THE FOOD ISSUE
Published since Nov. 21, 1910 Circulation: 3,500 ISSN 0845-356X Suite 3-04 8900 114 St. NW University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2J7 Advertising www.f-media.ca
NOVEMBER 2018
Editor-in-Chief Arts & Culture Editor Oumar Salifou Jonah Dunch Managing Editor Sofia Osborne
Opinion Editor Andrew McWhinney
Art Director Staff Reporter Jessica Tang Adam Lachacz Photo Editor Director of Finance Richard Bagan & Administration Lukas Adomonis Online Editor Victoria Chiu Webmaster Papa Gyeke-Lartey News Editor Nathan Fung
GSJS The Gateway is published by the Gateway Student Journalism Society (GSJS), a student-run, autonomous, apolitical not-for-profit organization, operated in accordance with the Societies Act of Alberta. Copyright All materials appearing in The Gateway bear copyright of their creator(s) and may not be used without written consent.
ILLUSTRATION DANIELLE MCBETH “RAMEN FOR TWO”
DEAR READER, Food isn’t just what sustains us. Food is local, personal, political, scientific. It’s colourful, rich, warm, decaying. It’s not just what you ate for breakfast or the Subway sandwich you bought at lunch; it’s memories of your grandmother, fuel for studying, grounds for debate. How do you do a whole 40page magazine on food? The real challenge is how to squeeze everything that food is and can be onto so few pages. As the Alpha-Bits on the front cover spelled out for you, this is the food issue, and we’re pretty excited about this one. This has been a chance to have so many student writers, illustrators, and photographers bring their thoughts and feelings about food to the same table. We hope that range comes through in these pages, with all the contrast and colours and different angles adding together into something bigger. g Bon appétit! Sofia Osborne Managing Editor
Jessica Tang Art Director
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ILLUSTRATION SHELLEY TIAN, “MISO SOUP”
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CONTENTS NOTES
08
Food Fight Find out what the best and worst food on campus is.
REQUIRED READING
12
Stix and Stones
28
And She Will Be Remembered
Dive into a classic chicken adobo bowl with Filistix.
Walk the creaky floors of an old home that won’t forget.
FEATURES
16
Plant-Based
22
Seeds of Doubt
Read about how vegan meat is taking over Edmonton’s food scene.
Weigh the pros and cons of genetically engineered food.
DIVERSIONS
32
Horoscopes
34
Crossword
36
Comics
Consult the stars.
Test your foodie knowledge.
Play with your food.
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CONTRIBUTORS ILLUSTRATION JESSICA TANG
HUGH BAGAN
RILEY ELLIS
“Beefsteak Business” Hugh is a third-year computing science student who should be writing C++ but is instead doodling cartoons in the margins of his notes. He also does a fair bit of game development. In truth, he has his fingers in too many pies. But they’re all so tasty!
Horoscopes and crossword Riley is in his second month of the honours horoscoposcopy program, and intends to shake up the world of food with a hot new diet. You can find him hidden away in Cameron eating vegetables, making calibration curves, and delivering only the highest quality jokes to his friends and lab partners. Kachow!
ANNIE CAI Avocado heart illustration Annie is a fourth-year animal health major who dreams of making the world a brighter place. In addition to writing for The Gateway, she is a flute player in the U of A concert band, executive for the campus vegan club, ice skating instructor, animal activist, wildlife rehabilitator, social media enthusiast, slam poet, cosplayer, and active volunteer in her community. Yes, she really does hate having free time.
HALEY DANG “Stix and stones” Haley is a second-year elementary education student who’s been writing for The Gateway for over a year now. When there’s no snow on the ground, she enjoys spending time in her garden growing petunias. But as long as snow is falling, she’ll be hiding indoors with a cup of tea.
PETER ELIMA “Plant-Based” Peter is a fourth-year visual communication design student. He likes to tell stories through his fun and unique imagery. In this issue, Peter played with food to express people’s growing love for meat alternatives. He aims to continue exploring his creative sense to bring out more quirky visuals.
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DAHLIA EUN “Hacker” Currently in the fourth year of her BFA, Dahlia dreams of becoming a working artist who is confident with her own artwork. Her work usually derives from mundane sentiments and spacial inspirations, such as home and empty and/or forgotten spaces. Dahlia loves to listen to Korean hip hop and ask controversial questions to herself in her spare time.
JULIA HEATON “Seeds of Doubt” Julia is a fourth-year biological sciences student with a minor in history, because she has trouble making decisions. She’s been writing for The Gateway for two years. Beyond indecision, Julia loves genetics, bioethics, and a good latté.
REBECCA LAI “Bok Choi” Rebecca is a fourth-year student in the art and design program, focusing on visual communication design. For her piece in this issue, her goal was to both create a sense of appreciation for her Chinese-Canadian upbringing and advocate for diversity.
DIANA LEYVA
SHELLEY TIAN
Masthead illustration “Avocado toast” Diana is a second-year fashion business student and avocado toast enthusiast. She recently started drawing digitally and hopes to keep getting better at it.
Food Fight Illustration & “Miso Soup” Shelley is a fourth-year computing science student who used to draw comics for The Gateway back when it was a newspaper. Her favourite activities are sketching, biking, watching Daria, and massmurdering park guests in Rollercoaster Tycoon.
CALLUM MCKENZIE
ALEXANDER VINCENT
“Renaissance Grilled Cheese” Callum is in his fourth year of university and his second year of the bachelor of design program. As a staple of his diet, grilled cheese holds a special place in Callum’s heart — and stomach. In this project, he sought to represent this classic food with the reverence and style of the Old Masters.
Food Fight illustration & “Scavengers” Alexander is a fourth-year fine arts student who is interested in pursuing an after degree in education. He created his little goblin character along with a few other characters last year, with Calvin & Hobbes as a major influence.
DANIELLE MCBETH
HELEN ZHOU
“Ramen for Two” Danielle is a fourth-year student in the design program, with a focus on visual communication design and sociology. Her illustration for this issue centers around ramen, one of her favourite foods and the quickest way to her heart (after chocolate, of course).
“Peach Milk Tea” Helen is a fourth-year art and design major. Her interests include illustration and video games. With her piece for this issue, she hopes to capture the comfort of a warm drink in the midst of a cold winter.
ADANNA ONUEKWUSI “Gala and La Casera” Adanna is a fourth-year industrial design student who likes to tell stories through her work. Her illustration in this issue is nostalgic of snacks from her home country, Nigeria. She spends a disturbing amount of time on Artstation and never leaves the house without headphones.
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PHOTO RICHARD BAGAN “STRATHCONA SQUASH”
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PRINT REBECCA LAI, “BOK CHOI”
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FOOD FIGHT Gateway staff and volunteers hash out what the best — and worst — food on campus is. ILLUSTRATION SHELLEY TIAN & ALEXANDER VINCENT Panelists: Victoria Chiu, Maclean Forbes, Andrew McWhinney, Oumar Salifou, Sofia Osborne, Jonathan Hocnalon, Annie Wildemann, Adam Lachacz, Nathan Fung, Jessica Tang, Raylene Lung, Nina Legesse
THE BEST OF THE BEST A&W
FILISTIX
Victoria: I think the best food on campus right now, when it’s in stock, is the A&W Beyond Meat Burger. Because it’s only $7 and it tastes really good.
Andrew: The best food on campus — and I’m not going to think about price or value, I’m just going to think about how fucking yummy it is — is Filistix. And now they’ve expanded it, what more could you want?
Maclean: My favourite’s A&W, too. When it’s the $3.50 teen burgers, that’s pretty hard to argue with. Andrew: I think A&W should just win for best fast food. Oumar: Really? Nothing else beats A&W? Victoria: Their onion rings are consistently really good. And they have really good prices.
DEWEY’S AND RATT Oumar: They’re mediocre. Sofia: I do have to say the service sucks at both places. Annie: Dewey’s is nice, though, cause they do give you free coffee refills. You can pay like $2 and just sit and study and keep getting your cup refilled. And they do a really good, filling taco salad. I was thinking as I was eating it today that it’s a very pleasant experience. Sofia: The real Dewey’s heavyweight is the all-day breakfast, but they don’t serve it after 5 p.m., which sucks. I want tater tots for dinner. But I do think Dewey’s is better than RATT in every possible way. Maclean: Yeah, RATT changed their fries. Sofia: The fries are so good now! They’re so fluffy. Maclean: I don’t like change.
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Sofia: I think Filistix is objectively the best, as in culinarily the best. And it’s also a local company. Andrew: I will die on a hill for Filistix. It is the culinary, and also moral and ethical, choice, and if you don’t pick it you are automatically a horrible person.
NEW YORK FRIES Oumar: I think the fries are pretty bad. Annie: I know when I’m hungover the one thing I crave is the pulled pork poutine. It’s salty and sweet. Sofia: I feel like if you get New York Fries as your lunch you’re, like, “That Guy.”
HULA POKE Sofia: I haven’t tried a vegan option at Hula Poke, but I feel like they’re a good option? Annie: I’ve had it and it’s kind of mediocre because it doesn’t have the fish so it’s a lot of the same thing, which I think is fine if you want to eat for the sake of eating. It gets the job done but it’s not a pleasurable experience. Maclean: I felt like I didn’t get a lot of fish anyway. Nathan: I feel hurt. I’m a pretty big fan of Hula Poke. Sofia: I mean Hula’s just really expensive, and really salty. It tastes like eating just salt rice.
NOTES
TIM HORTONS
PANDA EXPRESS
Adam: The grilled cheese is actually so good.
Victoria: I saw a baseball game once and the only food open was Panda Express and my (Chinese) dad said he’d rather kill himself than eat there.
Victoria: Before I stopped eating meat I would eat the chili every single day. Sofia: It’s good that you’re vegan now, cause you really need to make up for all those animals you ate. Annie: I feel like Tim Hortons is just too broad. It’s not special, it’s not niche.
Oumar: I think Panda Express is a crowd favourite! Jess: I’m vehemently against Panda Express. Sofia: Also the line is so long, right?
SAVOY’S
LA PASTA Annie: I think my favourite thing on campus right now is the $5 combo at La Pasta of salad and pasta AND a piece of garlic bread, which is a whole meal for $5 — shocking. Victoria: The one thing I will say about La Pasta is their tomato bisque is really good, like amazing. Sofia: I haven’t been back to La Pasta since first year because one time I was in line and I forgot that they didn’t take debit (which they do now) and I didn’t have enough cash and I was getting a muffin, and the guy was like “Don’t worry about it, just pay next time” and then I… never went back.
Oumar: Savoy’s is really good. Their butter chicken combo is very, very nice. Sofia: They have really good vegetarian options, actually. And I feel like the value is pretty good. It’s kind of expensive, but you get a ton. If I get it it’s like two whole meals. Oumar: And the side dishes in the combos change every time. Andrew: How the fuck have I gone so long without eating there? Adam: We’re going right after this.
Oumar: That happened to me in the Joe’s place, right when they first opened in HUB. Sofia: I feel like a fugitive from the law.
THE VERDICT Best vegan/vegetarian: A&W (Beyond Meat Burger) Best fast food: A&W Best homestyle: Savoy’s Best overall: Filistix
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NOTES
THE WORST OF THE WORST HO HO CHINESE FOODS Nathan: I’m saying Ho Ho’s because of my memory of having it right before my three hour night class in first year and how I felt incredibly uncomfortable during that whole class because of the food I ate. Raylene: Did it make you sick? It made me sick! Nathan: My tummy would just be like “I hate you” for the whole class. Sofia: Let’s put TUMMY in all caps. Maclean: They chop their food on the HUB tables. Andrew: Wait, what? Adam: That’s where all the flavour comes from. Raylene: You know that hot sauce that they have in that giant jar and there’s just a layer of oil that sits on top of it? I made the mistake of eating it once and I literally almost went to the hospital because it was so spicy it made my throat inflamed and I couldn’t even swallow. Andrew: That sounds like a great fucking time. Oumar: I think they embrace how despicable they are. It’s like, “We know everyone thinks we’re bad, we also think we’re bad.” Andrew: I ate Ho Ho’s like a week ago! I’ve never gotten sick from there, except now I’m never going to eat there again. I know how despicable they are, but I appreciate that they’re upfront about it. Their customer service, they don’t give a shit, man. They’re brutally honest, they’re not trying to be something they’re not. At least when I eat Ho Ho’s I know that I’m possibly going to be tangling with death.
KONZ PIZZA Maclean: Worst is 100 per cent Konz. No competition. All those other foods you could at least sanely eat, but you get a cone and you’re just like, “Ugh, why am I here? Why have I wasted my money?”
Maclean: Well I haven’t taken their whole menu in, but the cone, I got a pepperoni one and oh my god it’s just huge chunks of pepperoni in essentially a flatbread. And it’s just hard. It’s just raw meat inside of a flatbread. Nina: Do they mould the cones? Sofia: No, the cones are premade. Oumar: What if this is just a prank from the Students’ Union? Adam: I don’t even see it as a place to eat, it’s just a novelty. Andrew: I don’t think I’ve ever walked by Konz and been like, hmm I could get food there. Adam: I just love seeing people trying to run across quad to get to a class and they’ve got this stupid cone in their hand. Like, what are you doing? Annie: I literally spilled the entire cone on my pants in the Gateway office. It was not a good look. Jess: I was guilted into trying one but I just remember feeling really bad because it’s like $8 for half an actual pizza slice of stuff. Nina: Has anyone tweeted Gordon Ramsay about Konz yet? Oumar: Oh my god he’s going to come here.
SUBWAY Jonathan: Anything off their $5 menu, I just taste nothing but regret. I have to go through with it because the alternative is starving, but sometimes I wonder if I made the right choice in the end. Sofia: I’m also going to say that I think Subway is the worst because I just really really really hate them — except the rainbow gem cookies. Oumar: Does Subway count as fast food? Jonathan: No, line’s too long.
Andrew: It’s not even a question of food, it’s a question of existence at that point. Just… why?
Oumar: But if you’re not going at peak hours…
Nina: What’s wrong with it? I haven’t been.
Oumar: Write three midterms in five days and tell me that Subway isn’t good.
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Victoria: But it’s not even good.
NOTES
Annie: There’s something about the meat that’s a little bit fishy with it just sitting out all day. It can get kind of sticky, which isn’t attractive. Adam: It’s part of the experience! Oumar: Subway is a feeling, not a food. It’s a state of mind. Nina: I hate Subway so much, but it is pretty cheap and relatively healthy for a fast food place.
BOOSTER JUICE Adam: Can we have a shoutout for Booster Juice? They need better hours. Raylene: I agree with that. The one in Van Vliet closes at like 2:15 p.m. whenever those grumpy ladies decide they want to go home. Oumar: They have a sundial. Raylene: Literally. They fuck off whenever they want. g
Maclean: I mean you can put as much mayo on as you want, there’s your value right there.
THE VERDICT Most likely to give you food poisoning: Ho Ho’s Most toxic relationship: Subway Worst hours: Van Vliet Booster Juice Overall worst (and most cursed): Konz Pizza
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REQUIRED READING
STIX AND STONES: How Filistix became a campus staple. TEXT HALEY DANG PHOTO RICHARD BAGAN
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REQUIRED READING
I finally sit down with my Filistix chicken adobo rice bowl after a long day of classes. SUB becomes quiet around me as I go in for my first bite. The perfect combination of rice, chicken, and signature slaw hits me and I keep eating until there’s nothing but a single grain of rice left at the bottom of my bowl. Some students may wonder about the creators of the beloved campus restaurant, the people responsible for the rice bowls that fuel many endless study sessions. It’s been 10 years since Filistix’s humble beginnings, and it all started with two cousins and a food truck on Rice Howard Way. Before opening Filistix, Ariel Del Rosario and Roel Canafranca worked in restaurants and as DJs, and lived and travelled around the world. “We’ve been getting each other in trouble a lot from an early age,” Del Rosario joked. The two were constantly brainstorming their next creative endeavour and had always had one foot in the food industry, so opening something of their own was a natural transition. In 2008 they decided to start a street food business, and Filistix was born. It started off as a nondescript white truck on Rice Howard Way selling Filipino barbecue. Their staple was meat on a stick, hence the name: Filistix. “Street food is a very inherent part of a city’s culture, and we recognized there was nothing like that here,” Del Rosario explained. The first two seasons of the food truck operation were rough. Many people would end up walking by them, opting for something familiar — the hot dog stand or the indoor food court nearby.
“People were definitely scared to try something out of their comfort zone,” Del Rosario said. In their third year, Del Rosario and Canafranca started doing more special events like music festivals and farmers’ markets. It helped grow their brand and develop a small clientele base. In 2011, the cousins participated in the “What the Truck?!” food truck festival. Serendipitously, the University of Alberta
and Aramark, the university’s food service provider, sent delegates to the event to look for new vendors for campus. The delegates took note of the long line for the food at the Filistix truck. With that, the cousins were invited to set up shop in Quad once a week in the summer. After a successful first run, Filistix was offered vacant spots in the Central Academic Building food court and the Edmonton Clinic Health Academy. Afterwards, in January 2012, MacEwan University approached them asking if they wanted to open a location in the Robbins Learning Centre. That was when Del Rosario and Canafranca quit their day jobs to pursue Filistix full-time. The campus menu was curated with students in mind. They stuck to their Filipino roots and the chicken adobo rice bowl became a staple on the menu, along with their ever-rotating specials. Filistix became a fixture on campus, so when Aramark decided not to renew their contract in the summer of 2018 — taking away all their locations at the U of A and MacEwan — Del Rosario and Canafranca were a little taken aback. “We were surprised, and shocked, and kind of disappointed when Aramark decided to go in a different direction,” Del Rosario said. In response to the possibility of Filistix leaving campus, more than 1,000 members of the community rallied together and signed a petition to keep Filistix around. While Aramark never reversed their decision, Rosario and Canafranca ended up signing a contract with the Students’ Union to open shop in the basement of SUB. This new location has offered the cousins more opportunities. They’ve been able to expand the menu and have longer hours. Next, the cousins will be opening a downtown location at 1062 St. and 100 Ave. towards the end of the year, where they’ll be experimenting with different menu items. One day, Del Rosario and Canafranca hope to expand the company into many different branches under the Filistix name. Maybe they’ll open a noodle bar and even a bakery, putting their own spin on the Momofuku concept made famous in New York by David Chang. “Whatever we do in the future, we’ll be okay because we know we have a strong bond with our customers,” Del Rosario said. g
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ILLUSTRATION ADANNA ONUEKWUSI “GALA AND LA CASERA”
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ILLUSTRATION HELEN ZHOU “PEACH MILK TEA”
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Edmonton’s Real Love for Fake Meat TEXT VICTORIA CHIU DESIGN + PHOTO PETER ELIMA
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FEATURES
Imagine for a moment that you’re sitting in Nishi, an upscale restaurant in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighbourhood that is part of esteemed chef David Chang’s elite Momofuku culinary brand. You order the Impossible Burger, one of the restaurant’s famous dishes: a delectable burger expertly glazed in Nishi’s savoury, drool-worthy house sauce, dressed with lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles, and accompanied by fries that are neither too thin nor uncomfortably large. Your teeth sink into the flawlessly prepared meal, and you’re met with the softness of the bun, the meaty texture of the patty, the freshness of the vegetables. The patty bleeds vibrant red, drizzling the plate below. You’ve never had such an amazing burger. Now imagine walking up to your local A&W here in Edmonton. Maybe even the one in HUB mall on campus. You order the Beyond Meat Burger and have — minus the bustling New York company — close to the same culinary experience. How is this possible? The meat of the secret lies in the patty. Made by Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, respectively, both the distant Momofuku Nishi’s Impossible Burger and A&W’s considerably closer to home Beyond Meat Burger contain a patty that is totally plant-based, meaning no animal products whatsoever go into their creation. The Impossible Burger’s famous “blood” can be attributed to the inclusion of plant-originated heme, the component of blood that makes it red, and you can thank pea protein isolates for Beyond Meat’s remarkably animal-like texture. To put it another way, they’re both vegan and vegetarian. Steadfastly popular in bustling metropolitan centres like Los Angeles and New York City, plantbased lifestyles are drawing local crowds in traditional Albertan beef-repping cities like Edmonton. From A&W’s much-advertised Beyond Meat Burger to the new vegan options available at Hula Poke and Filistix in the University of Alberta’s Students’ Union Building, vegan and vegetarian options are becoming more prevalent. In the last few years, Edmonton has seen an explosion of plant-based restaurants, vendors, and products available in stores — which has had significant implications for Edmontonian eaters and businesses alike. Once resigned to your standard vegetables, fruits, tofu, and the odd textured primitive
imitation meat, vegetarians and vegans today are privy to a veritable wealth of well-executed meat substitutes. One particularly interesting product to come out of the increasing popularity of plant-based food is the development and widening availability of “fake” meats. Designed to mimic animal flesh to varying degrees, plant-based meats provide an alternative for those who want to cut back on their animal consumption but still like to indulge in the taste and texture of traditional meat. Once relegated to the dusty, rarely-visited corners of grocery stores, these veggie alternatives are increasingly being brought to the forefront due to their increase in quality and their popularity with consumers. “Vegetarianism and veganism have been around for hundreds of years, but it hasn’t been until the last five years that we’ve seen the huge growth levels in non-meat alternatives we’ve been experiencing,” says Michael Kalmanovitch, proprietor of Earth’s General Store, a vegan grocery store and mainstay in Edmonton since 1991. Meat-like substitutes — also called faux meats and vegan meats — are known as “analogues” in the technical food world. Tofurkey, vegan hot dogs, and the Beyond Meat Burger all fall into this category. But like the wide variety of plant-based products on grocery store shelves, analogues vary notably in their ingredients and nutritional content. Some, like chickpea-based burgers, are more natural in their composition; others, such as those made up of ingredients like wheat gluten and isolated soy protein, veer on the more synthetic side of the spectrum. Natural, plant-based alternatives to animal protein have been around for hundreds of years: think seitan, a wheat-based product; soy products like tofu; and leguminous lentils and beans. Compared to India, China, and other countries and cultures that have long utilized these alternatives, Kalmanovitch says, North America is a neophyte to the plant-based game, albeit one gaining traction with impressive speed as more “mainstream” companies vie for consumers in this largely untapped market. The involvement of major players in the food industry has had a huge impact on plant-based product development. Imitation meats have made considerable strides since their initial introduction to markets decades ago. David Sun, proprietor of Edmonton’s Orii Vegan & Vegetarian Market and part of its vegan meat manufacturing arm, Happy Veggie
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FEATURES
World, says the most noticeable difference between the veggie products of old and the modern options on shelves today is the “mouthfeel” of things like veggie patties and vegan sausages. “There’s been a huge focus on texture,” Sun says. “I think that’s what really freaks people out — not the taste, because [products like] tofu can be covered up with sauces. The old-time [vegetarian] burgers would kind of crumble — they didn’t have that fibrous element to them. Right now, what a lot of manufacturers are doing is working with new types of plants, like mushrooms, that are organically very fibrous.” The improvement in plant technology has meant that plant-based product lines are no longer exclusive to niche pockets of eaters, a fact made evident by the growing instances of traditional meat-based companies buying up popular vegan and vegetarian brands. In December 2017, Maple Leaf Foods — formerly known as Maple Leaf Meats — acquired the well-known gluten- and plant-based sausage and meat company Field Roast for a tidy $120 million. Kalmanovitch says mainstream brands are willing to fork over these large sums for comparatively smaller brands because of the huge potential the still-developing plant-based market offers businesses.
“This is the only area in grocery food that is expanding — there’s nothing new in the meat industry,” Kalmanovitch says. “There’s steak and there’s burgers and there’s hot dogs, and those have been around for years; there’s nothing new in that,” he adds. “There is growth and potential in vegan markets, and the food industry as a whole wants to be a part of that.” The trickle-down effect of big business’ interest in plant-based alternatives has manifested at the local level. “One reason we got into the [vegan meat] business is that I noticed there was a shift,” Sun says. “There was a growing need for vegan and vegetarian
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meat alternatives, but even just the focus on the environment. People were looking for ways to lower their impact.” That impact relates to the ethical connotations of veganism, which, as a lifestyle, is closely tied to the environment and animal rights. Typically the label of “vegan” comes with associations of being against certain aspects of animal products, with cruelty to farm animals being one of the most common reasons many people cite for adopting a vegan lifestyle. Undercover infiltrations of some modern slaughterhouses have revealed the unethical treatment many farm animals face, with graphic footage of animals being beaten, young male chicks being tossed into grinders alive, pigs being dragged painfully by their ears across the killing floor, and chickens having their sensitive beaks sliced off without anesthesia. Often this treatment goes unseen, and those who choose to be vegan commonly wish to vote with their dollar to avoid supporting these troubling aspects of the meat and dairy industry. There are also other reasons for not eating meat, like the carbon footprint associated with the mass production of animal products. The Washington Post reported that eating beans instead of a five-ounce steak once a week for a year keeps roughly 331 kilograms of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere; The Guardian noted that while vegetables take around 322 litres of water per kilogram to produce, animal meats like beef require upwards of 15,415 litres. There are also issues related to water pollution from livestock, deforestation as trees are cleared to create farmland, and wasted crops that feed animals destined for consumption, among other concerns. “There are a lot of resources that go into producing a steak,” says Julianna Mimande, general manager of local restaurant Noorish Conscious Eatery, located on 109th Street near the U of A. “All the pollution produced by the cattle industry, for example, is terrible for the environment. And a lot of our planet is used to grow food to feed animals that [in turn] feed very few people, when we could be using that food to feed more people [directly].” Noorish, like many of the restaurants opening now, calls itself “plant-based,” which shies away from the political aspects of veganism and vegetarianism while focusing on the healthiness of plant-based choices for individual consumers and the planet. Noorish itself features items on the menu like king oyster mushroom risotto drizzled in truffle
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oil and “bacon” cashew cheeseburgers, which make plant-based choices accessible to all kinds of eaters. Beyond the ethical concerns, there are other reasons to be open to more plants in one’s diet. Research has shown that going vegan may help stave off certain chronic diseases. “[Eating a vegan diet] may prevent heart disease by lowering cholesterol levels; it may help decrease blood pressure or hypertension, and hopefully since you’re eating more fruits and vegetables on a vegan diet, it might increase your levels of antioxidants,” Sabina Valentine, a registered dietician and associate professor at the U of A, says. While diets lower in animal products may be healthy, the healthiness of faux meats themselves is less established. “A lot of the fake meats out there aren’t necessarily great for you because they do have a lot of additives and they are processed foods,” Valentine explains. “But in the end, what those options offer are fun, treat-type alternatives for those who sometimes miss the texture and flavour of meat.” Sun agrees. “A lot of people ask, ‘If you’re vegetarian, why even try to simulate meat?’ And that’s a really good question — really, this product [line] is a transition product [from omnivorism to vegetarianism]. A lot of omnivores can’t even tell the difference!”
In other words, these meat alternatives aren’t terrible, but they’re also special indulgences — they’re not meant to be everyday staples. On this point, Valentine warns against setting unrealistic expectations about eating foods labelled as vegan or vegetarian. “It can be easy to think, ‘Oh, I’m eating vegetarian; it must be healthier.’ It can be, but it has to be done with a little conviction and effort to get the nutrients you may be deficient in and to avoid products high in sodium, saturated fat, and sugar.” The real key, Valentine says, is incorporating moderation into plant-based choices. Indulging in processed meat alternatives isn’t harmful every once in a while, but alternatives made of whole foods — unprocessed ingredients that aren’t refined
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FEATURES
or broken down — are even better than standard faux meats. “Even a non-vegetarian diet composed of non-processed foods is very healthy; the same goes for vegan and vegetarian diets. Ingesting whole foods, real foods you can get into your diet, will ensure your diet has greater nutrient density,” Valentine says. Because of these factors, vegetarian meats made from black beans, kidney beans, quinoa, or sweet potatoes as opposed to more synthetic components often prove to be better choices in the long run — even if they don’t have the shocking meat imitation accuracy of Beyond Meat Burgers. Often, though, what makes or breaks the quality of any given plant-based meat alternative is not the actual product itself, but rather the way it is dressed and prepared. By using innovative seasonings and sauces, local restaurants have been able to sway Edmontonians into trying and sticking with oncealien faux meats. Padmanadi Vegetarian Restaurant, a longtime local plant-based joint serving cuisine with Indonesian and Chinese influences, has been successful in its quest to win Edmontonians over with its entirely plant-based menu. Its legendary creamy, spicy coconut milk-based curry “chicken” and crispy “chicken” strips served with homemade hot sauce always have the restaurant busy — something only accomplished, representative Maya
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Paramitha says, through the innovative creation of great sauces, spice combinations, and seasonings. “When you see ‘curry chicken’ or ‘ginger beef’ [at Padmanadi], it’s not just the meat — every other component has to be there; the sauces have to be there,” she says. “The full experience of the entire meal as a whole is what makes it so good, not just the faux meat on its own.” The current success of vegan and vegetarian meat alternatives in the heart of Albertan beef territory raises the question: what do local vendors foresee for the future of plant-based eating in Edmonton? “We’re definitely seeing that [the popularity of vegan and vegetarian food] is growing,” Sun says. “Our business has grown nearly 2,000 per cent over the last four years — more and more people are seeking [plant-based food] out and looking to find out more information about it.” This sentiment is echoed by other local vendors. A lot of plant-based food’s staying power relates to its sustainability as a healthy lifestyle rather than a short-term trend. “Just like any diet — Atkins, [ketogenic diets] — there are trends. But unlike [fad diets], veganism and vegetarianism can be done for the long term,” Paramitha says. “You can be a vegan for 40, 50 years — you can’t do Atkins or keto for 50 years. Veganism is definitely here to stay.” g
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“Meat alternatives are like cupcakes. When you eat a cupcake, you know it’s not good for you, but it’s delicious and sometimes you just have it,” Valentine says.
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Seeds of Doubt The debate around GMOs and our food.
TEXT JULIA HEATON ILLUSTRATION JESSICA TANG
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Nat Kav sits in his office in mid-September while flurries of wet snow fall outside. “Look at it out there,” he says. “I don’t think the harvest is done yet.” Early snow is one reason Kav and his colleagues are working to change the DNA of the plants we rely on for food. His work focuses on the genetic manipulation of crops to withstand environmental stresses, including diseases, short growing seasons, and the temperature extremes that have become more frequent with climate change. One of Kav’s tools in this process is genes that already exist in other species. He created a disease-resistant canola strain by moving genes for antibodies that naturally exist in animals into the genome of the plant. This makes the canola more resilient, but also turns it into what some people call a “frankenfood:” a plant containing DNA that’s been moved across species boundaries.
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Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are organisms in which the DNA has been altered from its natural state. The main targets of genetic modification are the organisms we use for food, whether that be corn, apples, salmon, or soya beans. Scientists who work in the field object to the term “genetically modified,” preferring genetically engineered as a more precise term for the work of directly altering the genes of the food we eat. “Everything that we have today is, in my opinion, genetically modified in one way or another,” Kav says. “We have been selecting plants, we have been crossing plants that are desirable in terms of characteristics, which is all genetic modification.” Genetic engineering, on the other hand, describes a newer process by which scientists modify living organisms by inserting genes from other species or by editing a species’ own DNA. These technologies produce results faster than the
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traditional use of selection, as people can directly create the variants they want to see rather than waiting for nature to present them. One reason Kav and other scientists are changing the DNA of plants is to meet growing demands for food supplies around the world. It’s estimated that the world’s population will reach nine billion by the year 2050, and advocates of genetically modified food emphasize that we will need to use every technology at our disposal to be able to feed them all.
Henry An is a professor of resource economics in the faculty of agricultural, life, and environmental sciences. He says that for proponents of genetically modified foods, it’s an issue of needing to grow more food on less land. Advocates say the only way to produce enough food is to take advantage of all the technology available, including genetically engineered crops. However, this emphasis on productivity is exactly what turns some people off of the idea of genetically engineering food. Jeff Senger, a self-described “refugee of the city,” left a career as an accountant in Calgary to move to an acreage north of Edmonton. Senger now runs Sangudo Custom Meat Packers, a certified organic slaughterhouse, and grows organic produce on his small family farm. Seeing firsthand the quality and variation of meats that have come into his business from around the community has driven Senger’s enthusiasm for organic farming. He’s noticed that the animals brought in for “mainstream food” were different from those farmers raised to feed their own families. “The quality of the meats changed depending on how the animals were treated, handled, and fed,” he says. For Senger, genetically modified foods are part of an agribusiness industry that’s driving the prioritization of profits and productivity above all else. “When food is produced with profit as a motive — not with nutrition or sustainability, or the health of the consumer, or the health of the animal, or the health of the planet as a priority — that means that you’re sacrificing something,” he says. The connection of genetically modified foods to the big businesses that produce and distribute them breeds further distrust among farmers caught
in a changing economic landscape. Unlike “regular” plants, whose seeds can be planted and regrown every year, the seeds of genetically engineered plants often contain material that’s patented and owned by companies. Farmers found to be growing these seeds without a license risk legal action from the corporations who own the altered plants. Stories of these lawsuits become “rural myths” among farmers who fear that these seeds might blow in and take root on their own land. “We watch our fields,” Senger explains. “Because it could be a huge, devastating economic loss to the community if a few local producers are sued because our fields may contain this blight of genetically modified plants.” Farming with seeds owned by companies creates further problems for farmers who either have to renew their licenses every year, or buy new seeds as the seeds themselves are genetically engineered to be sterile.
“I think that farmers don’t want to be slaves to needing to buy seed every year. A lot of these old farmers that have been farming for a long time… they kind of feel duped,” Senger says. Kav agrees that much of the resistance to GMOs is not a result of the science itself, but the companies who commercialize it. “A lot of public misconception and mistrust comes from the fact that the people who use these technologies and commercialize these technologies are big companies,” he says. “People don’t trust big companies… but I always end with saying, ‘Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.’” He maintains that the technology of genetic modification is safe and useful, but societal barriers stand in the way of it becoming widely used. One of these barriers is the continued link between genetically engineered plants and large-
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scale farming. However, industry experts maintain that the solution is not as simple as abandoning industrial agriculture in favour of smaller, organic farms. Though farming that separates itself from corporations and mass production might allow greater sovereignty for farmers, these benefits are unlikely to reach all consumers. An points out that small-scale farming might just not be realistic to meet the needs of the planet’s populations. “It’s tough to produce a lot of food for a lot of people at prices that people can afford,” An says. “If you just go to the grocery store, organic is anywhere from 20 to 100 per cent more expensive. So if we’re going to move to organic, it’s kind of elitist… some people can afford it, but not everybody can.” When companies engineer their plants to resist pesticides, withstand drought, or produce nonviable seeds, people begin to panic about the effects of intervening in nature, and what the unintended consequences might be. An, who researches consumer attitudes towards genetically modified foods, sums up one of the most common objections to these foods as “playing God.” People protest that we shouldn’t be making things that are “unnatural,” An says, and that we don’t know what all of the ramifications could be. These fears and objections have real impacts on the work being done in Kav’s lab. He believes that the disease-resistant canola he and his team have created may never actually be used in the field for which it was designed. “I believe, and nobody has told me this, [that it] will never see the light of day,” he says. “Because you can just see the public saying animal antibody genes are in the canola that you eat.” It becomes hard to draw the line that determines when interventions have gone too far. Ingo Brigandt, a U of A philosophy professor specializing in the philosophy of biology, argues that often, the
boundaries drawn between what is natural and unnatural reflect our own values more so than any empirical truth. “I guess a common conception is if it’s genetically modified, it isn’t natural,” he says. However, the definition of what makes something natural is often not completely clear. Separating arbitrary objections from sciencebased critiques is a serious concern for undergraduate students working with the technology of genetic modification. Talia Dixon is a second-year political sciences student and a member of the UAlberta International Genetically Engineered Machine team. The team works to solve real-world problems with genetic engineering and is currently creating a biosynthetic system to combat fungal infections in honeybees and help save bee populations in Alberta. Dixon has spent the past few months driving across the province to talk to beekeepers about what they need and how the team’s genetically engineered solution might help. “When I say I work with GMOs,” she says, “I think the immediate reaction from a lot of people is: ‘Well, you’re creating something that shouldn’t be here, and is going to go out into our environment, change everything, and have catastrophic effects.’” Dixon, who had misgivings herself about genetically modified organisms before she began working with the group, has found comfort in the care scientists take to make sure their creations will have a positive impact on the world. She emphasizes that the aim of scientists is always to create something that will help solve a problem, and that avoiding any harm to people is at the forefront of their minds. “The scientific community is very cautious,” she says. When it comes to the genetic modification of food, there’s a mismatch between public attitudes and those held by scientists. Facebook articles
“We’ve been breeding and modifying things for millennia. Humans have always intervened in the natural order,” Brigandt says. 28 | GTWY.CA
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linking genetically modified foods to cancer abound, but researchers like Kav who know the technology most intimately maintain they have no qualms about eating genetically engineered food themselves. Among members of the public, opinions are divided over whether genetically engineered plants are dangerous “superweeds” or a viable way to combat resistance that has built up naturally through decades of agricultural chemical use. And so far, those divides don’t show signs of narrowing. “People are inundated with all of this conflicting information,” An says, noting that public opinions on genetically modified foods have undergone little change in the past decade. “If anything, people who have strong opinions have just cemented those opinions even further.” Despite this stagnancy, advocates of genetic modification continue their work so that the necessary science is refined and ready by the time public opinion turns in its favour. Based on her own experience of changing her opinion, Dixon maintains that education by reliable, scientific sources is the best way to remedy fear. “I think you can still be fearful,” she says. “Because I also am cautious about the use of everything that we do in science. I think we should always be afraid a little bit… but that fear shouldn’t dominate you; it should spark creativity and curiosity and make you want to learn.” g
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REQUIRED READING
And She Will Be Remembered TEXT VICTORIA CHIU ILLUSTRATION JESSICA TANG
The first thing is the smell. It’s overpowering, leaking from every crevice in the floor and crack in the peeling paint near the windows, oozing from the groaning wooden cabinet doors, from the crusty ancient oven, from the cheap plates sitting in the sink with remnants of yesterday’s dinner still clinging to them. Fermented herbs and oils waft through the air, lingering in the room with the nauseating scent of chicken fat and minced meat. The aroma of Chinese herbal medicine. Of Asian immigrants, some say. Then there are the photos on the walls. Not one or two, nicely framed, hung straight and level and perfectly even like a neat row of houses in an upper-middle-class neighbourhood. Instead there are hundreds, once meticulously counted, all different shapes and sizes, arranged haphazardly. They are photos of people, mostly — of Mother, of her siblings, of aunts and uncles and cousins lost to the passage of time. The faces, dim in the fading light of the late afternoon sun, stare down at the overflowing trash can below them and its skewed lid; at the stagnant greasescented air that seems determined to remain even after being battled with the strongest air fresheners.
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The slowly spinning fan overhead is unhelpful, only circulating the odour. It must be ingrained in the walls, in the furniture, Mother says. The floor creaks in complaint when it’s trod upon too suddenly — don’t hurt me, keep out, stay away, it seems to say — and the small, rickety table is still too frail to support much more than a carefully balanced platter. Everyone complained often of the loud inconvenience of the table, of the clattering hoodfan, of the crepitating cube of a television that could only play clear programs when the antennae were poked and prodded when Grandmother was alive. There were so many discussions of improvements in this house, but somehow it is constantly static, unable and unwilling to change. The mass of tangled television cables coiling around the table is just as troublesome as always; those trying to move mountains of dusty boxes of disposable cutlery find themselves constantly tripping as they maneuver through narrow spaces and around sharp edges. Thin, droopy curtains shroud the barred window above the sink, but through the threads in the fabric peeks what used to be Grandmother’s garden. Where
REQUIRED READING
there used to be rows of vibrant orange squash, plump dark zucchini, and tangles of snap pea vines, there is now only lifeless dirt. With nobody to tend to it, the yard has succumbed to a state of forever decay. Now there are only rotting vegetables in the refrigerator, the substandard after-images of past perennial bounty; a piece of broccoli squashed flat on a cloudy plastic shelf next to a half-empty carton of milk with a dog-eared top; plastic-wrapped leftover salted fish and white rice in a tinfoil tray. And, always, the insistent scent of burnt lard. Maybe the kitchen doesn’t want to let the final proof of its former inhabitant’s habits depart. Maybe it doesn’t want to submit to inevitable emptiness, loneliness. For it truly does seem as if it’s grasping desperately at the scraps of its longtime tenant, alternately hoarding and releasing them to onlookers in an effort to prove itself: someone lived here, see? And they left the chicken fat on their broth, let it turn rancid in the empty pot on the stove. Let the shrivelled Mandarin oranges on the shelves wither as the seasons passed. Let the crusty old rice sit at the bottom of the cooker, its long, loopy wire still
dangling over the edge of the mottled counter. Let the floors stay slightly sticky and the door to the unforgiving concrete basement stairs continue squeaking on its hinges. It will look different once the renovations are complete, everyone agrees, but some parts of the room will refuse to concede to the work of decorators and carpenters. Even after scrubbing and sweeping, painting and reupholstering, the faint scent of chicken grease will invade the space. The floorboards will continue to creak, and crushed grains of rice will still be visible in the spaces between each slat despite the best efforts of industrialstrength vacuums. This room is steeped in the tics and idiosyncrasies of Grandmother; everything from the mismatched dishes scattered around the sink to the plastic-wrapped chairs surrounding the table recalls her peculiarities. Even if she no longer walks the gummy floors or peers through the curtains at her garden, she presides over this place like a military general. This space is loyal: It will never allow her memory to be completely forgotten. g
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PHOTO CALLUM MCKENZIE “RENAISSANCE GRILLED CHEESE”
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HOROSCOPES TEXT RILEY ELLIS VISUALS JESSICA TANG
Aries Channel your inner peach; if you’ve got it, flaunt it.
Virgo If nobody catches you cheating on your diet, is it really cheating?
Cancer Your course load is like a fivecourse meal. Pace yourself, and try not to fill up on the soup and salad.
Taurus As your midterms get harder, find solace in bubble tea. Lots of bubble tea.
Leo This is a month for trying new things and new drink combinations. Who knows, you might find the next pumpkin spice latté.
Pisces You’ve matured this year, and with your maturity comes a sophisticated palette. Say no to the chicken strips, opt for the fish fingers.
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Aquarius As the month grows colder, find solace in the pizza sub. Toasted, please.
Libra It’s illegal to sell pre-made edibles, but that has only brought out your inner artisan at home. It’s time to bake.
Capricorn There is potential for a burnout in your future; remember to turn off your oven after stress-baking.
Scorpio November is your month to make major changes in your life. Maybe it’s time to go vegan.
Sagittarius This month is beyond important for you, and you have no time for untimely illness. Cook your chicken thoroughly.
Gemini Divide and conquer! By cutting your work into smaller slices, you can manage your workload AND your gluten intake. g
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CROSSWORD TEXT RILEY ELLIS ILLUSTRATION ANNIE CAI
ACROSS
DOWN
2 Institution that offers 50 per cent off pizza and bread to all university students 7 The SUB farmers’ market occurs on this weekday 8 Beloved donut vendor at the SUB farmers’ market 9 Common muffin combines lemon and this seed 12 Simple boxed macaroni meal 13 The croissant originated in this country 15 Perogy/pieroji/perogies are dumplings typically stuffed with cheese and ? 16 HappyCow lists restaurants that cater to this dietary restriction
1 This city in Québec has its own style of bagel 3 Poutine originated in what province? 4 Canadian origin city of the California Roll 5 Forbidden pizza shape 6 SqueaK’rs are a brand of this food 10 The origin city of a famous west coast dessert bar 11 Cheap on Wednesday 12 Chip flavour unique to Canada 14 Tree that provides an important source of sugar Find the answers on our website, gtwy.ca
Student Admission: $10 ($8 Matinée) Metro Cinema is a community-based non-profit society devoted to the exhibition and promotion of Canadian, international, and independent film and video. metrocinema.org Video Mixtape Remix
NOV 10 @ MIDNIGHT
If you are a Night Gallery regular, you know Allan loves video mixtapes. Unfortunately, sometimes the best ones are not fit for human eyeballs. So, to spare loyal patrons the ultra cringe moments, several awesome mixtapes are mixed into one that pushes the envelope without making us lose our lunch. All tickets $6!
Best F(r)iends: Volume 2
NOV 24 @ 9PM, NOV 25 @ 10:45PM, NOV 28 @ 9:30 As Sestero’s drifter makes a run for it, his misadventure teaches him about friendship and loyalty, and Wiseau’s mortician surfaces a surprise or two. NOV 24 - Greg Sestero in attendance!
MFKZ
NOV 25 @ 9:30PM, NOV 27 @ 9:30PM Following a scooter accident Angelino starts experiencing migraines and strange hallucinations, as well as fits of rage-inspired superpowers, as he slowly awakens to the truth of his origins: he is halfhuman and half-Macho, a supernatural alien race that is bent on taking over the planet.
Metro Cinema at the Garneau 8712-109 Street | metrocinema.org
Metro Cinema receives ongoing support from these Arts Funders:
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*we print faster than you decided to drop all your 8AM classes Lower Level SUB subprint.ca Open Monday–Friday: 9am—5pm