You are reading 3Bits & Change, Joseph's email about building a direct to consumer business on the internet and an occasional Web3 issue. Today’s email was written to a Zac Brown Band playlist the Google Home selected.
Good morning,
Our food programs are a national defense. Really. It’s true in the US. It’s true in Japan too. Here are two bits that make the case and one about cows.
Bit #1 • School lunch is a national defense
Our national school lunch program was initiated after the WWII draft in part because of the numbers of potential GIs that were rejected for malnutrition. Really. Congress saw an opportunity to help farmers sell stuff and for schools to feed our kids and Truman signed the law in 1946.
“In the long view, no nation is any healthier than its children or more prosperous than its farmers; and in the National School Lunch Act, the Congress has contributed immeasurably both to the welfare of our farmers and the health of our children.” LINK
The program now serves something in the range of 30M students a day.
Bit #2 • Eating red meat is a national defense
Some eighty years earlier, on January 24, 1873, Emperor Meiji of Japan ate a cow for the very first time. It was against buddhist and other religious teaching to eat red meat up to this point. And yet, in the face of US ships in their harbor, the Emperor decided to “beef up” the diets of the population and started eating red meat.
Thanks to the book “Sharp” from Josh Donald for introducing this story.
Bit #3 • Got a sword for that?
When the first red meat was eaten in Japan it was not cut by a knife that was intended to cut red meat. The Japanese tend to craft their tools specifically to what they are doing. At that time they had not yet invented a knife for breaking down four legged animals like the Germans and the French had - the so called “chef’s knife.”
In the years that followed 1873 a knife was designed by Japanese knife manufacturers for red meat and named the Gyuto - or “cow sword.”
Sum
There you have it. Grow food. Make food. Eat it. Be strong and defend your country. The foundations of the school lunch program are in defense. Fascinating.
Change
Sam Bee tackles the status of our school lunches last week. Watch for some funny and an intro to the program as it is and what it’s facing this Fall.
Check this FREE knife course from Milk Street if you’re looking to expand your knowhow and skills in the kitchen. 30 mins on this provides a solid intro.
A few friends and I crashed an AirBnb over the weekend and talked Web3 for a few days. It was way fun. I’ll have an NFT shoe soon. You? Maybe we’ll have a product test for you to follow along with in the coming months too. Maybe.
Quick Vivront Status:
We continue to sharpen, now with new and proven packaging, nationwide.
Our digital efforts are optimizing and finally looking like there is a pathto promising results. It’s not there yet but more promising. Google is really being tough to work with but, I think we’ll get through it and on to the otherside.
We’re launching with our first district fundraiser this Friday via a district wide email to parents. The superintendent has viewed the effort as “thinking outside the box.” We also sharpen the knives in district kitchens as part of the program. Team Members will get their packages in hand today.
We’re working contracts with national kitchen retailers that each look promising for different reasons. You know, holiday shopping season is coming and now is the time to prepare!
We’re speaking with up-scale grocery stores in Minnesota this week and starting promising conversations with more co-ops around the country.
We’ve built some fierce sharpening skill and are loving the craft. However, we also have a sharpener starting this month to augment the workflow. He’s a bartender at one of our new high(er)-end restaurants. This is going to be fun!
Partnerships with local chefs are developing.
We’d love to have a retail space in our little town to sharpen and do knife edu classes and sales. Nothing yet, but someday. I can’t stop drooling over a few small spaces on the strip. “Oh, a knife store would crush right there.” :)
On Your Way
Enjoy the sunshine. It’s finally back after weeks of being hidden in Minneapolis.
Follow @josephrueter on Instagram or Linkedin. Follow Vivront.com on Instagram and Facebook.
Order your knives sharpened, or a subscription so a package just shows up on a schedule, at Vivront.com.