‘Tis the season to be shopping and we are shopping! National Public Radio (NPR) says that Black Friday and Cyber Monday both exceeded anticipated holiday sales levels. This year, according to the National Retail Federation, holiday sales are expected to ring in at $447.1 billion; that’s about $1,450 per capita. With holiday sales representing about 20 percent of total annual retail sales, discounters, department stores, grocery outlets, and specialty shops make sure to stock sufficient merchandise for us to choose from. And, for those of us who don’t like to elbow our way through the shopping mall, we can always order on-line. E-commerce sales (which are not included in the above forecasted number) are expected to reach $32.4 billion- a whopping 11 percent increase over last year.

So, how does all the merchandise we purchase during the holidays find its way from factories to warehouses and from warehouses to store shelves and ultimately to us? Business consultants refer to this process as Supply Chain Management (SCM). To give you an idea of the importance of SCM, the US Military and Wal-Mart invest heavily in this process and are considered to be leading experts in the field. SCM makes sure goods are where they need to be when they need to be there. Despite the complexities of SCM, at the bottom of it all and critical to the movement of most goods is the simple pallet. (more…)

Search the web to find which vitamins are inherently found in your favorite vegetable. Share this information with a friend. The power of a garden should never be taken for granted. A garden brings us closer to nature, provides vital sustenance, and is recyclable (composting provides the perfect closed loop system).

As an avid recycler with a scientific background, this latest posting is in response to an article I recently read in; “The Atlantic”, by Caitlin Flanagan titled, “Cultivating Failure – How School Gardens are cheating our most vulnerable students”. (more…)