Calling All Central Arkansas Locavores!

I wanted to pass along this email, which a family member forwarded to me.

December 30, 2008

Hello Locavore’s, we have big news!

It’s finally official. Argenta Market will be located in what is currently Argenta Seafood, at 6th and Main St. in the historic district of Argenta in downtown N. Little Rock.

You all have heard us talking about the new Argenta Market for over a year now, and we are incredibly excited to finally announce the big news of our new location. We hope this will be your favorite new community food source, with the widest and deepest selection of local foods in central Arkansas. We plan to start developing the store in January and open by March.

This all came together when the Isaac brothers (Brian and Eric), owners of Argenta Seafood and Ristorante Capeo, offered the ideal location with ample space for our entire concept(5,500 sq.ft). The Isaac brothers thought that our concept was so powerful and potentially beneficial to the future of Argenta, as well as the local food movement in Arkansas, that they agreed today to allow our group to begin the transition from a sheik seafood restaurant and bar to a model, gourmet-specialty grocery with a local foods mission.

Additionally, we have developed a very special, mutually beneficial relationship with the Isaac brothers over the last month while we discussed the possibility of Argenta Market. They have been most supportive while we’ve discussed ways to help each other, and with their experience and knowledge of food preparation, will all add a new and exciting dimension to the new business.

The New Argenta Group led by John Gaudin, have been instrumental in making this happen, and we are very grateful to them all. Also, the consistent support of Mayor Patrick H. Hayes and many others in the community have made this the most inspiring experience of a life time. With the energy and planning that we have put into this we are very excited to finally know what we will be doing next year, and many more. See you soon at ARgenta Market!

Happy New Year!
And, thanks for your awesome support in 2008. Our successes in 2008 wouldn’t have been possible without you.

Barbara Armstong
Jody Hardin
-Foodshed Farm, All Arkansas Basket A Month CSA (2007)
-Certified Arkansas Farmers’ Market, Inc.(2008)
-Argenta Market, LLC (2009)

P.S. I hope to have more info about our business concept on our web site, www.arkansasfood.net soon!

Better Life Through Science - The End Of Ageing

I've been following the discovery of the role of the SIRT1 protein in mammalian longevity and the ability of the substance Resveratrol to activate SIRT1's role in gene suppression. SIRT1 has also been shown to activate in calorie restricted rats, leading to longer life spans.

New research is showing that SIRT1 serves a dual role, both as a gene suppressor and also in DNA repair. As we get older, the research is showing the protein ignores it's suppressing role as we age.

This article in the New Scientist notes;

This raises the hope that, if gene-suppressing proteins become similarly overworked in ageing people, they could become prime targets for drugs to keep us young.

This possibility is boosted by the team's finding that mice engineered to over-express the gene for SIRT1 were better at repairing DNA, more resistant to cancer, and maintained a more youthful pattern of gene expression.

"The most exciting thing is that this work may unify in a single molecular pathway what we know about ageing in different organisms such as yeast and mammals," says Maria Blasco of the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre in Madrid, who works on mechanisms of cellular ageing.

"It opens up the possibility of restoring youth in the elderly by re-establishing a useful pattern of gene expression," adds Sinclair.

There are several organizations promoting research into longevity. One of them is the Methuselah Foundation, which funds through it's SENS research fund which makes direct funding of research and it's Mprize offered to research groups who extend the lifespan mice past the present record.

Obama Appoints Actual Scientists to Science Posts

Hey, I know it's been all the rage the past eight years, to put idealogical hacks over the federal scientific community to make sure they don't say something to upset the "know nothings", but I think this Obama fellow has an idea here that just could work.

Put actual scientists in these positions, and let the science guide our policies, instead of our policies guiding our science. Call me crazy, but I think it's a good idea.