However busy we get, it's important to live with the value that we believe in. We have to ask ourselves sometimes why we farm and live in the country. During busy harvest season we still need to maintain our business and our lives, but often we get so overwhelmed by busy-ness of everyday life. Yes, we are doing farm work, but what is it that made us want to farm at the first place? We want to grow our own foods that meet our expectation and life that revolves around seasonal changes. It's easy to say, but when we try to do all these, it's a lot more work than we imagine. Winter-spring crops are ready to harvest now. We make pickles and kimchi with cabbage and fruit wine with noni, jaboticaba and seasonal ingredients. Each bite, each sip, they bring us back to our value of living on the farm and life in the country.
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Tea and Pesticides: how to avoid pesticide exposure from drinking tea
Pests and disease are inseparable parts of tea farming, thus pesticides to prevent and treat the pest and disease problems. In this series we will look at: 1. The relationship between wild grown tea plants and pests 2. How modern tea farming amplify the pest and disease problems, 3. How and what pesticides they use to treat the problems, 4. As a consumer how to avoid heavily sprayed tea 5. Organic and wild harvest tea Part one focuses on the first two topics. 1. The Relationship Between Tea and Pests Wandering into old mountain forest of Japan, I have encountered wild tea plants growing sporadically in their own natural habitat. There are not abundant tender supple tips to harvest, but in general plants are healthy. The wild tea shows small signs of pests and disease, but it is minimal. The plants vary widely in their leaf shape, size, color, and even growth form. Some even appear as bonsai trees found in Japanese garden. The plants ...
University of Hawaii's Tea 101: Tea Production and Processing Basics
The CTAHR Tea Project and Risk Management Hawaii present: Tea 101: Tea Production and Processing Basics *Space is limited to first 12 to pre-register; others will be on waiting list for future sessions. Cost: $25 cash or check at the door. RSVP to Didi or Perci at 887-6183 or email mddiaz@hawaii.edu by 02/05/14* Wednesday, February 12, 2014 8:30 am – 3:30 pm UH-CTAHR Mealani Research Station 64-289 Mamalahoa Highway, Kamuela, Hawaii 96743 Crop diversification is one strategy for managing risk. Tea has potential as a new crop for Hawaii. Tea 101 is a monthly event where participants undergo basic training in tea production and processing. They will also learn about the tea research being conducted at the University of Hawaii - College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (UH-CTAHR) Mealani Research Station in Waimea. Some of the topics include: Introduction and market feasibility of Hawaii grown tea The basic types of tea (includes tas...
Green Tea Health Benefits Links
Links to various research topics and findings on green tea health benefits. (Last updated on November 23, 2013) Green Tea - University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/green-tea Tea and Cancer Prevention: Strengths and Limits of the Evidence - National Cancer Institute http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/prevention/tea TEA AND HEALTH -- An Overview of Research on the Potential Health Benefits of Tea -- http://www.teausa.com/teausa/images/2012/07/Research%20Summary%20Draft%2003-15-09.pdf Health Effects of Tea - wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_effects_of_tea A Guide to the Health Benefits of Green Tea, Compiled and Edited by Edward Esko - The Preventive Medicine Center http://www.thepmc.org/2009/12/library-health-benefits-of-green-tea/ Foods That Fight Cancer - green tea - American Institute for Cancer Research http://www.aicr.org/foods-that-fight-cancer/foodsthatfightcancer_green_tea.html
Antibacterial properties of green tea polyphenols and EGCg
Green tea is often served at sushi restaurants not just for healthy drink, but also known to reduce risk of food poisoning. Some of the most deadly food poisoning bacteria are very sensitive to green tea polyphenols (catechins). C. botulinum is commonly found in soil, yet most notable botulism cases come from improperly canned foods. In order to destroy C. botulinum spores, you must cook at 120C for more than 4 minutes. In green tea drinks due to its antimicrobial property 85C for 30 minutes can almost completely destroy. In intestinal tract it is reported that less than 100ppm of green tea catechins is required to achieve MIC for C. botulinum. Hara et. al. (*1) shows that effects of green tea catechins (green tea polyphenols) on human intestinal bacteria. Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidum generally considered as beneficial bacteria showed significantly greater minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) to catechins while ...
Battle between Antioxidants and Free Radicals
Fat becomes free radicals http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Lipid_peroxidation.svg Initiation When foods containing unsaturated lipid (LH) enter the body, free radicals (X') steal electrons from the lipids causing lipid peroxidation, the unsaturated fat becomes lipid radical (L'). Propagation Because lipid radical is not very stable, it readily reacts with oxygen (O2) in the air and becomes peroxyl radical (LOO'). Since this free peroxyl radical is unstable, it continues chain reaction with other free fatty acid. Termination When a free radical collides with non-radical, it creates another free radical. When two radicals collide, it creates non-radicals. This only happens when concentration of free radicals is high. Typically, human body has protective mechanisms to speed up termination process by utilizing antioxidants. There are more than one way that free radicals can form in the body. Some of which are tobacco smoke, radiation, environmental t...
Green Tea Antioxidants and EGCg
What is green tea antioxidants and catechins? Green tea antioxidants are called catechins. Tea generally contains 11-17% of catechins and they are water soluble. EGCg or epi-galo-catechin-galate is one of catechins. Here is each of the green tea catechins % found in green tea. EG (0.9%) EGC (3.6%) ECg (2.2%) EGCg (7.9%) *Percentage of each catechin vary depending on cultivation, harvest seasons, harvested leaf type, processing style, and even brewing temperature. This is an average %. Why is green tea antioxidants, especially EGCg, effective in keeping us healthy? Green tea antioxidants are highly effective antioxidants compared to antioxidants found in other foods. The table shows that the effectiveness of green tea antioxidants, especially EGCg, is significantly higher than others. EGCg is 87.5 times more effective than vitamin C and 15 times more effective than BHT (wikipedia link) an...