Beyond Sustainable,  a new weekly blog from Homesteaders Supply!

Here we will highlight articles from homesteaders and related helping organizations blogging about their experience and insights for creating a sustainable lifestyle. Many of these articles will demonstrate their creative ingenuity for income, insights into the care of the land and their animals, and how to effectively grow, preserve, and prepare the foods we need for a healthy lifestyle.  We will also highlight articles from organizations that are helping us in our efforts toward a healthy and sustainable lifestyle.

12 Fascinating Facts about Chicken Eyesight 

An interesting article from Lisa Steele and Fresh-Eggs-Daily.com

I always wondered why my chickens tilt there head when looking up at me, now I know!   Did you know that Just before hatching, a chick turns in the shell so its right eye is next to the shell (and absorbs light through the shell) and its left eye is covered by its body. As a result the right eye develops near-sightedness to allow a chicken to search for food, while the left eye develops far-sightedness, to allow a chicken to search for predators from afar. That is why when a hawk flies overhead, you will notice your chickens tilt their heads with their left eye to the sky.   read more 

A Green Tea Take on Obama Care

a blog from our friend Shannon Hayes, author of the book Radical Homemakers, and more.  

“This story has been popping into my mind a lot these past few weeks as I listen to the media, neighbors, and friends discuss the Affordable Care Act. In spite of the approximately 50 million Americans who are uninsured, I am hearing folks express a lot of fear of the unknown. Some who are uninsured are defiantly choosing to pay the tax penalties rather than purchase a policy. Some are seething with anger that their tax dollars will be paying for someone else’s healthcare. Others are simply petrified that if they move forward and enroll in the exchange, they will suddenly be without any coverage. As a nation, we are being asked to take the first steps to leave behind a cruel relationship. We are collectively confronting a great big unknown. Suddenly, all the homelessness, suffering, and bankruptcy offered by our current system seems preferable to confronting something new and different. It is as if we’ve become co-dependents to our existing abusive healthcare system.”  read more….

Julia Child Was Wrong: Don’t Wash Your Raw Chicken, Folks

by Maria Godoy from her NPR blog ‘the salt… what’s on your plate’

“It seems almost sacrilegious to question the wisdom of Julia Child. First with her opus Mastering the Art of French Cooking and later with her PBS cooking show, the unflappably cheerful Child helped rescue home cookery from the clutches of convenience food. She taught us how to love — and take pride in — making something from scratch.

And yet, in at least one important kitchen skill, Child got it dead wrong: rinsing raw poultry.”   read on…

Food Safety Modernization Act:
Stand Up Today for Food and Farms!

From the the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

The US Food and Drug Administration has proposed new rules this year that will have a huge impact on how fresh fruits and vegetables are grown and processed in the US. This is a big deal for farmers and eaters! Everyone has a role in ensuring safe food from field to fork – but FDA’s new proposed rules as written will unfairly burden family farmers, target sustainable and organic farming, and reduce the availability of fresh, local food in our communities. Right now, we have a chance to tell FDA that this is unacceptable – and we need your help to do it.

As currently written, the rules will:

• put many farms out of business;
• reduce the supply of fresh, local produce in schools and hospitals;
• push farmers to tear out wildlife habitat; and
• increase the use of chemicals rather than natural fertilizers.

FDA’s new food safety rules must:

• Allow farmers to use sustainable farming practices, including those already allowed and encouraged by existing federal organic standards and conservation programs.
• Ensure that diversified and innovative farms, particularly those pioneering models for increased access to healthy, local foods, continue to grow and thrive without being stifled. 
• Provide options that treat family farms fairly, with due process and without excessive costs.

Now stand up for your farmer, stand up for your food!

FDA is seeking comments from the public – that’s you! The #1 most important thing you can do to help fix FSMA is take a few minutes RIGHT NOW to submit a comment to FDA either online or through the mail.  Read more on how to take action:

We invite comments, questions and suggestions.  Contact us if you would like your blog featured here!