Fromage Formanda

Today I'm going to write about cheese.
I'm also going to mention problems in Australia and the Middle East that will impact my life.

Cheese is gooda. HAH.
I've made 2 batches of hard cheddar with varying results. I've never made cheese before so I'm having to learn from books and youtube but I am going to get better at it. With hard cheddar you need rennet and live culture(or yogurt) I bought mine online from... http://www.cheesemaking.com/ or you might be able to get it at your local brew house.
I've heard good things about Glengary Cheese Company in Ontario Canada too.
It takes time to make cheese. When I make cheese I usually do something else in the kitchen like brew a bottle a batch of beer or vacuum seal meat.

I'm not going to spend time writing an instructional for making cheese because there are already a lot of good ones free online. I will say that I use about $4 of milk and it makes me a good $8 piece of cheese.


Making Cheddar Cheese - by Katie Thear
Cheddar - CheeseMaking.com - They make it look SOOO easy. ;)
     Or Youtube has some good videos.

Beside the ingrediance you need a cheese mould and cheese cloth. Glengary sells some really good reusable Cheese cloth. My dad uses it and says it is great. I'll probably order some in the near future.

Ok. Cheese is awesome on everything. But you still need milk - raw milk is the best. I figure that by making your own cheese for $4 you save $4 by not spending at the grocery store. But how can you get it even cheaper!? How can you get an $8 block of cheese for about $0.25 ?!
Go to the farmer.
Make a deal. If they give you 8L of milk (enough for 2 batches - and costs them nothing) you will give them 1 batch of cheese. All you need to pay for is the Rennet, Culture and maybe some Colouring. And time. The truth is it will probably cost you less than 25 cents a batch. Think of that next time you buy a big block of cheese at the store.
"This could be costing me less than 25 cents."


So now you expand and try and get more milk in exchange for more cheese. You can coat your cheese in cheese wax (which is reusable) and store it for months depending on the cheese type and storage location. Make some Swiss. Mozzarella. Brie. Parmesian. You can make more cheeses than you can buy for cheaper than you can buy and that is a fact.
If you are interested in this solution to your cheese costs I'd recommend getting some good books on the subject.

Another benefit to cheese making is the whey byproduct to cheese making is good for baking. Try substituting it for water next time you bake bread. Nom nom nom.
I use the same equipment for cheese making as I door for beer making so that has cut my costs down because it is used more often. And if you already have the equipment why not give home brewing a try? That 3 dollar bottle of beer can cost you less than a quarter.
In emergency situations beer is liquid gold in Canada. If an ice storm knocks out the power in the area and stores are all closed but you and your neighbour need a tree moved; offer the help beer and see who gets the tree removed first. ;)
I bought beer yesterday for the first time in months just so I can appreciate my own beer more. I'm not even going to drink the rest of these; they are crap I'll offer my guests - who should have been smart enough to try my own.


Now about the land down under. The north east area of Queensland has had a rough year. The flash flooding and now hurricane yasi. That area of Au grows a lot of bannanas, wheat and fishing. Those industries are all but wiped out now. So they will have to import more from the world surplus. This will raise the demand and the price. :(
I've also read reports that some of the underground shelters (the same ones they had to pump out and dry after the flooding) have started to flood and the people are trapped with no where to go. Why would they go there to begin with?
place
The Middle East is still in the dumps. Egypt is getting violent and turning it's eyes on Israel and US of A. That won't end well. They will see a 'new clear' way out of it I'm sure... new clear, nuclear.
Oil prices will go way up and that will drive food prices way up. Yea!

I wish I could explain how badly we all need to start planting and growing our own food. There isn't a draw back to having your own garden. Look at how much cheese costs you!?
If I grow twice as much food as I need and you produce twice as much milk as you need and we trade...
We are ruled by a society that says you need money; but they never tell you what money is; they stopped teaching it in school because they didn't want you to know. Money is slavery, it is dept. We use a fiat money system for christ sake. Does the average person even know what fiat is!?

Let me tell you the problem with slaves. You need to feed them, give them shelter and clothes, medical care and have guards keep them working.
But if you enslave them in dept... they have to work to feed themselves. Pay for their own housing and medical care. They wont leave because they have a home and family to take care of.

Do yourself a favour and get rid of your dept.
Grow your own food. Make your own cheese!

Fresh garden food tastes GREAT! If times get tough or even if they don't.

While my wife is off this year for maternity she will be doing a lot of gardening. And my son is going to be raised on fresh foods. :D
And we will take him out to eat at restaurants so he appreciates how much better our home grown food tastes.

Life isn't Phar(aoh)

Drudge Reports that Egypt is on the brink of 'civil' war. It goes on to claim the people are unhappy about corruption and leadership issues. It's not till the very bottom of the report do they mention the words 'unemployment' and 'surging prices'.

Maybe you have seen video footage and the people are shouting in an Arabic language and holding signs with Arabic writing on them; none of which I can understand.


They are wanting food. Wheat, sugar, rice, cooking oils. Prices have gone up 400% in a country where most people live on $2 a day.

The government is being blamed for not doing it's job. It's job is to look after the well being of the people; in good times and bad. During good times the government lined it's own pockets and took care of its self - and in bad times.... nothing has changed.
You know it's bad when the Christians and the Muslims join forces together  to fight something.

THIS JUST IN: Police members are removing their suits and joining the protesters.

 Read more here

Let me tell you how the Egyptian government works; but I'll change the names so we all understand easier and put it into perspective.
It's basically the rich wealth families that are in charge. The current President has been in office for 30 years and is corrupt to the core; he's from the Bush family. The military advisors change seats but usually come from the Clinton family. The guy in charge of the food distribution system is a Kennedy. The bank guys are Rothchilds.

Only the rich from the same few families. Everyone else is too poor to qualify.

The same rich clowns are make a bundle while everyone else suffers and starves. Just like America!


Egypt is going though a drought. One of their major importers (Salutes to 'Major Importers' sir) for grains was Russia - and Russia has banned grain exports because they don't have enough for themselves. That's right, the big country of Russia is having problems feeding it's own people. Shhh. Don't tell anyone I told you.

So that leaves Egypt, the land of Pharaohs, fending for itself.

    The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) recent announcement that the world food price index now surpasses the peak level achieved in the food price spike in 2007-08 raises serious concerns about the ability of the world to feed itself over the next several years.                                                      Read more: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/health/Canada+must+take+lead+solving+food+crisis/4182907/story.html#ixzz1CL1EIarp

The Food Agriculture organisation has admitted they expects worldwide food riots this year.

Worldwide.

Riots.

Could Canada & USA descend into food riots this year, like the FAO suggests?
 
Don't think it won't happen here, in North America.
USA imports 60% of it's food and exports 40%.
USA is over $13 trillion dollars Broke. The individual States are starting to file for bankruptcy. Now cities and towns are unable to fund social programs (like snow remove and repairing roads, police, medical, fire) because they do not have the money. And the individual 'tax payer' is broke and hanging onto their homes by a thread, while the banks try and reposes their homes. They end up living in the tent cities no one likes to talk about and the government doesn't have to pay for.

And think of all the peoples money they used to bail out the same banks that turned around and now take the peoples homes!!! Ouch.

But look at the people in charge of the country. Look at the Bush family, Clinton, Rothchilds and Kennedy's. Look how Obama $1.5 million on ONE of his Hawaiian vacations. He goes every couple month; at tax payer expense.
Most of those clowns are related to each other through marrage. Talk about fixing the system to work in their favour. It's just like Egypt rich clowns controlling everything! CBS did a video on this...

 So if USA can not afford to buy 60% of the food it imports it will have to learn to live off the 40% it normally exports.

If USA can't afford to pay it's dept back well... the Chinese are going to come a knocking.

China is growing FAST and needs a lot more food. They are importing food and oil like crazy. They are stocking up and building a nice surplus for when times get tough. They even match or surpass the USA for military strength.

Anyone remember the bible story about Joseph in Egypt?

    Joseph was sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, yet rose to become the most powerful man in Egypt next to the Pharaoh, by saving many lives from the seven year famine. -wikipedia

What else happened during the famine? Other cities and peoples sold themselves and everything they owned to Egypt for food.

Egypt took over.

So I started talking about Egypt going into civil war because the people have nothing.
Then I talked about USA and it's illusion of having something.
Then I mentioned China needing more and having the ability to take it.
And I brought it right back to Egypt's ancient solution.

China is the new Egypt.
Wars are fought over resources.

Food is a motivating resource.

How are your resources?