If you’re making resolutions for 2010, how about becoming a master of artisanal baking?

Check out Mark Bittman’s recipe, along with his follow up comments, from Jim Lahey at Sullivan Street Bakery. This was published in 2006, but it took us two years to start experimenting with it. It is nothing short of incredible and requires only 5 minutes to mix up. We have added various goodies, such as walnuts, currants, green olives and rosemary, and kalamata olives to this recipe. Stir in whatever you’re planning to add at the very beginning and use plenty of flour in the towel during the final rising stage to prevent the dough from sticking.

I may never buy store-bought bread again.

Here's the bread I baked this morning.

It is heartening to read stories like the one in yesterday’s New York Times about steps some businesses are taking to educate employees about healthy eating as a way of reducing health insurance costs. The article covers a line of healthy food products called Full Yield that Safeway, Stonyfield Farm and others have embraced to take the guesswork out of what constitutes a healthy diet. Sadly, this approach also eliminates the need for cooking, “which so many workers say they have no time for,” according to the article.

The objective of building a healthier workforce should be applauded on many fronts, but I’d like to see cooking education included in this program. It takes no more than 30 minutes to cook a simple, healthy meal. One just has to understand basic cooking techniques and have a rudimentary knowledge about what foods are healthy. I’d like to see Safeway and Stonyfield Farm add this educational component to their employee health programs.

Photo by Cyrus McCrimmon, The Denver Post

It’s heartening to work with companies that are doing things right. We hate to brag about our clients, but Panorama Meats fits snugly in that category. Their latest business initiative with the Northern Arapaho Indian Tribe in Wyoming makes sense on so many levels. It brings a healthy, organic, environmentally sustainable, humanely raised grass-fed beef to Whole Foods Markets customers in the Rocky Mountain region. And, it offers financial rewards for the Northern Arapaho, who have raised cattle on the Wind River Indian Reservation for decades. Read more about it in this major feature story that appeared in the Denver Post on Sept. 30.

Denver TV’s 9News aired a video report two of its newscasts Sept. 17 about the people of of Lockton Companies‘ Denver office donating workboots to a construction-trades class in Aurora. We helped Lockton gain some recognition for this act of generosity. You can read the written version, “Risk-management company donates ’safety’ to needy students,” here, or view the video directly below.

The highlight of yesterday’s Naturally Boulder Days conference was Dr. Fred Kirschenmann’s keynote address, which detailed the challenges ahead for those involved in agriculture. I first encountered Fred 20 years ago while working with Coleman Natural Meats, and he continues to amaze me with his smart, practical approach to agriculture. In addition to managing his own 3,500-acre farm in Iowa, Fred is a Distinguished Fellow at the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture in Iowa, and is President of the amazing Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture near Tarrytown, New York. (more…)

Blogger Steve Bennyhoff wrote an account of his recent dinner of Panorama Organic Grass-Fed Beef at Whole Foods Market in Reno. We think Whole Foods’ idea of connecting their customers with the ranchers who raise Panorama beef is brilliant. Whole Foods customers can sign up to attend the dinners, learn about Panorama’s raising practices and ask questions, then enjoy a sit-down dinner with the ranchers that features Panorama’s beef. Whole Foods and Panorama have teamed up to hold seven such dinners in Northern California and Northern Nevada stores.

Last week’s New Yorker contained a revealing article by Elizabeth Kolbert about the forces behind the scenes that are contributing to obesity in the U.S. Here’s an excerpt, which points to cheap food as one of the factors that has made us a nation of chubbies (more…)

Boulder, Colo., July 23, 2009 — Naturally Boulder Days 2009 — the nation’s only conference designed specifically for natural and organic product entrepreneurs in partnership with a city economic development initiative — returns to Boulder Sept. 2-3. This year’s conference features several enhancements that include an expanded roster of national speakers, an Opening Night Awards Dinner, a Product Fair and new one-on-one mentoring sessions with leaders and legends of the natural and organic products industry. (more…)

If you’ve been following the debate about whether additional “synthetic” substances should be allowed in the USDA’s Certified Organic program, read Samuel Fromartz’s post in the Huffington Post about the issue. Fromartz authored Organic, Inc. a few years ago, so he’s familiar with the ongoing debate about what should and should not be called organic.

Like many of the folks cited in Fromartz’s piece, I worry that consumers who read about this debate will start to believe the USDA Certified Organic label is meaningless. That would be a truly sad outcome, especially for all the pioneers who fought so hard to create a credible, meaningful Certified Organic label.

California Rangeland Trust and Panorama Meats Partner to Protect Threatened Rangelands

Sacramento, Calif., July 6, 2009 –The California Rangeland Trust has partnered with Panorama Meats, Inc. of Vina, Calif. in a joint effort to support the long-term conservation of California’s rangelands. Beginning this week, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of all Panorama Organic Grass-Fed Beef sold in California will be contributed to the California Rangeland Trust to assist ongoing work to place conservation easements on working cattle ranches. (more…)