Notably, the problem isn’t just that we’re feeding growing children disgusting junk that will have a lasting impact on their health — or that we’re training them to eat such junk for the rest of their lives. These school lunches send a very clear message to children: “We don’t give a shit about you.” That attitude pervades government schools in a million ways, many far more damaging. Yet to see it so plainly written on your plate would be particularly degrading.

I’m fascinated by traditional methods of storing and preserving foods. I don’t wish to adopt them myself, absent some compelling reason to do so. I’m curious about the science behind them though.

I am seriously thinking about building a small root cellar in the barn, as that would be helpful for making fermented foods like sauerkraut. Then again, perhaps I can use the super-well-insulated “camping closet” in our basement for that purpose, once I move its contents to the new storage room in the barn. That would be easier!