MAX
facts
hydroponic news, tips and trivia
Big Ag Wants Government Ban
on Cameras in Factory Farms
If House File 589 passes, filming and distributing video
content of animal abuse in Iowa factory farms will be
punishable by law, with ‘offenders’ facing penalties up to
$7,500 and five years in prison. But which part of the situation deserves a trip to the courtroom—the filming and
distribution of video content or the animal abuse?
Animal-rights activists point out the obvious: that the bill
will silence whistleblowers.
Unfortunately, with an agricultural industry that was
responsible for $24.7 billion in direct sales in 2008, Iowa’s
lawmakers would need to take a brave and principled
stand to vote the bill down.
(Source: www.takepart.com)
Recycle Smarter
Generally fluorescent lamps are four to five times more efficient than incandescent bulbs. However, they do contain
small amounts of mercury. The mercury is not exposed
to the environment unless the lamp is broken at the end
of its life. The best way to prevent the release of mercury
from lighting is to recycle lamps. Recycling lamps captures the mercury, allowing it to be reused.
A business has developed to collect and recycle end-oflife mercury lamps from commercial buildings. Options
for retail consumers are expanding rapidly as well. Many
local governments now collect end-of-life lamps and
some retailers such as Ikea and Home Depot are also taking back lamps.
(Source: www.sunlightsupply.com)
26
Maximum Yield USA | May 2011
The Perennial Plate: Sustainable Food Series
Last year, The Perennial
Plate—an online weekly
documentary series
dedicated to socially responsible and adventurous eating—went from a
small Minnesota website
to a nationally syndicated
show with over 12,000
weekly viewers. This year
in season two, the series
main character—chef and
activist Daniel Klein—will
be traveling across North
America to share inspiring food stories with as
many people as possible.
Each week Daniel will be
Daniel Klein
hunting, farming, fishing Photo credit: Stephanie Cogan
and foraging and then
cooking up a delectable
feast. Videos will be
posted weekly on
theperennialplate.com
This time around, the
show will go far beyond
just posting free videos.
The new website offers
an interactive element by which people across the country
can contribute story ideas, host events and follow the trip.
A blog is also included to showcase the many great stories,
pictures and recipes that don’t make it into the films. After
the trip is finished, the plan is to edit the journey into a feature length piece and release it with a cookbook compiled
of recipes from across the country.
If you want to see more real food films, help out by contributing to this show. Join Daniel for a real food road trip.
(Source: www.kickstarter.com)