As board members, we have a fiduciary responsibility to every owner of Outpost Natural Foods. In other words, the nine of us have been elected with trust and confidence to help manage and protect the co-op’s interest. We do this through sound decision making and representation.

As we move forward into a brand new year, it’s a great time to take stock of the good that cooperatives like Outpost do.

One of the big things on my list? Education.

An e-mail recently appeared in my inbox that really got me thinking about the sustainability of current conventional farming practices. The e-mail contained a link to a report by the Center for Food Safety as part of its Save Our Seeds (SOS) initiative (http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/campaign/save-our-seeds/). The report, Seed Giants vs. U.S. Farmers, highlights the ongoing practice of seed companies suing farmers for patent infringement when their fields are discovered to contain genetically engineered (GE or trangenic) crops, even though the farmers hadn't purchased GE seeds from the companies. The seed companies allege that farmers are knowingly saving seeds from prior year GE crops, or are obtaining GE seeds from “seed cleaners,” who specialize in the practice of processing seeds from prior years to use for subsequent plantings. According to the seed companies, these practices are expressly prohibited by the technology agreements signed by farmers who use GE seeds.

As a cooperative business, our owners choose the team of individuals (Board of Directors) who will determine the business goals (Ends) and oversee general management’s strategy (Means) for accomplishing those goals.  Ideally, each Director will represent at least one aspect of the diversity of our ownership population. 

In other words:  You have an opportunity to select YOUR ambassador in the leadership of your Outpost.

On Saturday, October 6, I had the pleasure of attending Harvest Day at Walnut Way, on 17th and North Avenue.  The entire 2200 block of N. 17th Street was blocked off for the celebration, with a large sound truck on the north end, providing a stage and sound system for talk and music.

I am an ardent Outpost owner for many reasons, but near the top is the collection of environmental policies put into place by the Outpost management and staff.  In fact, the WE Energies Summer 2012 newsletter “Energy for Tomorrow” highlighted Outpost as a visionary organization in the field of energy conservation.

Looking back through history, we see various “ages,” such as Iron, Bronze, Enlightenment, and the depressingly and aptly named, Dark. How will history look back at our present age? One answer may be the Age of Plastic. Looking around us, and how our way of life has changed in the past 100 years, it would be difficult to argue that this isn’t the Age of Plastic. If you still need convincing, walk around your house, your neighborhood, or your grocery store. Envision this walk without any plastic. Going even further, image life after this walk without all this plastic, and think what life would be like.

I recently had the opportunity to read a very interesting book on a possible cause of the obesity facing us today, “Wheat Belly,” by William Davis, MD. It is alleged by Dr. Davis that wheat is a primary underlying cause of much of our obesity as well as a myriad of other health issues plaguing us today. More precisely, it is a complex carbohydrate, Amylopectin A, that is the culprit that causes higher spikes in blood sugar than a candy bar, ice cream or even table sugar itself.

It’s been nearly a month since I attended the Outpost screening of the movie Bag It.  And I have to hand it to Director Suzan Beraza.  Choosing Jeb Berrier as the focus of the movie was absolutely brilliant.  He’s a believable "everyman” whose experience with plastic isn’t so different from every one of ours. He’s not an avid environmentalist or a radical.  He’s just a guy in a world filled (increasingly) with plastic.  Best of all, he has a sense of humor about it, which makes the movie engaging and genuinely entertaining.

Repeat after me – I am not a quitter - I am not a quitter. Well I guess “life” happened since my last blog post, as I have blissfully ignored the fact I haven’t yet completed my list of lessons.