Brigitte Moran: Food is best when eaten in its prime

There is something magical about food eaten in its time, which is what Brigitte Moran is describing as she laments that peach season is indeed over. Out the door with the peaches is that "moment in time" when the fruit is so ripe and juicy, "you have to bend over to eat it."

The executive director of Marin Farmers Market, Moran is about as close to seasonal, locally grown food as anyone in the county, aside from farmers and ranchers. And of course she's partial to local food purchased al fresco from one of the four farmers' markets her group operates, including the Thursday and Sunday markets at the Marin Civic Center and those in Novato and Fairfax.

"Shopping for food can be a chore" or, as Moran says of the farmers' market, "a joy" -- advising that the experience shouldn't end just because of a little thing like getting wet. The Sunday market is open year-round, but people stay away because it's raining, says Moran, admonishing, "The farmers are there -- they got up, packed their produce, set up their booths. If they can do it, so can we."

What's in store is winter fare -- including sweet, juicy mandarin oranges.

Time and No GMOs

Eating well is a complicated, sometimes inconvenient fact of life in a fast-paced world with its generous helping of fast food. But there's no getting around it: Thinking about food is more than planning the next meal, says Moran. It's about knowing what kind of food we're putting in our bodies -- what's been added or lost in the process, where it comes from, how it's been grown or raised.

"People don't have the luxury of time to do research on what they're eating, but we need to find the time. We need to learn, for ourselves and our families," Moran urges. "We have to ask ourselves: What is that 99 cent hamburger really costing us, in terms of our health?"

Beyond the fact that locally grown, seasonal food tastes better, it's also better for us because it tends be organically grown, which immediately addresses questions on quality - we're not munching on food laden with chemicals, like pesticides used on crops or hormones and antibiotics in meats and poultry.

And by shopping the farmers' market, we're also assured that the food is GMO free: No such altered products are allowed, says Moran of her group's policy. GMOs (genetically modified organisms) result from the genetic engineering of plants like corn and soybeans primarily, but also animals, to enhance certain traits, including growth and resistance to pests. The impact of GMOs on human health is being questioned.

GMOs are on Moran's short list of irritants, and she's especially concerned that food labels aren't required to identify them as ingredients. "Lawmakers should fix that immediately," she says. "We have no idea what percent of foods in our stores contain GMOs, and that's scary."

Recipes for Change

Moran is working on a book that is part cookbook, part portrait of the men and women whose food is sold at our local markets. Overall, though, it is specifically about buying locally and eating seasonally -- or, as Moran jokes, about "saving the Earth one recipe at a time."

She isn't a stranger to the topic, nor is she a newcomer to the world of food: A caterer, she founded the Downtown San Rafael Farmers' Market 18 years ago, now led by her daughter, Monique, before joining the Marin Farmers Market four years ago.

Still, research for the book has been an eye-opening experience, putting her face-to-face with issues like GMOs and grass-fed versus corn-fed beef. Corn is used only to fatten up the cattle; it's not part of their natural diet, but as Moran notes, in Marin, meat eaters can be assured not only that the animals live well, but that their diet is probably natural, too: Marin is the only county in the United States that offers ranchers grass-fed certification.

Family Food Values

Moran admits that one of her favorite on-the-job activities is to watch people enjoying themselves at the Sunday market - with an 8,000-plus weekly attendance average in the summer, it's the third-largest market in California.

"We are faced today with a new generation of kids who don't eat well and eat all sorts of processed food," and when they drink milk, says Moran, they're ingesting antibiotics and hormones that the conventional dairy industry uses as a matter of course.

For kids, markets are an outdoor food classroom: Giving a child some money to pick out and buy something for dinner that night not only inspires appreciation for food, but it begins to create what Moran says food provides -- stories.

Shopping together, eating together as a family: These are the beginnings of memories. Moran has hers - of growing up in a French household where food, "getting it, cooking it, eating it," was the day's centerpiece.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Marin Farmers Market operates four local Marin markets, as well as markets in Hayward, Newark, and Oakland. Visit www.marinfarmersmarket.org.

For a list of all farmers' markets in Marin, visit the UC Cooperative Extension Web site at www.growninmarin.com.