I bought some rice the other day - Basmati - to go with a very fine sweet potato curry. Happy to report my cooking is improving...
So - the options in the supermarket were rice from Pakistan or rice from Australia. Once I started to think about it, I did not find this a very easy choice.
1. Australian rice - no doubt a fine product, but I don't think we should be growing such grossly water intensive crops in this parched land that is suffering from major water supply issues.
2. Pakistani rice - shipped a long way to get here. Food miles = v.high. But maybe (?) purchasing this rice would support people on lower incomes if the production involves a lot of manual labour.
Neither, I might add, were organic - so another set of issues there. In the end I bought the Pakistani rice, but I am still left scratching my head as to what is the best course of action.
Give up rice?
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This and other 'food miles' issues have been weighing heavy - especially while I'm reading "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver...
I buy the Pakistani Basmati but perhaps the Australian Grown Dongara may be a better choice. Lowest GI, supports Australian farmers, is grown in a relatively "watery" spot. Thinking about this I'd rather support Aust farmers and use up water than overseas industry and use up extra fuel getting it here.
Have I just confused you more?
Treehugger has had some articles on rice lately. Just do a search at the top on "rice" and it will pop up with a lot of articles to peruse.
We buy organic rice from Thailand. It's available at the Vic Markets, and when you buy bulk (by the kilo), you save on packaging as well as money.
In the end, I think the rice issue is a moot point. You can worry about it until you're pink in the face, or you can get on with life and deal with the bigger issues - what sort of car you have/drive, whether you consume meat, whether you are on Green Power, and whether you're making a biger difference than all of the above by encouraging as many people as possible to make a difference to their way of life as well.
Don't get caught up in the tiny details, and forget to see the big picture. Rice is a good food, and buying organic is the best way to go. But if you're worried about the water used, eat organic, local potatoes instead! :)
Organic rice from Thailand sounds great - thanks for the tip.
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