Short Personal History on Sprouting: In 1977, when my first husband and I owned a health food store and I had become a vegetarian, I went to a vegetarian conference and met Viktoras Kulvinskas, a “New Age” raw food enthusiast. A few weeks later, on his way out West to the annual Rainbow Family Gathering, he and his “entourage” stopped by our home/store in Lewisburg, PA. (We lived above the store on the main street.) He introduced us to the importance of sprouting and made wheat grass, a first for me. Less than two years after that pivotal moment, we went on to convert our store into a full on indoor sprouting operation!
Back to the story: That summer, with the support of my then two pre-teen children and husband, I joined Viktoras in his well-equipped van with sprouts growing on the roof and went to New Mexico to the Rainbow Gathering. It was an incredible experience from all levels. This is when the power of living foods really hit home for me; during the gathering, I ate all raw foods, including sprouts, and never fell sick with dysentery that other people at the gathering succumbed to. At the end of the week I had lost five pounds and had no PMS or cramps that month. Sprouts became an integral part of my diet then and now.
Seeds of Sustainability
Fast forward to last month, when my daughter Eileen sent me a website: www.seedsofsustainability.org In the video, Robin Marche, who mentions Viktoras in his video, shows us how to grow sprouts similarly to how Viktoras did. Here is a short review of that video, which is available from Seeds of Sustainability (SOS), run by a group of dedicated people who live around the globe. Sprout photos are courtesy of Kristin, my contact at SOS.
In the DVD, Seeds of Sustainability, we learn how easily someone can grow large amounts of food without land, a prime concern in Third World countries where people on the edge of hunger have no land to grow food. In this video, Robin Marché demonstrates the simple steps that anyone can take to create large amounts of fresh living foods in a very short periods of time.
As the narrator points out, many people shy away from sprouting because it requires frequent watering. In the U.S., many people are away from home during the day at work and cannot water. Also, many people consider this just one more chore in their busy day. However, Robin demonstrates with a simple method how this constant watering can be easily avoided.
One of the suggestions I have read repeatedly about for Earth Day is to eat lower on the food chain to have less of an impact on the environment. I cannot think of a better way to do that than to start sprouting. Whether you use the jar method, as I have been doing for years, or try Robin Marché’s method, which I plan to experiment with, growing sprouts is one way to be healthy and help the planet stay healthy.
To purchase a copy of this excellent DVD, go to www.seedsofsustainability.org You can buy a physical copy for $47, (which you could easily pay for one dinner at a nice restaurant) or choose the more ecologically friendly digital download for $37, which I thought was a great way to take care of the planet and save 10 bucks in the process! Either way, a portion of the cover price goes towards a foundation that will be supporting new and developing sustainable communities. (Note: Currently, this method works best on larger beans and seeds. SOS is working on sprouting smaller seeds with this method.)
P.S. When we had our sprouting company in C.PA, we started a non-profit organization to send seeds to missionaries in poor communities around the world. I called the organization, Johnny Alfalfa Sprout, since we felt like Johnny Appleseed, spreading sprouting seeds instead of apple seeds. I gave a sprout workshop to a group of Maryknoll Sisters in upstate New York. They wanted a manual to take with them when they worked in other countries, so I created The Johnny Alfalfa Sprout Handbook. It covers “conventional” sprouting in jars or trays, including baby greens. To order a copy, click on My Books.
