By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

St. Pat’s is coming up. So it’s time to decide, how green do you want to be?

Green and Sober

In this scenario, you remember to carry your reusable water bottle. If your Klean Kanteen were green that would be keen. But any reusable bottle will do.

Green and Tipsy

If you’re looking to imbibe, there’s the traditional green beer, a staple at Irish parades everywhere. You can make it at home with green food dye. It is best showcased in a chilled clear glass mug.

Green as in Apple Green

Of course, there’s your ‘Green Apple Surprise’, made with Midori Green Apple Liquor and tequila or vodka or rum. Midori is happy to oblige with recipes. But these sweeties can really go down easy, so drink responsibly. Make it greener with organic liquors…

Super Green — and also Tipsy

Organic Kiwi Crush

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From Green Right Now Reports

If you’ve eaten in a hospital, high school, college or company cafeteria in recent years, you may have been served by Sodexo, even if you didn’t know it. During the Vancouver Olympics, the ubiquitous French-based food service giant provided meals at the Athletes Village, too.

In the latter case, that involved more than flipping burgers and blending smoothies.

“They can’t use supplements, even multi-vitamins, because there are no guarantees they won’t contain banned substances, and muscle-building and recovery powders and protein powders might contain pro-hormones,” said Nanci Guest, director of sport nutrition for the Organizing Committee and supervising dietitian for the Athletes’ Village. “We’ll have ingredient lists for every food offered. Sodexo has done a lot of research and gathered information from other Olympics.”

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Still think of aluminum cans as the red-headed stepchild of the beer container industry? Bon Appetit magazine suggests that it may be time to take a second look.

According to the publication, nearly 75 breweries in the United States and Canada have switched their premium beers from glass to aluminum cans. Among reasons cited for the move: Delivering a fresher and better-tasting beer, the versatility of the can, and – yes! – a lower environmental impact.

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By Shermakaye Bass
Green Right Now

Over the past year or so, there’s been a velvety, yummy buzz: Chocolate may just save the planet!

Divine Hearts are actually good for your heart

Actually, that’s a stretch. But in the months leading up to the Copenhagen climate talks last December, several chocolate-makers claimed they were venturing further into fair trade practices, including Nestle, Mars and Cadbury.

Add to that the promising method of “cabruca farming” in Brazil — a way of supplementing rainforests with valuable cacao plants to offset wholesale slash-and-burn techniques. Then multiply those happy developments by now-abundant data showing that chocolate — dark chocolates and bittersweets, specifically — are good for our health, and you’ve got a growing body of evidence that semi-sweet, Fair Trade chocolate is not only good for body, heart and soul; it could be good for the environment.

“Chocolate is considered to be a super food,” says Steven Flood, co-owner of Fat Turkey Chocolates, an organic chocolatier based in Austin, Texas. “You could actually live and sustain yourself on chocolate alone and get everything you need. And you wouldn’t get fat. Because there’s not a lot of fat in dark chocolate.”

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By Sommer Saadi
Green Right Now

New Yorkers have gotten pretty good at finding new places to grow plants: rooftops in Brooklyn, abandoned rail lines in Manhattan, and now they’re conquering the tops of old shipping containers.

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From Green Right Now Reports

If you didn’t realize that January is National Hot Tea Month, tea maker Celestial Seasonings gives you a new reason to take notice: The company has announced plans to help preserve the Earth’s tropical forests by inviting one and all to participate in a new Facebook quiz called PossibiliTEAS.

Celestial will donate one dollar for each participant, up to a maximum of $50,000, to Conservation International ’s “Protect an Acre” program, which aims to help slow climate change and preserve tropical forests throughout the world. According to the organization, just $15 helps protect an acre of forest.

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From Green Right Now Reports

Pennsylvania officials today released updated fish consumption advisories that include two new fish species and a water body that had not previously been on the list, but also eases or lifts advisories on fish from seven water bodies.

Walleye (Photo: Duane Raver/USFWS)

The advisories were developed through an interagency partnership between the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the state departments of Environmental Protection, Health and Agriculture.

“Consumption advisories are not intended to discourage anyone from fishing or eating fresh fish in moderation,” Environmental Protection Secretary John Hanger said in a statement. “However, at-risk groups and people who regularly eat sport fish are most susceptible to contaminants that can build up in fish over time and should space out fish meals according to these advisories, and in consultation with their physician.”

The advisories do not apply to fish raised for commercial purposes or bought in stores or restaurants.

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LOS ANGELES (KABC):

POMME BÉBÉ

Pomme Bébé is an organic baby food store located in Newport Beach. With a team of professional chefs, Pomme Bébé peels, steams and purées wholesome fruits and vegetables making nutritious baby and toddler baby meals. For the busiest of parents, Pomme Bébé delivers nationally. By placing your order online, freshly made organic baby food will be delivered to your front door in environmentally friendly packaging.

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Hosea Sanders
More: Bio, News Team

Hosea Sanders and Sylvia Jones

December 11, 2009 (WLS) — If you’re looking for an excuse to drink more beer, you could now say you’re doing it to help the environment.

When you think of the Morton Arboretum, your next thought probably isn’t beer. But a visit to the grounds just might change that.

Here’s something you don’t see everyday: water being sprayed onto the ground with no pooling or puddling. It’s soaking right in instead rolling off and going into the sewers. That’s because this isn’t ordinary concrete. It’s a new, porous pavement made from crushed, recycled beer bottles.

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By Melissa Segrest
Green Right Now

Could we replace baked yams topped with melty marshmallows with something natural and organic? Could we convert Mom’s canned green bean casserole into a healthier, Earth-friendly dish – complete with crunchy onion bits on top?

What if we asked some of the best-selling organic cookbook writers in the country to overhaul our Thanksgiving table?

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This holiday, treat your guests to this fresh, alternative side dish (no cans required!) without depriving them of the best part of green bean casserole — the crispy, crunchy onions!

Shredded Brussels sprouts are the secret ingredient in this casserole makeover.

Late autumn is the best season to enjoy Brussels sprouts since they tend get sweeter after a winter frost. Buy them freshly picked, on the stem if possible. Avoid the sulfurous fumes that Brussels sprouts naysayers complain about by getting the freshest sprouts available (and avoid overcooking). — Organic Gardening Magazine’s Abigail Poulette

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This velvety, colorful gravy is naturally creamy from the butter beans, not traditional cornstarch or white flour; it’s naturally full-flavored from the sweet potato, onion, and rosemary, not greasy turkey drippings.

Jackie Newgent is the author of 'Big Green Cookbook'

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