Going Against the Grain

I recently asked an owner of a local bakery if she uses fair trade and organic products to make her cakes and cupcakes. It is part of a survey that I have began to undertake. The reason being is that often, farmers are not always paid a fair and living wage for their sugar, cocoa etc. as I was told by a member of 10 ooo villages along with a fact sheet explaining me this. For more information about this, Oxfam and Transfair, the organization that certifies products are resources to consult. Make Trade Fair is an Oxfam campaign.

She replied that she wasn't all that familiar with fair trade and that she wasn't able to compromise because she had to use nut-free ingredients as it was nut-free environment. There's a sign on the door: nut-free environment. She was however open to the idea and expressed a support of paying farmers a living wage. She than began discussing her flour which she said she purchased from the health food store.

I decided to go to my local health food store to do a little research on flour and discovered there are many sorts of flour. Flour I had never heard of. There's quinoa and potato flour. Who knew you could make flour out of potatoes? I've always been a wheat flour kind of girl. There's coconut flour. There's gluten free flour and white bean. There's stone ground and buckwheat and organic and vegan. I've had buckwheat. I must say I'm not sure I want a flour with the word glu in it, but then again I'm not a very sensitive person.

There is a brand called gogo quinoa and they are a cooperative in Bolivia and on the back of their package they write their flour is certified fair trade. There are quinoa oats. There is Red Mill and Capucine and Tournesol and Cuisine Soleil. I have eaten organic pancake mix.

You could say I've been sowing my new oats.

It is a whole new world of grain out there.