Reading List for August 2-6

1. "Death of a Farm"
The oldest continuously run family farm in the country is closing down.
- Essay by Verlyn Klinkenborg in the NYTimes

"What killed it was the economic structure of food production. Each year it has become harder for family farms to compete with industrial scale agriculture — heavily subsidized by the government — underselling them at every turn. In a system committed to the health of farms and their integration with local communities, the result would have been different. In 1632, and for many years after, the Tuttle farm was a necessity. In 2010, it is suddenly superfluous, or so we like to pretend."

- "After 378 Years, NH Family Farm Goes Up For Sale" on NPR (with pictures)
- Transcript of NPR interview with Lucy Tuttle, farm manager


2. Genetically Altered Salmon?
- "Company says FDA is nearing decision on genetically engineered Atlantic salmon," from the Washington Post
- "Genetically Altered Salmon Get Closer to the Table," from the NYTimes

"[A] Massachusetts company says it is on the verge of receiving federal approval to market a quick-growing Atlantic salmon that's been genetically modified with help from a Pacific Chinook salmon."

3. "A food bill we need" by Michelle Obama
The first lady expresses her support for the Child Nutrition Bill in the Washington Post.

"[E]ven if we all work to help our kids lead healthy lives at home, they also need to stay healthy and active at school. The last thing parents need or want is to see the progress they're making at home lost during the school day."

- "The Senate's Important Lunch Date," an op-ed from the New York Times


4. "The Salt Hiding in Your Diet," from the Wall Street Journal

"Cutting sodium from the diet is difficult, mainly because people often don't know it's there. More than three-quarters of the sodium people consume comes from processed and restaurant foods. And much of the sodium we eat is in foods that don't necessarily taste salty, like packaged bread and chicken dishes."

- Salt Reduction Strategies from HSPH's The Nutrition Source