This past weekend Matt, a couple of friends and I went and saw Food, Inc., a film hoping to expose the inner workings and flaws of the food industry. It featured advocates like Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation, and Joel Salatin, a farmer who runs Polyface Farms in Virginia. It also featured companies like Wal-Mart and Stonyfield Farms, which agreed to be interviewed, and other companies like Monsanto and Tyson, which declined or ignored requests to be filmed.
In the interest of full transparency of opinion, I’ll share that I’ve seen other films like this in the past, as well as have read books on the subject (including The Omnivore’s Dilemma), and I tend to agree with them for the most part. There are a few items here and there that I have to think more critically about (partly because I am vegan), but overall I agree with the need for the food industry to be led by the needs of the people, not the wants of the industry’s bank accounts.
Food, Inc. highlighted a variety of issues that are extremely important like food safety, animal abuse, and overall ethics in food production. The overarching theme, however, was quality of food which I believe is the underlying concern in the ethics of all food production. It’s becoming ever more important to consumers, and companies are standing up and taking notice, primarily because of profit – hence the increase in availability of organic products, for example.
Quickly – when I talk about quality of food, I mean food that has not been mass produced or processed, food that has been locally grown or produced, organic food or homemade food. None of these things always equate good quality food, however the main thing I mean when I say “quality of food” is that the well-being of the consumer and his/her community is kept at the forefront regardless of profit. In my mind, profit should be part of the benefit, not always necessarily the outcome. That’s another topic entirely, though, and a bit idealistic I admit.
The Orozcos in Food, Inc.
There are many different images or stories from the film that I could reference, however one of the more striking to me was the poor Hispanic family that was profiled. It showed the mom, dad and two daughters going to Burger King and ordering from the Dollar Menu. The mother talked about how she wished they could purchase fruits and vegetables, but that it was financially cheaper for them to purchase from fast food restaurants. As she said this, the film broke to them walking through the produce section of a grocery store and the youngest was wanting to buy pears or apples, but after seeing the price and weighing them, they choose not to purchase them because they were just too expensive (and they were likely not organic, so the financial cost was not even as high as it could have been). The mother also talked about how her husband had diabetes and his pills cost something like $150 per month which was a good chunk of their income.
We only saw a small slice of this family’s life, and it is possible that they eat homemade food or produce on a more regular basis than was hinted at in the film, however, regardless of the perceived accuracies of this family’s situation they represent a sad problem which currently exists in the poor communities in the United States: high price points for higher quality food, a misconception that higher quality food can only be purchased by the wealthy, and cutting food costs can increase health costs.
I admit that I do not always purchase the best quality food available to me even though I can financially afford most food products that appear in my local food markets. The primary reasons why I don’t always justify the expense are because the prices are inflated unreasonably (even for people who can afford it) or because a product is more of a splurge item and less of a necessity. However, a lower income family approaches food purchases with a much more frugal mindset – not because they can, but rather because they have to. They may see an organic apple that costs $1.49 a pound and know that they can get twice as much for their money if they were to go with the conventional apple at $0.75 a pound. Or, as this family in the film said, why buy an apple when you can buy a meal for $1? Yet, if the family were to buy even conventional produce it would still likely be both a short-term and long-term healthier purchase than going to a local fast food restaurant where thousands of cows are on display in a single burger.
The most vicious cycle of it all is that cheap, mass produced food containing mostly empty calories is creating health problems like diabetes and obesity which mean more visits to the doctor and pharmacy. When you’re poor, your health insurance options are limited and so the quality of care may also be reduced. If you’re very poor and feel especially down and out, you may not even attempt to go to the doctor for fear it will take your hard earned cash away.
I am absolutely not an expert, but I know what it is like to be poor. When I was growing up my family struggled constantly and it felt as if there was no way out. I recall the food stamps, and the worried expressions, and the “no you can’t have that” to me in the store. I was fortunate, though, because we still managed to eat pretty well. I recall eating fresh fruits and vegetables all the time, as well as having homemade food always available. We also lived next to my grandparents who essentially homesteaded – growing massive amounts of vegetables, then canning and freezing them for the winter months. Not everyone is so lucky to have an extended family network or the space to grown a garden.
As the film said in the end, the consumer holds the power to improve how the food industry operates and to increase the availability of higher quality food. I also believe that it is in our power to ensure that everyone has access to better food. If a family like this bemoans the fact that they must rely on fast food instead of higher quality products or homemade food, then we must figure out ways to empower them and let them know that they can make the choice to take their family’s meals and health into their own hands.
Here are some actionable ideas.
First, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. There are a variety of advocacy and education programs that already exist which you can support or lend your voice. Here are just a few:
- The Food Trust – “Ensuring that everyone has access to affordable, nutritious food”
- Farm to School – “Brings healthy food from local farms to school children nationwide”
- The Center for Food Safety – “Challenging harmful food production technologies and promoting sustainable alternatives”
Secondly, be an example by investing your own time, money and effort into good quality food. Figure out ways to buy or make good quality food for less. You may be supremely surprised at how easy it is, and you may inspire those around you to try it for themselves. Food, Inc.‘s website also has a wonderful list of action items that you can do in your own personal life.
Finally, if you write a food blog I encourage you to focus at least one post a month on a good quality dish that you can price out. People need proof that they can save money by making their own food rather than buying its pre-made counterpart at the grocery store. Besides the recession and wanting to save money myself, this is one reason why I started my Frugal Eats series (watch Novel Eats for more frugal dishes in the coming weeks).
In the end, I can’t say whether or not Food, Inc. was an accurate portrayal of the food industry – I’m not enough of an expert to know for sure. But at the very least this film reminded me of how passionate I am about food and how it is produced. We have a responsibility to ourselves, our children and our communities to make wise food choices, and this film prompts us to brandish that responsibility with a fork in one hand and a wallet in the other.
Learn more about the film Food, Inc. at www.foodincmovie.com.
I recommend the following books to learn more about the food industry and ways that we can try to be more sustainable ourselves.
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