth, the tiny truths and discoveries, even about one’s own family that can shock, surprise and enrich us. Bravo Rob!

The organization began in Italy as a political stance against the way fast food was changing the local eating culture, and has since grown to 100,000 members in 132 countries, all interested in building a food system that is good, clean and fair. There are groups, called conviviums, in cities across the US that meet to discuss and enjoy food together. Much of the focus of Slow Food has been on protecting biodiversity: their program Ark of Taste promotes plants and animal breeds that have been dying out as industrial agriculture spreads a handful of species through standardization. But now, they’re rolling back their sleeves and setting their sights on food justice.

Our Nation’s School Lunch Program comes up for renewal by Congress this September and as a nation we need to pay attention. With all of the concern about our children’s performance on standardized tests we seem to have forgotten one element to the equation that could have significant impact on their ability to perform. Breakfast and lunch served in our nations schools has become more important than ever. With more and more women working outside the home and our economy in its current state the National School Lunch Program has never before been poised to play such a critical role in the lives of our children.

Slow Money uses the principles of Slow Food to improve and repair America’s broken food system

A beautiful pastoral look at one NYC woman’s quest to save her family farm by turning it into an organic CSA farm.

So we’ve got sustainable farming. We’ve got local eating. We’ve got pasture raising of animals. But what about cooking? The last link in the chain, save for cleaning, which by the way is my favorite part of the whole process. But now, Brighter Planet is rolling out a sustainable cooking contest. What a great idea! I am so happy to be participating in this contest. Believe it or not, I’ll be judging.

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It’s time for us to take back our food. The community of people brought together by their commitment and passion for local sustainable food has matured in ways I could not have imagined in the past months. New voices have emerged, new partnerships have been forged. The wind is at our sails.

In order to break through and become a mainstream movement, the local sustainable food movement needs several things to happen.
1. We need leadership
There are too many disparate leaders in the movement. Michael Pollan is an …