by Megan Mills Hoffman
I had a wonderful time this past weekend at the Weston A. Price Foundation’s 2nd Annual Conference in Buffalo. What’s not to love about a group that proclaims “They’re happy because they eat butter!”?! I’ve heard about this group a few times in the last year, from my friend Nancy Leone, a rolfer in Hamburg who’s personally introduced me to cool progressive local farmers, from my sister in Pasadena, CA during her conversion to the health benefits of raw milk, and most recently from Elm Street Bakery in East Aurora through their winter workshop series featuring bone broth soups. I’ve learned to pay close attention to any theme in my life that comes up three or more times (that’s my secret to life success).
The Weston A. Price Foundation has chapters throughout the country which help consumers find locally-grown organic and biodynamic vegetables, fruits and grains; and milk products, butter, eggs, chicken and meat from pasture-fed animals. It is based on the work of Dr. Price, whose research “demonstrated that humans achieve perfect physical form and perfect health generation after generation only when they consume nutrient-dense whole foods and the vital fat-soluble activators found exclusively in animal fats”. The work of the organization is now lead by Sally Fallon Morell, known for her book Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats, which I am in the habit of giving to new mothers for its section on healthy diets and homemade formulas for babies.
The two day series offered workshops on all aspects of the current food dialogue, with an emphasis on traditional healing foods. Both meals during the conference were prepared by the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center’s Chef Ray Thom using locally sourced food that included eggs from Beiter and Son’s Farm in South Wales, and chicken and ham from Erba Verde Farms in Cuba. According to Paul Frank, one of the conference organizers, all chefs love to work with the Foundation because they are able to cook with real foods, with the organizers helping them source local fresh products. Over the past 6 years, the Foundation has hosted 3 conferences each year, and worked with 18 different chefs. Paul told me that once a chef interrupted a planning meeting, thrilled to have a soup stock that actually jelled from the real gelatin, as a result of using bones for the soup stock, saying “I’ve never seen this happen before!”
It’s very refreshing to encounter an organized group of food health activists who support local farms and products. In just the past year membership has grown from 13,000 members to 15,000. Your 2012 membership will help secure scientific research in a fully equipped lab at the University of Illinois, run by the scientist who first spoke out against trans-fats. In addition to an annual Weston A. Price Foundation membership ($40/$25), WPers also strongly encourage annual membership with the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund ($50) which advocates for the ability of farmers and consumers to make personal choices about the food we consume. For information about a local chapter, contact Jill Tiebor-Franz (716) 655-5133, jatf62@roadrunner.com or visit www.westonaprice.org.
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