How much do you really know about your food? You know the ingredients, probably, and some of the nutrition facts. But how much do you know about its origin?  If it’s meat or dairy, can you picture the cow or chicken that it came from? As Food, Inc. will show you, the real picture is probably different from the one you’re imagining.

Here’s a sampling of images from the film that make almost anyone question their food preferences. A time-lapse demonstration of a chicken ballooning to an improbable size over the course of 45 days – it would be funny, were it not so unnerving. (A normal chicken takes about 70 days to become fully grown.) A rapid-fire montage of foods and other products that contain processed corn, ranging from the plausible (yogurt, ketchup, cheese) to the strange and ridiculous (peanut butter, batteries, diapers). Several shots of chicken houses and hog farms that are dark, overcrowded, and disgusting. And those are just a few of the less offensive scenes.

Even more sinister, perhaps, is some of the testimony given by Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation, Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, and numerous farmers interviewed for the film. One woman who shows her chicken house to the cameras (against the will of her employer) turns out to have lost her contract with them because of it. We learn later that Monsanto, a company closely tied to genetically modified crops, has an effective monopoly on their pesticide-resistant soybeans, and routinely sues individual farmers it suspects of storing extra Monsanto soybean seeds. And a woman whose son died from E. coli poisoning describes her crusade for more rigorous food safety laws. Occasionally, they make a point of noting that certain industrial food companies (Tyson, Monsanto, and others) declined to participate in the film, though they were given a chance to defend themselves. That said, however, those same companies made a website that defends them on their own terms, and Monsanto made one specifically to address the various claims leveled at them.

Just as you’re beginning to lose all hope, though, the film begins to offer solutions. One is in the form of Joel Salatin, an organic farmer from Virginia. Joel doesn’t use pesticides, antibiotics or growth hormones, nor does he use any particularly complicated machinery; you won’t see an assembly line at his farm. Not only that, but his cows are fed on grass, not corn, and roam his pastures freely. Because of this, the filmmakers contend, the food from Polyface Farm is cleaner, safer, and tastier than industrially produced food.

Another positive note comes from Gary Hirshberg, CEO of organic yogurt company Stonyfield Farm, who says that the steadily growing demand for organic food will force large multinationals to adopt lines of organic products, just like Wal-Mart has done with Stonyfield itself.

The film itself is very well done. The dramatic imagery is set off by an equally dramatic soundtrack, the experts involved are two of the most knowledgeable people around when it comes to the food industry, and the interviewees are genuinely likable. If that doesn’t sound convincing enough, go and see the documentary. Words can’t fully substitute for the experience, and the film itself is at once more revealing, more disturbing, and more uplifting than I could describe here.

If you can’t go see the movie, check out the website. It has, among other helpful things, a page containing information and links concerning the topics covered in the film, as well as a recommended reading page with a list of books that delve deeper into those topics. While you’re at it, take a look at the food companies’ rebuttal pages here and here.  One of the best things any documentary does, and Food, Inc. is no exception, is to foster discussion and debate.

Have any plans for an eco-summer adventure?

Right now, emPivot community member Roz Savage is in the Pacific, somewhere southwest of Hawaii.  She’s going to be the first to row across the entire ocean solo — without any support.  Meanwhile, she’s also making regular blog posts and video updates about her journey, and raising awareness of ocean pollution and climate change.  We at emPivot wonder how she finds time to do normal human things like eat and sleep.

Our own personal adventures sort of pale in comparison to hers, but emPivot co-founder Thom Wallace has put up a video of whale watching on Cape Cod that we think is pretty good.

We encourage you to do the same with your own summer videos . . . surely your camera work is better than ours.

With the documentary film Food Inc. set to hit select theaters nation-wide this Friday we thought it appropriate to share our own thoughts about organics.  Not organic food though, or the state of the food industry like this groundbreaking documentary explores.  No, we want to explore something that is closely related;  “organic video.”

Around the emPivot offices we talk about “organic video” frequently and debate what goes into a video earning such a label. By now, most of you are no doubt familiar with the concept of a “viral video” – any video on the Internet that becomes wildly popular over a very short period of time.  Most viral videos are funny to most people but also seem to be increasingly pointless (if you don’t believe this, watch “I’m on a Boat” - the kids love this stuff).

Are videos like “I’m on a Boat” the gold standard for successful online video?  A short, inane, funny clip meant only to entertain and be consumed by the largest possible number of viewers?  Of course these clips have a big place in our culture, and having a laugh on a regular basis is important.  At emPivot, though, we don’t think it’s the be all end all of online video.

Many people treat viral videos the same way they treat junk food: as a guilty pleasure, an indulgence.  Something you know you shouldn’t want, but do.  You’ve often heard statements like “Oh my god, you have to watch ‘Charlie Bit My Finger,’ it’s stupid but it’s still really funny.”  This sounds strikingly like the way people talk about junk food; for instance, “I know it’s really bad for you, but it tastes so delicious that I can’t give it up.”

Contrast this to the average emPivot video.  Our videos, though often entertaining, are usually more meaningful than the average “junk food/viral” video.  Instead of feeling empty after watching a thirty second video, you might feel fulfilled, satisfied – maybe like you’ve done something good for the environment just by watching the video.  Which is true, if you’ve really absorbed the message in any meaningful way.

So the types of videos that make a good impact don’t have a name and we think it’s high time to create a better term for the videos that don’t leave you with a viral video hang-over and wondering, “what did I just waste my time watching?”  This is why we’ve decided to call our most fulfilling and uplifting videos “organic.”

The pure, no-frills definition of “organic” is basically “pesticide free,” granted.  But that’s not really what we’re talking about when we say organic.  The word itself has expanded beyond its original definition to mean anything healthy, nourishing, natural, or even delicious.  And that’s how we like to look at our best videos – as more wholesome alternatives to the viral videos that saturate and overwhelm sites like YouTube.

What then, are the criteria for an “organic video”?  What directly measurable qualities make an emPivot video organic?  Length?  Popularity?  Rating?  Certainly these qualities have a bearing on it, but we don’t think there necessarily are tangible, measurable qualities that make a video organic.  Popularity, for example, often (but not always) means that a video is good, but there are also many good videos that never achieve widespread popularity.   So it seems that trying to define an organic video in terms of measurable attributes is not that effective.  We’ve got some ideas and we are excited to know what makes a video organic to you.

First, an organic video should be entertaining.  This doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be funny, but it has to be attractive enough in some way to keep the viewer watching.  Not many people want to watch boring videos, and if they do watch one, they’re more likely to move on to another video.

Second, it should be informative without being boring.  This is, obviously, a trait that most viral videos lack, because they tend to focus mainly on entertainment.  An organic video for us, since we’re environmentally oriented, is one that provides some sort of information about an environmental issue, like climate change, conservation, or any number of other topics.  More than just making claims, a real organic video will advance arguments, backed up by evidence.

Doesn’t something taste better when its local and organic, when it comes from the area near where you live?  The local aspect of green-related video is one of the most important aspects that shouldn’t be overlooked and is clearly a factor in determining a video’s impact on our experience.

Finally, the video itself has to be significant.  It has to be more than just a report or regurgitation of facts; it should include the implications of those facts, too.  In encouraging thought, though, it also needs to be non-didactic, though it won’t usually be totally objective (any video with a message is by nature subjective).  In other words, without being too partisan, a real organic video has to be thought-provoking and, ideally, action-provoking.

Out of these elements comes the most important aspect of the organic video.  The reaction – the result.  People need to feel like they want to share videos with other people because that video makes them feel good and they know it will make one of their friends feel smarter, healthier, and more informed about the world around them.

In the coming months we’re going to consider incorporating organic labeling for videos on our site based on feedback from our users.

So what do you think makes for an organic video?  What elements do you think are most important?  Post a video comment on the site or leave one here on the blog post. And don’t forget, keep it “organic.”

Ok, so emPivot alone won’t solve the global economy but we do know one thing: what the global economy really needs is a place to find the ideas and solutions to build a new green economy.  There are a lot of places you can read about those solutions but emPivot is the one place where you can see and hear all the solutions for yourself.

Recent Site Updates

After one year in Live Beta, emPivot re-launched into Version 1.0 a few weeks ago.  To enhance our site even further, we’ve released even more upgrades this week.  Thanks for your patience while we were offline for the weekend.

Even Better Video Quality

Users have already commented about the quality of our video conversions, but we are continuing to push the envelope.  Our most recent update allows for h.264–a higher quality of video file–to be uploaded by users.

Add This!  — Sharing emPivot Videos Just Got Easier

We’ve also added some functionality by including the “Add This” button under each video.  This button will allow for users to share videos on other websites with ease.  The “Add This” is located under the emPivot video player; an example of the button is represented below:

The Evolving Video Ecosystem

emPivot is evolving as the natural resource for green-related video content online.  Our hope is to give you, the user, the best possible website where you can find, view, share and network around green-related video content anywhere.

As our site grows, so will our capabilities.  From time to time, you might come upon the image of the field representing our video ecosystem when you visit the site.  If you do, know we are just making some necessary updates to improve the emPivot user experience.  We thank you for your understanding and patience.

With our major announcement yesterday, emPivot made a significant overhaul to its website and took its next step toward refining its next generation online video network platform.   In other news this week, The World Bank joined the network and the Network Solutions blog posted an interview with Co-Founder, Thom Wallace.  The interview by Steve Fisher explores emPivot’s strategy moving forward after the re-launch and Thom’s views on the state of social media and online video.  Check it out here: The Do’s and Don’ts of Building a Scalable Web Business with Thom Wallace of emPivot.

What’s New on the Network

During this last year in public beta, emPivot worked with many of our users to improve the site; now, after implementing those site improvements, emPivot is excited to to walk you through those changes!  During the next several weeks the emPivot team will share information about the updates to the site and how to use the new functionality in a series of blog posts.  More importantly, the emPivot team will soon launch our new “Support” section to help you find all the answers to those burning questions you have for emPivot.

In addition to the new landscape on emPivot, you’ll find a whole lot of new changes to the site.  As you can tell, we have a new company blog and you’ll want to check out our new About section to learn more about the company as we grow.

Here is a quick review of what you’ll find with the new emPivot:

Front Page & Featured Content Area:

Our home page is evolving to showcase the best green content on emPivot.  Our revolving “Featured” content area embodies the latest of our network provider’s content.  From updates from emPivot to individual’s videos to the latest from a premium content provider, this section will highlight the best emPivot offers.

OpenID Integration for Sign Up and User Accounts

Why create a whole new profile for a new social network?  emPivot makes joining our community easy with our new OpenID functionality.

Customized Main Page (Login to customize your page)

When you login to your emPivot main page, you can use the new exciting functionality to customize your emPivot home page and then experience the latest content related to your interests!

Here is why it’s useful:

• View the videos that other people you are connected to have been commenting on, reacting to, and sharing
• Watch videos in your favorite categories by selecting your favorite categories through the “Customize This Page” button
• and soon enough, enter your zip code to get localized results about green media related to your area.

Bigger and Better Flash Player (16×9 Ready)

“Hey, Mom, can you buy us a new big screen TV with all the money you saved by turning off lights and not using the AC this summer?”  Ok, Junior, its not a big flat screen but it is almost as good as an 87 inch TV.

So now those beautiful 16×9 videos look amazing in our wide screen format ready player.  We also love the fact that we took our logo off of your videos so that you can put your own logos in the bottom third when editing.  This also allows for all of the wonderful subtitles to be able to be seen.   We are still working on HD and H.264 conversion capability and will let you know when that becomes available.

Profile Pages and Account Management

When you login you’ll find a whole new way to manage your videos, your network connections, and the information people can find out about you on your profile page.  Our objective is to continue to build a profile on the network that allows you to drive people to the video content and information that is important to you, your company, or your cause.

We are hard at work preparing the release of the new version of the emPivot website for this summer. We are developing exciting new functionality and an enhanced interface (more to come about all that later!). Until then we are taking steps to expand the ways that people find the important content uploaded to emPivot.  Mixx.com, rapidly emerging as one of the top general content sharing sites, just released their ground breaking community functionality. Not only do we think Mixx is great because they are local to the D.C. area, but we also know that its time to get green video in the Mixx. Visit our new specialized community (seen above) at emPivot.mixx.com and get in to it. You’ll also get a small peak of the emPivot that is yet to come.

Juliana Riccon Parra, Environmental Editor for the world renowned GlobalVoicesOnline.org, recently featured emPivot in a blog post, emPivot: Green Media Aggregator. The article focuses on content related to China from China Green Beat and a citizen video from El Salvador. You can also read the post in seven different languages, be sure to share it with your friends around the world.

In the past few months a number of sites have been stopping in and giving us reviews, becoming users and letting us talk about what we are doing. Because of this rapid attention, emPivot has grown considerably in the last few months. As a result, we’ve just announced the opening of our first full time position at emPivot. Spread the word and check out the job description here.

The World is emPivoting

GoodCleanTech.com gave us one of the most thorough write ups we’ve read so far.

KillerStartups.com got it right when they called us, “The New Green Media,” which is much more appropriate than what the press has called emPivot in the past; namely, the press has called emPivot, “The Green YouTube.”

We were also happy to have Continue Reading

Ever since I went to the National Aquarium in Baltimore Maryland right before Christmas this past year with my five year old nephew, emPivot has been looking for away to support one of the most important environmental education institutions in the mid-Atlantic region. As part of our growing local outreach efforts, we found a way to help the National Aquarium in Baltimore!

emPivot is now officially a sponsor of the National Aquarium in Baltimore’s upcoming Green Gala on April 05, 2008. Since they are just starting to get involved in the on-line world, we wanted to encourage them to see the great potential in extending their educational and fundraising capabilities on to the internet. So, emPivot signed on as the lead sponsor of the Aquarium’s on-line auction and the silent auction at the event in April. Proceeds from the event go to supporting the Aquarium’s educational programing and institutional impact in the region and across the world.

In addition to local sports ticket packages, passes to the Aquarium, hot air balloon rides, yoga classes and wine baskets, there are a lot of great green-oriented items to bid on. Donate to the Aquarium and take a dive in the Aquarium tank, sport a new recycled tire messenger bag, receive a home environmental consultation, put on some new ecoSneaks (shoes), ride a bamboo skateboard — and among other items — get a once in a life time chance to take part in a private dolphin encounter.

Even though we are a start-up with very little money, there is no doubt that without institutions like the Aquarium, kids might not grow up to do something to help the environment. As a native Marylander, I am no exception to that rule; so with that in mind, emPivot makes our first contribution to this important institution. We hope to see you at the Gala on April 5. If you can’t make it, we encourage you to make a bid on-line!

Thom Wallace
Co-founder, emPivot.com

In late December of ‘07 Portfolio.com of Conde Naste (Wired, Vogue, Style, The New Yorker, etc.) highlighted emPivot.com in “Watching for the Next YouTube” as one of seven video sharing websites making a strong move in the video sharing world. Considering the other six websites listed - Hulu, Veoh, iFilm, Joost, VuMe, and Channel 101 - we stood out as the only niche focused video sharing website. Compared to these extremely well funded on-line video companies our small company is making big waves with our ability to deliver a diverse range of green-related content. This story was also cross posted on MSNBC.com, view the article here.