Susan's Organic Blog -

Susan's Organic Blog

"I was not born to be forced. I will breathe after my own fashion." ...Henry David Thoreau

This is my "organic" corner about organic stuff, where my brain can let go a little bit. More and more, people are into Organics, with sense and sensibility creeping in as attributes of an organic lifestyle. To me, more people introducing organic foods and textiles into their daily lives will have a profound effect gradually, over time, on restoring ecological balances and Fair Trade. People will do what they enjoy best, and small changes do make a difference.

As a proud member of the Organic Trade Association and working member of the organic industry, Kushtush Organics is particular about pricing.
Read About Organic Prices here.

Winter 2006/2007 Teaching Civility is Key to Liberty, by Derek Maul

(This article is very cool, and doesn't even begin to address the enormity of the anti-social crisis in this country. There are no excuses. Nobody is entitled above others, and we all know the right way to behave. I mean REALLY!)

I don't have many pet peeves, but one that can still fire me up is our national epidemic of bad manners.

Cell phones go off in church; loud conversations interrupt movies and plays; foul language is rampant; trash is thrown on the side of the street; people fail to show for appointments; cars go through quiet neighborhoods with music blaring; teenagers spit on sidewalks; men fail to hold doors for women; road rage is on the upswing; people we expect to be responsible fail to follow through.

Here's my question. Have you ever let your child squirm out of a commitment because something else "better" came along . . . or do we expect them to follow through when they give their word? Have you ever cursed at another driver when your child was listening . . . or do we model politeness and temperance? Do you drop trash on the sidewalk . . . or is your family the one to pick it up? Have you ever talked disrespectfully about your child's teacher . . . or do we teach respect and demonstrate good manners?

I don't believe that we are as aware as we could be as to how much the freedom and liberty we cherish depends on basic civility. The law merely provides a framework within which the Spirit of civilized society has the opportunity to flourish. Our rights as Americans cease to have meaning once enough of us fail to honor our parallel responsibilities.

Fact is, one of the greatest gifts we, as parents, can give America is a generation of young people who respect not only our personal freedom, but the rights of others to enjoy theirs. Civility is at the core of what it means to enjoy the fruits of 226 years of Independence. As I told my children once, when they wanted to skip a community cleanup commitment that had lost its appeal. "If Washington was willing to cross the Delaware in that kind of weather, the least you can do is to follow through on your word and pick up a little trash in the church parking lot."

� 2002 Derek Maul. All rights reserved. This article was reprinted with permission. Please do not publish this article without direct consent from Derek Maul. Kushtush Organics is not authorized to grant reprint permission on behalf of outside authors. Please contact Derek Maul directly at derekmaul@gmail.com.

FALL 2006. From the Organic Trade Association:

Encouraging more farmers to produce organic ingredients.

A terrific piece by the OTA that explains why organic products, organic bedding and textiles in particular, can be not only a bit more expensive, but also sometimes in short supply! Here's an abstract:

"As sales of organic products continue to grow at a steady pace in the United States, manufacturers, growers and marketing cooperatives, and others, are recognizing the need for additional farmers to get on board.

According to the Organic Trade Association's 2006 Manufacturer Survey released in June, U.S. sales of organic products grew 17 percent overall in 2005. Even so, fifty-two percent of respondents reported that a lack of dependable supply of organic raw materials has restricted their company from generating more sales of organic products..."

(to read the entire article, visit http://www.ota.com/news/whatsnews.html)

We've said it again and again...it's always disappointing when occasionally organic bedding pieces become unavailable, and it's hard to tell our customers they must wait.

The lack of dependable supply is a feature of the organic textiles market, and an ongoing problem for all of us in the organic bedding business. Rest assured we absolutely support the efforts of the OTA and all partners in encouraging the growth and development of certified organic farms in the United States.

It could help if more interested people encouraged Washington to end the assinine programs that pay obscene sums to farmers to retain idle land, and instead convert that idle land to organic cotton and wool, and organic food, production.

While this is a unique business right now, so too are our customers and friends who love and appreciate organics as much as we do. Together, perhaps we can be part of bringing health and balance back to our fragile ecosystems.

Summer 2006. Organic Shopping. Going for the Cheap? Please Don't.

I honestly think the world of people who have made the commitment to vegan and/or organic changes in their lives, and like most, am beginning to reflect a more relaxed attitude that seems to come with that lifestyle.

What is most exciting, and a big reason I got into the business of organic bedding and textiles, is the deep connection to Fair Trade practices that promise living wages, health care and dignity to farm workers around the world. As Fair Trade products become more popular here, more and more families around the globe are now living in decent housing and eating better.

Talk about an obvious solution to global hunger! Fair Trade, and organic certification, of course, do add to the cost, which is difficult for some consumers to understand. It is unfortunate that some organic retailers respond by taking the Wal-Mart approach, and cheapening organic products to attract customers. Not easy to do though, because organic cotton and organic wool are not nearly as plentiful as those online hawkers would suggest. ("LOWEST PRICES!", "HUGE SELECTION", "LOWEST PRICES ON THE WEB!", etc. Ugh.)

Of course the most helpless will lose. In the business world, it's now trendy to strip wages and fire employees in order to undercut prices. (I'll save my opinions about off shoring American jobs for another day.)

We must find it particularly egregious to do this to an organic industry that has always been deeply committed to humane Fair Trade initiatives. On organic farms and cooperatives overseas, the tactic repeatedly devastates the lives of innocent farm workers.

Ethical organic retailers gladly walk that difficult line between responsibility to the industry and Fair Trade initiatives, and offering our customers competitive pricing whenever possible. Those same ethical retailers (at least in my clique) are appalled at the cheapening of an organic industry we truly support.

I would wish that savvy organic consumers everywhere would boycott, shun, or do whatever is their style, to denounce that behavior. Sadly though, there will be a few who won't pay attention and will continue trying to buy organic bedding and organic cotton products on the cheap.

Please don't.

Spring 2006!

I love spring in northern Midwest, after a long winter it can be invigorating. Of course, it's a busy time in the yard, preparing the back forty for summer.

On a rare relaxing Saturday, I enjoyed puttering around the house and watching brainy afternoon cable shows. But instead of listening to my tummy and watching an old Cary Grant movie, I instead became engrossed in a charmingly entertaining study of human Armageddon by its own hand; that is, by chemical, biological, and of course, nuclear weaponry.

I may as well have popped in a copy of "The Grudge" for the afternoon.

Let me share the misery. The 19th C. was the age of physics; the 20th C. was the age of chemistry; and the 21st C. will be the age of biology that may finally murder millions. Chemistry of course begot biology, and genetically engineered crops.

I thought this factoid was cute: when genetically modified cotton was first introduced, the cotton bolls just fell to the ground, useless. It took years for industry to create a genetic model that would enable the enormous frankencrops that dominate our lives to this day. This isn't so cute: globally 76% of the world's cotton, 40% of our corn, and 85% of the soy dumped into almost ALL processed food, is now GE.

We can print up "Go Organic" tee shirts until...well... Armageddon... but corporations will never give up the behemoth global profit machine that is genetically modified crops and residual products unless it stops being profitable.

Organic Living

The organic movement is not wasted though; it's sending a consumer message that translates into serious dollars that over time that can be powerful. Modern American citizens are in stealth mode, not inclined to burning flags and screaming slogans in the streets any more. If enough of us want organic bedding, organic foods etc., corporations will notice, grab every bit of it and sell it to us.

(Wal-Mart is sadly the first on that bandwagon, to the detriment of hard won Fair Trade initiatives that successfully, peacefully, and affordably, counteract rural hunger around the world.)

Nonetheless, you must have noticed the market is changing, and changing with you. In fact, what a joy that, in the face of what talking heads tell us may really be the "End of Days," we will in the end still have our organic secret gardens, DAMMIT, and the natural organic pleasures that ain't gone until the fat lady sings.

Hah! :-P

SPRING CLEANING The Sequel.
(including great ideas from Debra Lynn Dadd of http://www.debraslist.com.)

It's time to get serious and evict dust googies from the remotest corners of our homes! Removing dust and dirt is an important, healthful exercise for everyone in your family, the right time to check for needed repairs, and to reorganize for better living in the new year.

Spring cleaning rituals go back centuries, but in the last couple of centuries, spring cleaning has always looked like this:

Put away winter clothes and take out spring and summer clothing.
Sweep and vacuum floors, walls, and corners.
Wash floors and carpets.
Clean window panes, sills, and frames.
Freshen all organic bedding and woolens out of sunlight, outdoors.
Replace thick winter curtains that keep heat in with light summer curtains that allow breezes through.
Remove storm windows, hang up screens.
Brush or vacuum stuffed furniture and remove spots.
Wash every surface in every room that has accumulated dust or grime.
Finish a spring cleaning by bringing in loads of spring flowers and placing them in vases in every room (Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a mandatory act of Springtime celebration and self-congratulation!).

The first whiffs of warmer air can inspire you to get your cleaning project started with gusto, but natives of frozen Arctic outposts like Chicago and New York, should wait until temps are in the 60's and 70's so windows can be thrown open for the CRUCIAL Spring Cleaning ingredient of fresh, marvelous, springtime air flowing through your personal spaces!

Oh, OKAY. City air isn't exactly pristine. And yeah, some apartment windows don't open, so um, when you're done cleaning your spaces, go for a walk to the local florist. Or, if you have a balcony, why not plant some pots of herbs or flowers?

And if your hip city spaces are airtight, the last thing you need is chemicals off-gassing into your tight environment. Do not delay... fill your spaces with chemical free organic bedding and organic cottons, and keep the dust googies on a fast track out through the vacuum!

NONTOXIC & NATURAL CLEANING

Do pay attention: Disinfecting is an important advantage of modern Science and Health, which cannot be addressed with organic products. Absolutely seek out cleaning products that are simple, safe, and sustainable, but bear in mind that germicide absolutely requires chemical intervention. Science has saved hundreds of thousands of lives. Be realistic.

That said, our favorite guru Debra says: "When choosing a cleaning product for a specific job, I use the least-toxic most-effective product, in the smallest effective amount.

The real safety or danger of cleaning products is difficult to assess because manufacturers are not required to list exact ingredients on the label. Hazardous ingredients are required by law to be listed on Material Safety Data Sheets (also called MSDS, available from the manufacturer and now often posted on the Internet), but I have found that some ingredients I wish to avoid, like artificial colors, are listed neither on the label or the MSDS.

Cleaning products are the only household products regulated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission under the 1960 Federal Hazardous Substances Labeling Act, which requires products that contain hazardous chemicals to carry warning labels. In general, it is best to avoid using products that say "Danger," "Poison," or "Warning" on the label. Many safer products carry the "Caution" label, even though they are acceptable to use. Fortunately, I have found that many of the least-toxic products voluntarily disclose their complete ingredients on the label, so you can determine for yourself the safety of the product.

Choosing products that are nontoxic or less-toxic also helps the environment, as it eliminates or lessens toxic chemicals used in manufacture and toxic waste. In addition, we can help the environment by choosing products that are

multi-purpose (so fewer different products are needed)
biodegradable (returns safely into the ecosystem)
concentrated (saves on packaging and fuel used in shipping)
effective in cold water (again, energy savings), and
with minimal packaging, that is made of recycled paper or recycled/recyclable plastic (look for 1 or 2 HDPE on the bottom of the bottle).

Nontoxic cleaning actually requires very few specialized ingredients. I do all of my cleaning with a squirt bottle of fifty-fifty distilled white vinegar and water, liquid soap, and baking soda. For laundry I use a natural soap powder and chlorine-free oxygen bleach. Other substances I have on hand for occasional cleaning needs are salt, lemon juice, borax, and chlorine-free scouring powder. Formulas for combining these ingredients into cleaning products can be found in my book Home Safe Home, but the best resources for homemade cleaning formulas are Clean & Green and Better Basics for the Home by Annie Berthold-Bond. Both books are packed with hundreds of simple, nontoxic do-it-yourself ways to clean almost anything you can imagine.

If you wish to purchase cleaning products, check your local natural food store.

SIMPLIFY YOUR CLEANING

While scrubbing away at your spring cleaning, there are two things you can resolve to do in the coming year that will make cleaning easier. These will also reduce the amount of cleaning products you use, saving resources and money. But the most important thing to me is that they save time and reduce the amount of cleaning needed.

Prevent oven cleaning problems by keeping the lower rack lined with foil, changed frequently, preventing greasy spills that would require heavy chemicals to remove.

Baked or broiled recipes that will obviously spatter grease throughout the oven should be routinely covered to prevent spattering. Better yet, dump the foil and use old fashioned covered roasting pans and casseroles, with large cookie sheets on lower racks to catch spills and spatters.

While all this seasonal work and effort may seem daunting (and nearly impossible for the lazier loves in our families), clearing away the old and prepare for fresh and new life, is what Spring is all about, whether we are cleaning our homes, or clearing a garden for new planting.

Read past blogs and articles here.....

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