The truth is no one seems to know what we are really eating. A recent article in the Washington post confirms our suspicions.

We aren't eating what we think we are eating.

Here are a few quick notes from the article:

• Expensive "sheep's milk" cheese in a Manhattan market was really made from cow's milk
• A jar of "Sturgeon caviar" was, in fact, Mississippi paddlefish
• Some honey makers dilute their honey with sugar beets or corn syrup… but still market it as 100 percent pure
• "Food fraud" has been documented in fruit juice, olive oil, spices, vinegar, wine, spirits and maple syrup
• "Operation Rotten Tomato"… accused of disguising millions of pounds of moldy tomato paste as a higher-grade product
• Scientists at the University of North Carolina estimated that 77 percent of snapper sold in the United States is mislabeled

The Washington Post lays a lot of blame with the FDA for failing to act due to being underfunded.

Perhaps they would do better if they had more money. Perhaps drug and alcohol abuse could be stamped out with vigorous enforcement and more laws. Perhaps terrorism could be stopped by deposing terror leaders. Perhaps schools would educate better with more funding.

And perhaps it wouldn't work out so well after all.

Regardless of what Washington does, it seems clear it is high time to eat simpler, healthier, and closer to home. In short, it seems it is high time to start growing our own food and to buy and share with our friends and neighbors.

Is growing your own food realistic for you? In the coming weeks, I plan to post some ideas and suggestions on how to garden without spending more money in supplies than you "earn" in produce.

While you are waiting, check out the great forums at www.idigmygarden.com. It is a free service by heirloom seedsman, Gere Gettle.

—Luke