Nutrients in modern plant varieties

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Now here is an article which was published in a very conservative Australian weekly farming newspaper. You could have knocked me over with a feather! How it got past the editor I do not know. http://sl.farmonline.com.au/blogs/out-here/better-food-not-just-more/160....

It is not referenced, but it makes sense. I would like to know if anyone else has read similar articles recently about the diminishing quality of modern varieties from a nutrition point of view, and the effects this is having on the way people eat.

Related to that is another article in the Australian press about Woolworths, half of the duopoly controlling grocery sales in Australia, which is squeezing its suppliers, demanding lower prices for their suppliers within two weeks, 'or lose your contract'. See http://www.watoday.com.au/business/suppliers-squeezed-woolies-accused-20... .

This is an example of the pressure that is happening at the other end of the agribusiness supply chain, which encourages agriculture to design plant varieties that produce more weight and volume (higher water uptake by the plant) to boost yield per hectare, and boost their income to keep ahead of costs. Just you wait. Coles, the other half of the duopoly will do likewise, and there are not a lot of alternative markets in Australia for suppliers and growers to sell to. Grocery suppliers are being pushed in the same way as farmers. Fortunately, the Australian government is currently holding an enquiry into this food supply duopoly, which is currently sending many Australian food related businesses to the wall with their anti-competitive behaviour.

No doubt about it, a significant proportion of every purchase from Coles and Woolworths has been spent on lobbying the Federal government to protect Coles' and Woolworths' position as sellers of something like 75% of Australians' food and other supermarket lines. Coles and Woolworths also own the an enormous amount of other chains that supply liquor, fuel, hardware, electrical goods, variety stores, and other parts of our spending dollars. It is not a pretty picture, because many Australians do not realise that Coles and Woolworths own these other chains/brands.

If USA ever gets to this point ... ???

So support the small guy. Keep competition and options for food growers alive, so all of us don't get screwed by mega-food businesses.

Louise

Good article Louise, thanks. Keep your eye out for the writer's upcoming story about the link between the overuse of nitrogen fertilizers, and the epidemic of insulin-resistant disease. "If you’re an 85-year-old US citizen, you’re 150 per cent more likely to contract Alzheimers than an 85 year old was in 1968." Scary stuff - Surviving

Dear Louised

People have had allergies to grain (not necessarily the terrible Celiac disease) since forever, well, at least my generation (pre boomers) and some before. Note, there are types 1 starting with allergies and then 2, 3 before Celiac at 4. Since the fifties there have been modifications to wheat made by geneticists in the 1970’s in commendable efforts to increase yields.

According to Dr Davies (an American cardiologist) this involved, just a few shifts in amino acids and gliadin in modern high-yield, semi dwarf wheat, making the wheat addictive and a potent appetite stimulant. I do not know how widespread the use of this wheat is. I suspect it is world-wide. I am assuming it is widespread in America for him to be speaking out. He also mentions intestinal disruption and leakiness generated by wheat lectins, and the highblood sugars and insulin of the amylopectin A of wheat and the new allergies being generated by the new alpha amylases of modern wheat.

What I do know from personal experience is that the incidence of asthma amongst children in Australia has had a dramatic rise in recent years, and continues to rise and is increasing in incident and not proportionate to population increase. I also know that my eldest son born in 1969 experienced asthma at age 3-4 when the at that time current research data said that did not happen. Only years later did researchers discover a new phenomena in that 4-year-olds were developing asthma. Since then we have had increases in Autism, Attention Deficit Syndrome, Diabetes 1 and 2,even an increase in nut allergies in societies that formerly thrived on peanut butter. I can only assume trends change for a reason and not necessarily just because research had finally caught up.

What I am interested in at this point in my life is that young women and men be provided with correct information as to the nutritional value of foods. That they understand just because Joe Bloggs can eat a certain diet and seemingly thrive, it does not necessarily follow that they can too. That diet is an individual thing depending upon background, genetic make-up, allergy susceptibility and the actual quality of food available to them. That if they declare for what they see as compelling ethical reasons (in the endearing altruism of young people) that they will be vegetarian, they be aware of the necessity of looking at what proportions of vitamins, protein, minerals, trace elements etc that their body needs to sustain itself in a healthy way, and that a true knowledge of the types and quantities of food which will achieve that is available to them. I would like that correct information out there and not just the nutritionist dogma sponsored by government health authorities (in good faith) that may or may not prove misleading. Surely in our modern western democracies this should be an individual right?

Worth having a look re grains
http://wheat.pw.usda.gov/ggpages/topics/Celiac.vs.grains.html
http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-10-26/features/sc-food-1021-whea...

Cheers Fab