YumSugar

State and local governments demand that their residents shut up and pay up during a recession.

Grandpa — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:39:25 -0800

The Highest Tax Increases EverState and local governments demand that their residents shut up and pay up during a recession.By Jim GeraghtyState governments know we’re in a recession, and they know you’re hurting. That’s why they’re demanding more from you.We’ve seen a lot of anger about taxes at the tea parties and town-hall meetings this year, and observers might be forgiven for thinking that the federal government enacted income-tax increases the moment Obama was inaugurated. It did not, but Americans are governed by more than Washington, and while Obama has enacted only one major tax increase this year - raising the tobacco tax nearly 62 cents on a pack of cigarettes, to $1.01 - state and local governments have responded to the recession by essentially lifting up their citizens, turning them upside down, and shaking them until all their remaining pocket change falls out.A new survey of state governments shows that 29 states enacted tax and fee increases this year that are expected to take almost $24 billion from their residents.
Sales-tax increases are common: They will raise an extra $4 billion in California, $889 million in Massachusetts, and $803 million in North Carolina. Income taxes are going up, too: The hikes are expected to generate an additional $4 billion in New York, $1.01 billion in New Jersey, $617 million in Connecticut, $278 million in Wisconsin, and $235 million in Oregon. Higher corporate-income taxes will boost revenues by $110 million in Connecticut, $130 million in Delaware, and $25.8 million in Tennessee. Higher gas taxes will yield an additional $33.9 million in Alaska, $6 million in Maine, $2.4 million in New Hampshire. Apparently concluding that small businesses have it too easy, New Hampshire just added a new interest and dividends tax on limited-liability corporations. All of this is enough to drive you to drink, but state governments will get you there, too: Alcohol taxes are going up in New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Vermont.Did states cut their budgets? Sure: Collectively, the states reduced spending by $31 billion this year, with another $55 billion in cuts slated for next year. (Of course, future budget cuts have a tendency not to turn out as expected. One can be forgiven for doubting that California will really cut its budget by $20 billion next year, as projected.)How did states get into this mess? Over the past two decades, most states enacted gargantuan increases in spending. States’ collective general-fund spending increased in real terms every year from 1984 to 2002, with the increases ranging from 0.6 percent in 1993 to 5.2 percent in 1999. Real spending fell slightly during the first three years after 9/11 - with declines of 1.4 percent, 3.6 percent, and 1 percent from 2002 to 2004 - before jumping up again in recent years: by 3.4 percent in 2006 and 4.3 percent in 2007. The nominal increases (not accounting for inflation) were often much higher (for example, 9.4 percent in 2007).Total spending by all states is estimated at $1.23 trillion this year; in 2004, it was $1.01 trillion; a decade ago, in 1999, it was a little over half what it is today, a mere $693 billion.While this year’s tax increases are the worst - by a lot - it’s not as if state tax and fee revenues have declined in recent years. They’ve increased every year since 2002, except for a 2.1 percent decline in 2007.And this is just state taxes. Local governments are hiking taxes as well. Pottstown, Pa., is considering a 20 percent hike in property taxes. New Orleans is increasing its property taxes. This year, about 30 Massachusetts communities have voted on property-tax increases. It’s not surprising that local lawmakers think raising taxes is normal, when even Normal, Ind., is doing it. New York City has moved to raise sales taxes, as has Los Angeles County. In Massachusetts, Arlington and Lexington raised hotel and restaurant taxes.Of course, many of these tax increases don’t work out quite as supporters intend. States and municipalities that raised sales taxes in 2008 are bringing in less revenue than they expected. Many lawmakers blame it on “the economy,” never stopping to think that making an item more expensive might induce people to buy less of it.Then there’s the “millionaires’ tax,” popularly perceived as going after the little tuxedo-clad guy from the Monopoly board. In many cases, one does not need income of a million dollars to qualify for this tax. In Connecticut, if you’re a single filer with more than $500,000 in income, you pay at the state’s top rate of 6.5 percent. Oregon raised its top tax rate to 11 percent on income over $250,000; in Hawaii, income as low as $200,000 is sufficient to put you in the top bracket.Maryland was one of the first states to implement a millionaires’ tax (in 2008). It subsequently found that - surprise! - some millionaires chose to live elsewhere; other millionaires stopped being millionaires in the tougher economic climate; and we can wonder whether some voluntarily earned less this year to avoid the new tax. The number of Marylanders with more than $1 million in taxable income fell by one-third, to about 2,000. Taxes collected from those returns declined by roughly $100 million.More tax hikes are coming down the pike. Starting next year, 33 states will increase unemployment-insurance tax rates. Pittsburgh, concluding that the cost of higher education is insufficiently crippling, is talking about a new municipal tax on college tuition. Vermont is considering a 17-cents-per-bag tax on plastic bags. Santa Clara is considering a new hotel tax to finance a new stadium for the San Francisco 49ers.In state after state, legislatures are using the stimulus funds to fill in budget holes that are likely to be worse next year. In state after state, lawmakers decided to avoid hard decisions in 2009 by spending funds set aside for 2010.In New York, notes the Buffalo News, “Lawmakers did themselves no favors by dipping into a pot of federal bailout stimulus funds to the tune of $400 million to help avoid school cuts now; that money was not due to be spent until next year.” In New Mexico, says the AP, “The Legislature estimates that at least $300 million in state money will be needed to replace federal funds next year unless budgets are cut.” In Kansas, the Kansas City Star observes, “To avoid even deeper cuts this year, [Gov. Mark] Parkinson will use $85 million in federal stimulus money that had been budgeted for next year. But the move just creates a bigger hole in next year’s budget.” In Michigan, the AP reports, “The Democrat-led House last week passed a bill that would use more federal stimulus money to reduce the amount of the cuts. The proposal, which would speed up the use of $184 million in stimulus money that is supposed to be saved for next year, has run into opposition in the Republican-led Senate.”Are state legislators willing to share the pain of their constituents? A few state legislatures have taken pay cuts: The base salary for California legislators was reduced this year from $116,208 to $95,291, while the governor’s salary (which Arnold Schwarzenegger declines to collect) dropped from $212,179 to $173,987. In Florida, legislators’ base pay was reduced from $31,932 to $30,336.
In Massachusetts, 144 members of the 160-member House of Representatives took five voluntary furlough days; yet the overall savings of $263,000 represented a little more than half of what state lawmakers received in pay increases earlier this year.But checking the charts compiled by the National Conference of State Legislators, we see that quite a few states increased the base salary for their legislators - in most cases, modestly, but in some cases, not so modestly. Base pay for Missouri legislators went from $31,351 to $35,915; in Pennsylvania, it rose from $76,163 to $78,314; in Wisconsin, it went from $47,413 to $49,943. Illinois, the land of Rod Blagojevich, seems exceptionally well-governed, so perhaps raising the base pay of its legislators from $65,353 to $67,836 is justified. At first glance, the increase in Hawaiian legislators’ base salary from $36,700 to $48,708 looks like it must be a misprint; but indeed, the Aloha State enacted a 36 percent pay raise as the economy went deep into recession.
Private-sector employees could be forgiven for thinking that state and local government is a racket. In the private sector, you can do your job well, for a well-established company like Circuit City, KB Toys, Lehman Brothers, Saturn, or Gourmet magazine, and suddenly find yourself without a job for one of many reasons: changing consumer habits, a dramatic drop in revenue, new competition, reckless management decisions, or just bad luck. State and local legislators face possible job loss once every two years at most, and gerrymandering and the benefits of incumbency ensure its rarity. And when the governing classes want more money, they just demand it from those they govern.In light of all this, one stops asking, “Why are the tea partiers so angry?” and starts asking, “Why are they so calm?”

http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTZhZDdjZmI4ODY1Nzc0ZDhhOWI2ZTI2ZWR...

Rum Pumpkin Cupcakes

lengel — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 06:57:35 -0700

Every weekend I have this little obsession of browsing through the recipes of Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Martha Stewart & Sunset magazines in search for a little inspiration or a recipe that is unique and fun. This Sunday I had a hankering for something Fall, Halloween themed and Sassy. Something that I could easily ship to work to feed my coworkers and something that I could add a personal twist too. There's nothing like the personal twists!

My eyes fell upon the mini Halloween Pumpkin Cupcakes in this month's Bon Appetit (Page 52 to be exact). I noticed they mentioned the cupcakes were "kid-sized" so I decided to add some Rum to the batter as there are no kids in this household! These are now the Working Girl's "bite-sized" Sassy Halloween Pumpkin Cupcakes that will wow any adult crowd.

Mini Pumpkin Cupcakes
Bon Appetit, October 2009

1 cup self rising flour
(1 Cup flour + 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda + 1/8 teaspoon salt)
2/3 cup packed golden brown sugar
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
(1/2 tsp cinnamon + 1/4 tsp ginger + 1/8 tsp nut
meg + 1/8 tsp cloves)
1 large free range egg
1/2 cup canned pumpkin (pure! pumpkin)
1/3 cup vegetable oil (I use Spectrum Canola Oil)
1/3 cup organic Greek yogurt (substitution for sour cream)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp Dark Rum (or to your discretion)
1 tbsp chopped crystallized ginger (optional, but worth it)
1 cup powdered sugar
nonfat milk
1/2 lemon

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Line your mini muffin pan with paper liners (I skipped this step . . . no motivation to drive to the grocery store)

Cupcakes
In a large bowl mix together the dry ingredients: flour, baking
soda, salt, golden brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice. In a medium bowl mix together the wet ingredients: egg, canned pumpkin, vegetable oil, Greek yogurt, rum. Add the wet mixture to the dry and stir to combine. Spoon batter into paper liners (or just the muffin tin).

Bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. I baked my cupcakes at 335 F convention bake for 12 minutes, they turned out perfect. The Bon Appetit bake time is 16 minutes.

Frosting
In a bowl combine the powdered sugar, a drop of nonfat milk and just a small squeeze of a lemon. Combine with a fork to the texture you desire. I wanted my frosting thick so didn't add too much liquid. (If you enjoy the cream cheese butter frostings, go right ahead and use the one in Bon Appetit)

Once the cupcakes have cooled, gently spread on the frosting.

Edible Arrangements

LisaK — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 19:14:09 -0700

Has anyone ever heard of this place? I came across it in an ad from a magazine. I just think that these look so yummy. This is a great alternative to sending flowers.

This is just a few of their arrangements. They have lots more on the website.

http://www.ediblearrangements.com/

Dipped Fruit Bouquet™

The Dipped Fruit Bouquet™ is a chocolate lovers dream. A stunning assortment of strawberries, grapes, oranges, apples, bananas and pineapple dipped in gourmet chocolate.

Blooming Daisies™

A delicious bouquet blooming with fresh strawberries, pineapple daisies and grapes.

Delicious Party®

Perfect for an occasion or event of any size! The Delicious Party™ is a beautiful display of festive fruits including pineapple daisies, strawberries, grapes, cantaloupe and honeydew. Basket may vary. Size Shown: Large ($135).

Delicious Fruit Design® with Dipped Daisies®

A delicious fruit bouquet overflowing with chocolate dipped pineapple daisies, strawberries, grapes, cantaloupe and honeydew. The Delicious Fruit Design® is a great gift for any occasion. Container may vary. Size Shown: Medium.

Simply Daisies ™

Simply Daisies is overflowing with juicy pineapple daisies and grapes. Arranged like a bouquet of cheery summer flowers, this bouquet is perfect for any occasion. Size shown: Large. Container may vary.

They also have boxed gifts:

Gourmet Dipped Apple Wedges (All Dark)

Enjoy one dozen fresh granny smith apple wedges hand dipped in gourmet chocolate. *Box design may vary.

Dipped Strawberries - All Mixed

One dozen fresh strawberries hand dipped in gourmet chocolate. This assortment will include a variety of flavors such as white and dark chocolate, coconut and almonds.

I think I may send one to myself

http://www.ediblearrangements.com/

For you Coffee Addicts

Cassandra57 — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 09:57:41 -0800

I admit it: I'm a shameless coffee addict.
If it weren't for coffee, I would have fallen into a coma years ago.
I will probably still be running several months after I die, while the caffeine in my system gradually dimishes.

With that in mind, Consumer Reports has a comparison of coffee in their March issue.
The most expensive brew isn't necessarily the tastiest.

Coffee prices may not reflect flavor, a magazine finds.

Top 10 Caffeinated Coffees (100% Colombian)

"Very Good" Rating

1. Eight O’Clock Coffee 100% Colombian, $6.28 per pound (15 cents per cup)
2. Caribou Coffee Colombia Timana, $11.76 per pound (36 cents per cup)
3. Kickapoo Coffee Organic Colombia, $14.33 per pound (40 cents per cup)

"Good" Rating

4. Starbucks Coffee Colombia Medium, $11.53 per pound (25 cents per cup)
5. Bucks County Coffee Co. Colombia, $8.85 per pound (34 cents per cup)
6. Archer Farms (Target) Colombia Supremo, $9.05 per pound (27 cents per cup)
7. Gloria Jean’s Coffees Colombian Supremo, $12.99 per pound (32 cents per cup)
8. Chock Full o’Nuts 100% Colombian, $5.19 per pound (10 cents per cup)
9. Peet’s Coffee Colombia, $14.12 per pound (31 cents per cup)
10. Maxwell House Colombian Supreme 100% Colombian Med-Dark, $4.80 per pound (5 cents per cup)

Top 5 Decaffeinated Coffees (mix of Colombian and other beans)

"Good" Rating

1. Dunkin’ Donuts Dunkin’ Decaf, $10.25 per pound (19 cents per cup)
2. Millstone Decaf 100% Colombian Medium, $11.59 per pound (14 cents per cup)
3. Folgers Gourmet Selections Lively Colombian Decaf Medium Roast, $8.55 per pound (11 cents per cup)

"Fair" Rating

4. Maxwell House Decaffeinated Original Medium, $6.53 per pound (6 cents per cup)
5. Starbucks Coffee Decaf House Blend Medium, $11.68 per pound (26 cents per cup)

http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/features/coffee-brands-comparison-is-c...

Coolio takes another stab at reality tv in attempt to resurrect career

justingirl1989 — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 06:19:27 -0700

Coolio was once cool. With the release of “Gangsta’s Paradise” in 1995, he was on top of the charts and equal with Snoop Dogg in urban music popularity. But somehow he lost the momentum and his subsequent releases failed to make a mark. Personally, I contribute his fall to his sanctimonious objection to Weird Al’s “Amish Paradise” parody. Yankovic holds favor with the music gods and disagreeing with him brings about their wrath every time. Eminem wouldn’t let Weird Al parody “Lose Yourself” and look where he is. James Blunt’s record company rescinded their permission to parody “You’re Beautiful” and doomed Blunt to declaring he’d stop making music as people have requested if they paid him enough. Prince has repeatedly refused Yankovic, but he actually is one of the music gods, so he gets a pass.

But Coolio wasn’t so lucky and his music career tanked. Like so many other struggling celebrities, Coolio went the reality competition show route to try and keep himself in the public eye, but it never really worked. He did Celebrity Fear Factor, Celebrity Boot Camp, Celebrity Paranormal Project and I don’t think anyone even knew it. So now, still equating himself with Snoop, Coolio is trying the family reality show, like Snoop Dogg’s Fatherhood.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Has the classic TV family sitcom been replaced by the family-focused reality series? There’s a strong argument to be made with the premiere of “Coolio’s Rules,” starring a bumbling buffoon of a father and his four whiny kids, each with an outsized sense of entitlement.

With exposure from the show, Coolio may be able to revive a rap career that pretty much flatlined more than a decade ago. He might also launch a new career as the Ghetto Gourmet, complete with cookbook and catering service.

The premise of the series is that Coolio is going to try to be the father he never was when his kids were growing up. Now that the eldest two, Artisha and Brandi, are 20, and the others are 18 (Artis) and 15 (Jackie), dad is going to try to instill in them the wisdom he learned as a child (except, maybe, the part about being jailed for larceny at age 17).

[From Reuters]

OK! Magazine says that Coolio, who is a single father, is one of those militant-dad types when it comes to his kids dating. It all sounds a bit over the top to me, there’s little doubt in my mind this is played up for TV. Coolio claims he confronts his daughters’ dates with a pit bull and knife while explaining how he expects them to behave.

Coolio is shown at the
But crazy is sometimes entertaining. Coolio tells of walking into the house and finding one of his daughters sitting on a guy’s lap, much to Dad’s objection.

When she wouldn’t move and reminded him that she was 20-years old, Coolio replied “…you better get yourself a 20-year-old house then!”

A new and novel way of saying “my house, my rules,” and it’s not the last Coolio-ism he’s got in him. If you’re interested, Coolio’s Rules premieres Tuesday, Oct. 28 at 10 p.m. on Oxygen.

http://www.celeb*tchy.com/18390/coolio_takes_another_stab_at_reality_tv_...

Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban: Second Honeymoon Before Baby

scotlandrulz — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:38:33 -0700

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban are making the most of their time before the baby arrives with a short but sweet second honeymoon, according to a report from OK! Magazine. The couple reportedly holed up over the weekend of April 4 at the exclusive St. Regis Resort in Bora Bora, French Polynesia - where they honeymooned in June 2006.

Nicole Kidman & Keith Urban: Second Honeymoon Before Baby (Image: Wenn)

The magazine reports that Keith and six-months-pregnant Nicole, both 40, stayed in the resort's $15,000-a-night Royal Estate villa. They enjoyed scuba diving, tennis and gourmet food prepared by a personal chef before flying back to the U.S. an April 8, with Keith playing a concert in Baltimore the following day.

"We're seeing well-to-do couples like Nicole and Keith go on luxurious 'one last hurrah before baby' getaways," travel industry expert Tom Botts, of Hudson Crossing, tells OK!. Now back in the U.S., they couple is hunting for the perfect family home.

The magazine also adds, "With two Nashville spreads, Nicole now wants a base in L.A.'s Brentwood, to be closer to her adopted children with Tom Cruise, Connor, 13, and Isabella, 15. "L.A. is a big draw," Nicole says, "and I'm looking to get a place there so we can share more."

Freebies for Monday 18th

Shiloh Jolie Pitt — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 05:40:22 -0700

AIRBORNE - on the go. Free sample
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HILL'S - free Healthy Cat Kit
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JERGENS - Free skincare samples
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LOUISIANA TRAVEL - Free coffee sample
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GAIN -free sample of Joyful Expressions Apple Mango Tango
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PLEDGE - free sample cleaning wipes
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STIMULANT X- free sample energy & fat loss formula
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ST. JOSEPH'S - free dreamcatcher keychain and address labels
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MERCURY MAGAZINES - Free subscription to Hollywood Life
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SAMPLICITA - free gourmet coffee gift package
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NATURE'S BOUNTY - free Omega Fish Oil sample pack
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CANADA

ALBERTO - hair style products, free samples and coupons
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SUNSILK - free shampoo samples
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SAMPLICITA - free gourmet coffee gift package
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ELECTRASOL - free sample of 3in1 Powrball tabs, dishwasher
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UK
GROOVE - Free copy of Groove magazine and a wrist band
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OCEAN SPRAY - free sample of Ocean Spray high juice
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FILETTI - Free sample of Filetti washing powder
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Freebies for Tue 24 & Wed 25, October 2006

Shiloh Jolie Pitt — Wed, 25 Oct 2006 07:40:49 -0700

GLEAM COFFEE - free sample of Gourmet coffee
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CESAR - free dog food sample
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ENERGY DRINK NOW - free sample of Energy Drink
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MEIJER - free sample of Folgers Gourmet selections
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BETTER JOINTS - free CH-Alpha sample
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ORGANIC VALLEY - free Ovvie's Underground kit
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BOTOX COSMETIC - free Girlfriend's Guide to Staying a Hot Mama
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BANELL - free stickers
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SMART SPORTS - free subscription to Smart Sports magazine
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EMERGEN-C - free sample from WalMart
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CANADA

ENERGY DRINK NOW - free sample of Energy Drink
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ROBIN HOOD - free bag of Nutri Flour Blend
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GAY LEA - free Lacteeze recipe book
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MY KITTEN - free bagof Kitten Food
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MY PHOTOBOOK - free Photobook Software
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Eating Better Than Organic

supermommie — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 13:51:39 -0700

Not long ago I had an apple problem. Wavering in the produce section of a Manhattan grocery store, I was unable to decide between an organic apple and a nonorganic apple (which was labeled conventional, since that sounds better than "sprayed with pesticides that might kill you"). It shouldn't have been a tough choice--who wants to eat pesticide residue?--but the organic apples had been grown in California. The conventional ones were from right here in New York State. I know I've been listening to too much npr because I started wondering: How much Middle Eastern oil did it take to get that California apple to me? Which farmer should I support--the one who rejected pesticides in California or the one who was, in some romantic sense, a neighbor? Most important, didn't the apple's taste suffer after the fruit was crated and refrigerated and jostled for thousands of miles?

In the end I bought both apples. (They were both good, although the California one had a mealy bit, possibly from its journey.) It's only recently that I had noticed more locally grown products in the supermarket, but when I got home I discovered that the organic-vs.-local debate has become one of the liveliest in the food world. Last year Wal-Mart began offering more organic products--those grown without pesticides, antibiotics, irradiation and so on--and the big company's expansion into a once alternative food culture has been a source of deep concern, and predictable backlash, among early organic adopters.

Nearly a quarter of American shoppers now buy organic products once a week, up from 17% in 2000. But for food purists, "local" is the new "organic," the new ideal that promises healthier bodies and a healthier planet. Many chefs, food writers and politically minded eaters are outraged that "Big Organic" firms now use the same industrial-size farming and long-distance-shipping methods as conventional agribusiness. "Should I assume that I have a God-given right to access the entire earth's bounty, however far away some of its produce is grown?" asks ethnobotanist Gary Paul Nabhan in his 2002 memoir, Coming Home to Eat: The Pleasures and Politics of Local Foods. Nabhan predicted my apple problem when he vacillated over some organic pumpkin canned hundreds of miles from his Arizona home. "If you send it halfway around the world before it is eaten," he mused, "an organic food still may be 'good' for the consumer, but is it 'good' for the food system?"

I had never really thought about how my food purchases might affect "the food system." Even now I don't share the pessimism and asceticism of the local-eating set. In her 2001 memoir, This Organic Life, Columbia University nutritionist Joan Dye Gussow writes that her commitment to eating locally "is probably driven by three things. The first is the taste of live food; the second is my relation to frugality; the third is my deep concern about the state of the planet." I don't have much relation to frugality, and, perhaps foolishly, I'm more optimistic than Gussow about our ability to develop alternative energy sources.

But I care deeply about how my food tastes, and it makes sense that a snow pea grown by a local farmer and never refrigerated will retain more of its delicate leguminous flavor than one shipped in a frigid plane from Guatemala. And I realized that if more consumers didn't become part of the local-food market, it could disappear and all our peas would be those tasteless little pods from far away.

Still, the fact that not all locally grown products are organic had me worried. Even if most Americans wanted to buy locally grown organics, they wouldn't be able to find many. In a few not-too-dry, not-too-wet, not-too-warm regions--central California is one--it is possible to find abundant organic produce grown locally. But if you live in a humid climate, say, the moisture that encourages bacteria and fungi means that growing without pesticides is much more risky, expensive and rare. Consequently, in the Hudson Valley of New York, near me, it's very difficult to find fruit that hasn't been sprayed with chemicals at least once. In other regions, like the upper Midwest, most big farms don't grow any vegetables for local markets, conventional or organic. Instead, they produce commodity crops like corn and soybeans for sale to food processors. At a large Hugo's grocery store in Jamestown, N.D., last summer, I noticed only one local product: flour, which is milled in-state from local wheat. But there were organic apples and oranges from out of state.

Farmers' markets often feature organic produce from nearby farms, but not everyone lives near a farmers' market--and most products at the markets aren't organic. "I've been to farmers' markets, and there's people hauling stuff from the truck that they got at a wholesaler," says Joseph Mendelson III, legal director of the Center for Food Safety, a liberal Washington group that supports strong organic standards. Mendelson prefers the "gold standard" of locally grown organics, but he is rather frightening on the subject of nonorganic food, whatever its origin. When I asked him whether I should favor local products, he replied, "I don't know what local means. Do they use local pesticides? Does that mean the food is better because they produce local cancers?"

All of which further tangles my original question: The organic apple or the conventionally grown local one?

It turns out to be a frustratingly layered choice, one that implicates many other questions: What's the most efficient way to grow food for all? Should farms be big or small, family- or corporate-run? How do your choices affect the planet? What tastes better? And then there's that little matter of cancer.

Let's get that one out of the way at the start. If scientists could conclusively prove that agricultural chemicals are harmful, we would all go organic. But it's not clear, for instance, that the low levels of pesticide typically found on conventional produce cause cancer. The risks of long-term exposure to those residues are still undetermined.

Even if conventional foods don't turn out to be as dangerous as organic advocates claim, several recent studies have suggested that organic foods contain higher levels of vitamins than their conventionally grown counterparts. In a paper published in October in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a team from the University of California, Davis, demonstrates that organically grown tomatoes have significantly more vitamin C than conventional tomatoes. Even so, the same study shows no significant differences between conventional and organic bell peppers.

"We're just beginning to understand these relationships," says U.C. Davis food chemist Alyson Mitchell, one of the paper's authors. "We understand, and have understood for a long time, that there is some relation between soil health and plant quality, but we still don't have a solid scientific database to link this to nutrition."

Organic adherents take it on faith that the way food is grown affects its nutritional quality. But advocates of local eating are now making another leap, saying what happens after harvest--how food is shipped and handled--is perhaps even more important than how it was grown. Locavores.com a site popular among local purists, asserts that "because locally grown produce is freshest, it is more nutritionally complete." But Mitchell says she knows of no studies that prove this.

In short, science can't tell you what to eat for dinner. Many of us end up relying on the government to keep food safe, or we just don't think about it. For those who do start to think--nervous new parents, say, or McDonald's burnouts--there are more alternative grocers than ever. There are online purveyors of gourmet health foods (pricey), the old food co-ops (too political for me), and of course those farmers' markets, which--in spite of basic limitations like not being open every day--have grown larger and more sophisticated. (According to Samuel Fromartz's valuable 2006 history Organic Inc.: Natural Foods and How They Grew, there were 3,706 U.S. farmers' markets in 2004, double the number there were a decade earlier.)

But for the past few years, the easiest answer for food-baffled Americans has been a single company: Whole Foods Market.

Whole Foods now has 190 locations from Tigard, Ore., to Notting Hill in London. In fiscal 2006 the chain's sales grew 19% (to $5.6 billion), a bit lower than 2005's 22% growth. Fretful about increasing competition from mainstream grocers who are offering more organic products, investors have punished Whole Foods in the past year; its stock price has fallen more than a third since February 2006.

Still, Whole Foods is expanding rapidly. It recently said it would acquire Wild Oats Markets Inc.; the merger would give Whole Foods an additional 112 locations in North America. Already, many Americans have come to see Whole Foods as the repository of both their dietary hopes and fears--the place we can buy not only organic arugula but a decadent chocolate bar too. I have shopped at Whole Foods off and on since 1990, when I had a summer job in Austin, Texas, where Whole Foods began in 1980. If I was going to decide whether to buy organic or buy local, I figured Whole Foods' ceo, John Mackey, could help me. After all, he is vegan, and his politics lean libertarian, so he thinks hard about different paths. And he has made a great fortune by joining two previously antagonistic alimentary impulses--health and excess.

When we spoke last fall, Mackey was at first diplomatic about the organic-local choice. He told me that when he can't get locally grown organics--and even he can't reliably get them--he decides on the basis of taste. "I would probably purchase a local nonorganic tomato before I would purchase an organic one that was shipped from California," he said. He called the two tomatoes "an environmental wash," since the California one had petroleum miles on it while the nonorganic one was grown with pesticides. "But the local tomato from outside Austin will be fresher, will just taste better," he said.

However, he also noted that products like hard squash that can last months in storage don't taste so different for being shipped. In that case, he said, "I might purchase the organic version from California." Mackey acknowledged that organic agriculture is "flawed"; he criticized organic-milk farms where cows are pumped with feed in factory settings just like conventional-milk cows. But he also bristled at criticism from local activists. He noted that just because a farm is near your home doesn't mean it practices sustainable farming. "There's an assumption that small is beautiful and big is industrial, and that's not necessarily the case," he said. Whole Foods could not keep growing without supplies from large international farms, which is one reason the organic-vs.-local debate is a delicate issue for Mackey.

At least at my Whole Foods--the one in Manhattan's Union Square, where I shop once or twice a month--most of the available produce comes from California or some other distant land, even during the local growing season. Like all other Whole Foods locations, the store began to push local products more aggressively last summer. A placard was posted above the escalator exhorting customers to BUY LOCAL, and all the cash registers were changed to show photos of area farmers.

These days, in the final weeks of winter, it would be unfair to ask Whole Foods to sell predominantly local produce at my store, because so little can be grown in the Northeast right now. But even during verdant summertime, the vast majority of products sold at my Whole Foods (fresh or otherwise) aren't from the Northeast. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that the packages in which most Whole Foods groceries are sold say nothing about the food's origin. For instance, in the freezer section you can find Whole Foods' Whole Kitchen brand Breaded Eggplant Slices with Italian Herbs. The box tells you a wealth of information about the eggplant slices--that they contain wheat, dextrose and annatto (a dye); that they can be fried, baked or microwaved; that they have no trans fat; that they are "flavorful" and "versatile." But you don't learn where the eggplant comes from.

A Whole Foods spokeswoman told me the eggplant was grown in Florida, which is too bad because eggplant grows easily in the Northeast. But in the company's defense, very few customers care whether their food is local. Most who do, shop at farmers' markets. Also, there's not even a standard definition of what local means. To Nabhan, who inspired many local activists with Coming Home to Eat, it means eating within a 250-mile radius of his Arizona home. Many who blog at a site called eatlocalchallenge.com aim for a stricter "100-mile diet."

My favorite definition of local comes from Columbia's Gussow, a reporter for Time in the 1950s who went on to become a local-eating pioneer. For 25 years, Gussow has lectured on the environmental (and culinary) disadvantages of relying on a global food supply. Her most oft-quoted statistic is that shipping a strawberry from California to New York requires 435 calories of fossil fuel but provides the eater with only 5 calories of nutrition. In her memoir, Gussow offers this rather poetic meaning of local: "Within a day's leisurely drive of our homes. [This] distance is entirely arbitrary. But then, so was the decision made by others long ago that we ought to have produce from all around the world."

On his blog, Whole Foods' Mackey has used a radius of 200 miles to mean local. Measuring from my home, that includes not only much of New York State, New Jersey and Connecticut but also parts of seven other Northeastern states. Such a large food shed produces a great variety of fruits and vegetables, and Whole Foods has said it wants to increase its percentage of local produce. (Of the roughly $1 billion in produce the company sold last year, 16.4% came from local sources, up from 14.9% in 2005.) Last year Mackey announced a $10 million loan program for local farmers.

But Mackey also knows that most Americans will never eat a purely local diet. "One of the challenges of being a retailer is you don't want to offend people," Mackey told me. "Some customers want to eat apples year-round, and they're willing to pay more for a New Zealand apple." Finally, he offered a defense of the global food economy: "When I was a little boy--I'm 53 years old--being able to get oranges from Florida or produce from another state was a very big deal because the local-produce availability where I lived in Houston wasn't great. People back then didn't have nearly as diverse a diet as we do now, and you might also point out their life spans weren't as long."

That made me wonder if purely local eating was even possible--or healthy. Could I get everything I needed from the Northeast? What would I have to give up? For gustatory reasons, I long ago stopped eating out of season--I have no interest in those hard Canadian tomatoes my Whole Foods was selling in February. But would I have to forgo coffee? What would replace my breakfast cereal? How much would all this cost? I wasn't sure. So like everyone else, I went to Google.

I mean, I literally went to Google, to the company's Mountain View, Calif., campus.

I had read that one of Google's new cafeterias, Café 150, served only food originating within a 150-mile radius of Mountain View. I knew this radius included a glorious fund of farms, ranches and fisheries, the Salinas Valley food shed that Steinbeck made famous in East of Eden. I also knew that as one of the most successful companies of the era, Google could afford not only to pursue such a whimsical culinary ideal as total locality but also to do so in the form of a fine-dining restaurant. (Café 150 is one of 11 employee eateries on the Google campus, all of which famously charge nothing.)

Still, I wanted to see how Café 150's founding chef, Nate Keller, managed to serve more than 400 purely local meals a day. Most chefs simply place orders with suppliers. Good cooks understand that quality and origin are related because of the toll extracted by transportation, but in the end, if Emeril Lagasse wants to serve wild salmon one night, he can just order it from Alaska. Keller, who recently became the chef at another Google restaurant, couldn't do that. Although just a freckly 30-year-old, he had to plan his menus the way preindustrial cooks did, according to whatever local vendors offered that day.

"These guys have to be so flexible with their menus, it's unreal," said Café 150's fishmonger, Tim Zamborelli of Today's Catch in San Jose, Calif. "We have to find out what's coming in on that particular day and let them know so they can change." Café 150, which opened a year ago, can serve no shrimp or scallops, since they can't be found in the area, and tuna was available only from August through October, when currents brought bluefins into the radius. The day I visited, Keller hadn't learned what vegetable he would be serving until the night before. (He got baby red chard.)

It's a radically new way of thinking about cooking because it's so very old. But I was surprised to learn that Café 150 was the brainchild not of some anticorporate artisan but of John Dickman, 51, Google's food-service manager. Dickman not only worked for 14 years at the food giant Marriott--he even trained flight attendants to cook plane food. I was curious how he had created such a radical restaurant.

Dickman says he was inspired by chef Ann Cooper, whose 2000 book, Bitter Harvest, is well described by its subtitle: A Chef's Perspective on the Hidden Dangers in the Foods We Eat and What You Can Do About It. Cooper, who now runs the acclaimed meal program of the Berkeley, Calif., public schools, writes passionately against industrialized farms that "inhabit a flattened landscape dotted not with trees, farmhouses [and] animals ... but with huge motorized vehicles." After meeting her, Dickman began to go to farmers' markets.

When Dickman arrived at Google in 2004, he says, "organic was the cool thing," and the company's chefs were buying organic whenever they could--even if that meant flying in Chilean nectarines. Dickman worked with the team to write new standards that place local before organic for all Google eateries. "You're using X amount of jet fuel to get it here, and that doesn't make sense," he says. "So forget the nectarines. Buy something local. Get some plums." Of course, this doesn't work in, say, Dublin, where Dickman also helped set up a Google café. ("Everything is flown in there," he said.) When I asked if he thought a restaurant as strictly local as Café 150 would be possible anywhere outside central California, he answered, glumly, "Probably not."

But others are trying. Restaurants from Cinque Terre in Portland, Maine, to Mozza in Los Angeles are run by cooks who strive always to find local products first. Some chefs are not only buying locally but actually growing the food. The two Blue Hill restaurants in New York--one in Manhattan and the other in Pocantico Hills--buy less than 20% of their ingredients from outside the New York region, according to chef Dan Barber. Much of both restaurants' food (including all the chicken and pork) is raised on about 20 acres next to the Pocantico Hills location. In the 31/2 years since the farm was launched, Barber has become one of the nation's most eloquent pro-local spokesmen, not least because he makes local eating profitable (and delicious--his restaurants win raves). But his commitment to locality means that Barber can't always serve beef, since the quality and availability of steers in the Northeast are uneven.

Café 150 has access to local beef from Bassian Farms in San Jose, Calif., but the restaurant can't obtain everything it needs from the valley. Take salt. "There are salt flats a quarter-mile that way," said Keller, pointing to the horizon, "but they're for industrial purposes." So he buys salt "off the truck," from a food-service deliverer.

Still, apart from such staples, Café 150 is living up to its name. It never serves tropical fruits, and it has planted lemon and lime trees just outside to ensure local citrus. The restaurant grows many of its own herbs and makes its own ketchup. And last fall Café 150 jarred tomatoes and fruit so that even though it's March, Googlers can get a taste of the local harvest every day. Imagine that: a company as ostentatiously hip as Google canning fruit in its kitchens.

Could I do this? Could I operate my own "kitchen 150"?

Following Café 150's lead, I decided to keep basic dry goods like coffee, chocolate and spices. But since I have no interest in gardening (and no yard, for that matter--I live in an apartment), I needed a source of produce. I find farmers' markets inconvenient, if only because you have to pay each farmer separately for items, which can mean a lot of waiting in the cold. Then I heard about the farm shares run by Community Supported Agriculture (csa) programs.

They sounded a little lefty to me at first, but it turns out csas are a wonderfully market-driven idea: you join with others in your community to invest in a local farm. At the beginning of the season, members pay the farmer a lump sum. Each week, or perhaps once a month in the winter, the farm delivers fresh vegetables (and, for more money, items like fruit, eggs and flowers) to a central location. Prices vary widely depending on where you live. The csa in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the Bronx costs just $220 for five months for those with a low income (food stamps accepted). The csa run by Angelic Organics in Caledonia, Ill., starts at $600 for 20 weeks of vegetables and goes north of $1,000 when you add fruit.

There are some lefty aspects: You don't choose what the farmer grows. He does. You might get lettuce one week and then--if, say, a hailstorm hits the lettuce patch--none for several weeks after. Also, you're locked into a fixed amount of food each week, so if you don't feel like cooking for a couple nights in a row, you feel guilty. A farmer sweated over these beautiful ears of corn, and I'm going to throw them out so I can pick up riblets at Applebee's?

The benefit is that the food is affordable--for $40 a month at my csa, I get (to take February as an example) four bunches of winter greens, a head of red cabbage, 5 lbs. of apples, and about 2 lbs. each of beets, onions, carrots, turnips and Yukon Gold potatoes. The stuff is phenomenally fresh. I once discovered a nine-day-old head of lettuce from my CSA farm at the back of the refrigerator. Because it had come to me just 24 hours after being picked, it was still crisp.

But how local was my CSA farm? And was it organic?

Windflower Farm is in Valley Falls, N.Y., 185 miles northeast of my apartment. Mapquest calls it a 3 1/2-hr. drive, but if you leave on a weekday at 5:30 p.m., as Windflower's Ted Blomgren and I did, it can take closer to five hours. That meets Gussow's definition of local--"within a day's leisurely drive"--although our drive through Manhattan wasn't leisurely.

Blomgren runs Windflower with his wife Jan. He is 46, and on the day we rode to the farm, he wore sandals and glasses. Ted, who has a degree from Cornell, is balding and studious, and might pass for a professor if he didn't have so much dirt under his toenails. Ted and Jan--who has lovely bright blue eyes perpetually fixed in a startled expression--have operated Windflower for eight years with their sons Nathaniel, 14, and Jacob, 11. On the day I visited last summer, I watched a barefoot Nathaniel walk to the henhouse to collect eggs in an old white bucket, as he did every day. I had been eating those eggs most days--that's how I had replaced cereal. Seeing Nate carry that bucket into the smelly humidity of the chicken coop, I realized I had never before felt so connected to my food. I had not only seen the chickens that produced my eggs but had also met the person who gathered them.

That's a core goal of CSAS--to remind you that your food originates in some place other than a grocery store. There are now some 1,200 csa farms in the U.S., according to the Robyn Van En Center at Wilson College in Pennsylvania. Van En helped start the first American csa at her Massachusetts farm in 1985 after hearing about the idea of farm shares from a Swiss friend. (You can find a csa near you at sites like localharvest.org.

So I was finally eating local, and it tasted great. Ted's yellow wax beans last year were so crisp and oniony sweet you could eat them directly from the field. During the winter months, Ted has delivered sturdy vegetables from his cold storage that look as good as anything at Whole Foods and seem to taste better, if only because they remind me of a warm day on the farm. And yet I do worry that the Blomgrens aren't certified by the Federal Government as organic growers. They say they don't use synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, and Ted's policy is that any csa member can come to his farm to check his growing practices. "I couldn't show up at my local Agway and buy a jug of herbicide without it getting told to everybody," he said. Like many small farmers I met, Ted felt that organic certification would be too costly and time consuming.

Having met Ted, Jan and their sons--and having spent the night in their barn--I trust they don't use chemicals. But the Blomgrens don't grow fruit for the CSA. They buy it from other local growers, and most of them use sprays because of the humidity. Ted's hens were free-range--they strutted around eating the grass behind his house. But pastured chickens still require some grain feed, and the grain Ted bought was mostly conventionally grown, industrially processed corn.

I was deflated to hear that I had ingested chemicals with my fruit and eggs. But at this point I threw up my hands. If I wanted total purity, the only option was to grow my own food. Forget it. Farming is dirt-under-the-toenails hard work, and the Blomgrens are by no means making a vast fortune.

But I had arrived at an answer to my question: I prefer local to organic, even with the concessions local farmers must make. I realize there's something romantic about the desire to know exactly where your food is from. Among true agrarians, that desire carries a reactionary strain, a suspicion of modernity. "Instead of relying on the accumulated wisdom of a cuisine, or even on the wisdom of our senses, we rely on expert opinion," journalist Michael Pollan wrote in last year's acclaimed book The Omnivore's Dilemma. "We place our faith in science to sort out what culture once did." But science should trump culture on matters of nutrition. The problem is that science offers no clear guidelines yet on how beneficial organic food is.

When asked years ago whether she preferred butter or margarine, Gussow famously remarked, "I trust cows more than chemists." For my part, I do not. I will still go to Whole Foods to buy the mass-produced Organic Food Bars I eat for breakfast when I don't have time for eggs. I am happy that food scientists are finding ways to produce everyday products like cereal with organic ingredients. (How about organic Froot Loops? I have a weakness for Froot Loops late at night.) But when it comes to my basic ingredients--literally, my "whole" foods rather than my convenience foods--I would still rather know the person who collects my eggs or grows my lettuce or picks my apples than buy 100% organic eggs or lettuce or apples from an anonymous megafarm at the supermarket. Choosing local when I can makes me feel more rooted, and (in part because of that feeling, no doubt) local food tastes better.

Eating locally also seems safer. Ted's neighbors and customers can see how he farms. That transparency doesn't exist with, say, spinach bagged by a distant agribusiness. I help keep Ted in business, and he helps keep me fed--and the elegance and sustainability of that exchange make more sense to me than gambling on faceless producers who stamp organic on a package thousands of miles from my home. I'm not a purist about these choices--I ate a Filet-O-Fish at McDonald's on the way to Ted's farm. But in general, I have decided that you are where you eat.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1595245-1,00.html

Freebies for Friday Aug. 24th

Shiloh Jolie Pitt — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 09:36:48 -0700

US
SEA RAY – free bag of Nutro Natural Choice – dog food
http://www.searay.com/2007_summer_promo.asp?cid=1729&formType=3785

HISTORY CHANNEL – free Issue and Free Guide to Historic America
http://www.100megsfree3.com/arlana/freebies/hcc.html

CALIFORNIA RAISINS – free lunch bag and sweepstakes
http://www.loveyourraisins.com/parents/backtoschool/

WAL-MART – free sample of Serenity Baby Connections
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid17394.aspx

ESTEE LAUDER – free sample of Beautiful Fragrance from the Knot (flip pages to the end)
http://weddings.theknot.com/esteelauder/

WHAT TO EXPECT – free Book What to Expect the First Year
http://www.whattoexpect.com/diaperrash/form.aspx

DERMA-E – free catalog and samples of skincare
http://tinyurl.com/2nlann

RED BEAR – free Hand Cleaner sample
http://store.redbearhandcleaner.com/free4ozsample.html

HAMBURGER HELPER – Free microwave singles sample
http://tinyurl.com/234a4f

SPA SPECIFICS – Free sample of the Velvet Milk Collection
http://www.nailsmag.com/spaspecifics/

A.C.T. Energizing Drink – free Energy Drink sample
http://energizingdrink.com/KR116/signup.php

TAMPAX – Free sample of Tampax Pearl
http://tinyurl.com/2mpndl

SARAH JESSICA PARKER – free sample of Covet fragrance
http://tinyurl.com/2nyrv2

TETLEY – free Ice Tea Blend sample and recipe booklet
http://www.tetleysipandseeguarantee.com/taf.asp
VERA WANG – free sample of Princess fragrance
http://tinyurl.com/26vd5t

NEOSURE – free bottle of Similac Neosure
http://www.neosureoffer.com/

SKULL CANDY – free stickers
http://www.skullcandy.com/freestickers.html

OLAY DEFINITY – free sample of Corrective Protective lotion
https://olaydefinity.safeprocessing.com/

LISTERINE WHITENING STRIPS – free sample from WalMart
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid17024.aspx

VALUEMAGS – free 1 year subscription to Bridal Guide
https://www.valuemags.com/freeoffer/bridalguide.asp

FOLGERS – free sample of Gourmet Selections
https://folgersgourmetselections.offerprocessingcenter.com/

COLGATE – free sample of Colgate Total Advanced Clean (Love this one girls!)
http://tinyurl.com/yqcn4w

AGELé – free skin care samples
http://www.pureagele.com/samples.asp

3M- free Print To Last Paper sample pack
http://tinyurl.com/yu4wkv

SAM’S CLUB – free sample of Kashi Go Lean Bar (SAM’S CLUB MEMBERS ONLY  )
http://tinyurl.com/373r3h

HILLARY CLINTON – free bumper sticker
http://tinyurl.com/2es7u5

MARC JACOBS – free sample of Daisy Fragrance
http://www.startsampling.com/sm/25166/captureAddress.iphtml?item=25166

PURE ESSENTIALS – free White Lilac or Lemon Verbena sample
https://pureessentials.offerprocessingcenter.com/

OLAY - Free Total Effects Foundation and LipColor Samples
http://www.total-effects.com/sample/OLDadpop.htm

THE BABY CD – free sample cd
http://www.thebabycd.com/ph/request-free-sample-cdrom.html

MERCURY MAGAZINES – free subscription to PC Magazine (long but works)
http://www.mercurymagazines.com/pr1/101/101118

CROXIT – Free Snap-In Poly 2-Pocket Folder, Assorted Colors
http://croxit.net/pop_up.php

NATURAL WAY – free 5lb of Dog Food
http://visitor.constantcontact.com/email.jsp?m=1101295290873

NIVEA – free sample of Goodbye Cellulite from WalMart
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid17968.aspx

WALMART - Free Sample of Purex Ultra Detergent & Fabric Softener
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid18580.aspx

PETSTYLE – free personalized pet tag
http://www.petstylepromos.com/free/index.aspx

3M – free sample of Post-It and flags
http://tinyurl.com/ysrpmj

CLIMBER – free Career Evaluation
http://www.climber.com/?source=hydra&c=em_ascend&b=1165

L’OREAL SKIN GENESIS – free samples
http://lorealskingenesis.com/

KID’S CORNER – free pencil
http://www.kids-corner.org/offer.html

MURAD – free sample of Intensive Wrinkle Reducer
http://www.murad.com/intensive-wrinkle-reducer/sampleRequest.jsp

CORTISLIM – free Packet of Energy Punch Tablets
http://www.cortislim.com/join_cortislim.php

NATIVE AMERICAN TEA – free tea samples
http://www.nativeamericantea.com/samples/

CELINE DION – free sample of Enchanting fragrance
http://tinyurl.com/3x6l2k

PROMISES – free sample of Prenatal Vitamins
http://www.promisestages.com/samples.html

CHICK-FIL-A Free chicken and coke
http://www.freechickenandcoke.com/

KASHI – free snack
http://www.kashi.com/outreach/snack_drive

PVA – free American flag
http://tinyurl.com/2wzvw3

SENSEO – free Caramel Macchiato Flavor packet
http://www.senseotrial.com/

CURVES – free sample of Curves Cereal
http://tinyurl.com/2rbaoc

NATURE’S SELECT – free Dog Food sample
http://www.naturalpetfooddelivery.com/free-dogfood-sample.php

FRIZZ EASE – free sample from WalMart
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid15736.aspx

ALPO – free coupon
https://offers.purina.com/ESurveyOfferPage.aspx?offercode=APFMG

SAM’S CLUB – free sample of Lipton Tea to Go (members only  )
https://offers.purina.com/ESurveyOfferPage.aspx?offercode=APFMG

NAUTRE MADE – free sample of Fish Oil geltabs from WalMart
http://walmart.triaddigital.com/enhancedrendercontent_ektid17692.aspx

EAT BETTER AMERICA – free Reminder Ring
https://www.eatbetteramerica.com/Registration/Default.aspx

POST-IT – free sampler pack
http://www3.3m.com/qfrm/ShowSurvey?surveyid=JOENCPD0

GAS-X – free sample of Gas X Thin Strips
https://secure.novartisotc.com/secure.novartisotc/gasx/trial_alt.jsp

COUPON BAR – free CouponBar – Lots of different coupons to print
http://couponbar.coupons.com/CouponBarWebEdition.asp?

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CANADA
ROYAL CANIN – free Kitten kit
http://www.royalcanin.ca/products/fn/promotions/kitten_promo_2_en.php

VOLKSWAGEN – free Bourne DVD Collection for Test Drive
http://www.vw.ca/vwca/models/touareg/bourne_ultimatum/0,2660,53,00.html

DATE.CA
http://tinyurl.com/2jpjab

NATURAL WAY – free 5lb of Dog Food
http://visitor.constantcontact.com/email.jsp?m=1101295290873

GENERAL MILLS – free $5 coupon
http://www.everydaycelebrations.ca/coupons/landing.aspx

A.C.T. Energizing Drink – free Energy Drink sample
http://energizingdrink.com/KR116/signup.php

GARNIER NUTRISSE – free Color Resist Sample Pack
http://www.garnier.ca/colorResist/en/index.asp

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UK
RIMMEL – free Lash Maxxx Mascara
http://tinyurl.com/384ke5

FFFROZEN – free scent samples
http://www.fffrozen.com/samples.html

DAVIDOFF – free sample of Cool Water
http://promo.emap.com/CoolwaterWave_NW/popup.aspx

A.C.T. Energizing Drink – free Energy Drink sample
http://energizingdrink.com/KR116/signup.php

PANTENE – free sample of Pro-V Highlights Expressions
http://www.pantene.co.uk/topspin/highlightsample/index.php

CABARET – free chocolate sample
http://www.cabaretchocolates.com/request.html

UNLEASH MAGIC – free Magic the Gathering Starter Pack (+ROI)
http://www.unleashmagic.com/

NIVEA – free Nivea Soft sample
http://tinyurl.com/2r6dfn