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November 30, 2007

Absence makes the Mouth grow louder

Miss me? I haven’t been neglecting you, I’ve just been away. It’s always refreshing to leave the States for a little while and rinse off all that America über Alles. This time it was Venice, where Mr. Wallet Mouth and I just had a romantic getaway to celebrate our last days as a twosome. (In less than three months, we will have another Mouth to feed.)

The city of canals has always been a tourists’ mecca, so I didn’t really expect any mind-altering shifts in perspective. Nonetheless, between our many helpings of gelato (baby needs calcium!) and during our meanders through countless piazzas and ever-narrower streets, a few blog-worthy moments surfaced.

Graffito_the_cool One was encountering this graffito. (OK, I feel slightly self-conscious whipping out the rarely used singular form of “graffiti,” but hey, that’s what it was.) Anyway, it warmed my heart to see that some kindred spirit out there shares my obsession and outrage over the opaqueness of corporate parentage. It almost made me want to add a footnote (pun intended) suggesting No Sweat sneakers as an alternative.

Solidarity_store Later, we happened upon this store—sadly, after it had closed for the day. Apparently everything it sells is fair trade, made by artisans all over the world (and there were some neat things inside; my eye was caught by a pair of Mongolian-made slippers with elvish upward-curving pointy tips). The fact that all the wares are fair trade is remarkable by itself, but what really struck me were shop’s appearance—nice, spacious, and emanating a Real Store vibe—and its location: right by the Rialto Bridge, one of the more touristy parts of Venice. It would be the equivalent of having a fair-trade shop in Fishermans Wharf, which I find hard to imagine.

Pringles_info Finally, look at the vegetarian and vegan check boxes on this canister of Pringles. Why don’t we have those on American Pringles? (At least I think we don’t; it’s been a long time since I’ve bought them.)

No doubt because Europe is kilometers ahead of us on the food-labeling front...

(And yes, sigh, I know Pringles are not good for baby. But Mr. Wallet Mouth claims he simply could not resist their Pringley goodness while on vacation!)


Posted at 01:20 AM in Corporate parentage, Fair trade, Labels and certifications, Products: food & drink |

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My buycotts & boycotts

  • April 2008
    I'm going to start buying my canned beans from Eden Foods, for two reasons: it uses custom-made cans that don't contain bisphenol A, and it's an independent, family-operated company.
  • February 2008
    From now on, whenever I order takeout or ask for a doggy bag, I’ll make sure to avoid #6 polystyrene containers (and, of course, Styrofoam).
  • January 2008
    My morning yogurt is now garnished with a combination of bulk granola from Oat Cuisine, a locally owned company, and Food for Life's Ezekiel 4:9 cereal. This instead of Kashi Nuggets (Kashi is owned by Kellogg, and the cereal, despite all the "whole grains" messages on the box, isn't organic and probably contains GMOs) or Grape Nuts, which is owned by Altria (Philip Morris), isn't organic, and almost certainly contains GMOs.
  • October 2007
    Until Kimberly-Clark stops destroying virgin North American forests to make its products, I will boycott it and urge others to do so. Feeling outraged? Call K-C's customer service department: 1-888-525-8388 (North America and Puerto Rico only). Following are the brands to avoid. First, the ones I've heard of: Kleenex, Scott, Scottex, Huggies, Kotex, Depend, Viva, Fiesta, Cottonelle. Now a bunch more: Andrex, Block-it, Camelia, DryNites, GoodNites, Kimcare, KimTech, KleenBebé, KleenGard, Little Swimmers, Page, Peaudouce, Pingos, Plenitud, Poise, Pull-Ups, Snugglers, Subtelle, Tela, Le Trefle, WypAll.
  • October 2007
    First Odwalla was bought by Coca-Cola; then Naked Juice was acquired by Pepsico. I'll buy my juice (when I splurge on fresh-squeezed) from Columbia Gorge, which is family-run and all organic.
  • June 2007
    Started buying my organic yogurt from Straus instead of Trader Joe's after hearing from an organics activist that TJ's drives a really hard bargain with organic-food producers. Plus, Straus is local and demonstrates a clear commitment to the environment: its methane digester captures gas from its cows' manure and generates up to 600,000 kWH of electricity per year. I'd rather pay a little extra to support that.
  • March 2007
    Started buying Wildwood soy creamer instead of Silk after learning that White Wave, Silk’s maker, is owned by Dean Foods, the world’s largest dairy processor and distributor. I'm happier supporting the little(r) guy, and Wildwood is just as good—and less expensive.
  • February 2007
    Resolved to buy gas only from BP/Arco and Sunoco after reading the "Pick Your Poison" guide in Sierra. At the very least, no more patronizing Exxon or 76.
  • October 2006
    Started buying Dr. Bronner's soap after seeing Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap Box. I'm impressed by its charitable giving, treatment of employees, leadership in fair trade and organics, and environmental record. More recently, the company has helped facilitate organic and fair-trade certification for olive-oil makers in Israel and Palestine so that it can buy the oil for use in its products.

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