I'd actually like to write about Michael Pollan piece about his buddy 534. I enjoyed how he entered into the conversation with the material. He began his narrative with the reality of meat production and life in the US.
For some time (OK, nine LONG months), I lived in Garden City, Kansas. Just outside of the main city area was a meat production facility. I lived, I think, about ten miles away from it. Over that ten miles, there was a pervasive and consistent smell of manure--ok, shit.
Moreover, when I left my apartment and the wind was blowing in its usual direction, the smell and the dust was almost unbearable. Even though I got used to it. I never enjoyed it.
As I watched Food Inc., I could not stop thinking about the reality of our food production system. To be frank, I have not ate much since last Thursday (at 3am) when I watched it online at PBS.org.
I understand that society needs to adjust the way it interacts, produces, and consumes food, because it's killing us.
As people's waistlines increase, the world becomes collectively weaker. As a Certified Personal Trainer (still after 15 years), I can tell anyone for a fact that the obesity epidemic is no joke. Shows like the Biggest Loser are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the reality of, at least, American nutritional intake.
So, in some ways I take to heart (no pun intended) the situation facing American consumers. And it's all produced by us, the consumers. We purchase the cheapest, fastest food possible. This is not the issue; it is, however, the kind of food that is that cheap and fast. In learning more about food production in the States (far beyond our reading and the film), I am frightened by the concerns we face. In fact, one wonders if one can even begin to make a difference.
Seriously, I'm only here a limited time anyway, so why not live it up, die young, enjoy the various options we have?
Well, if I look that stupid, maybe not.
According to Kenner, the success of the film has already made a difference. We "vote" three times a day on the future of our food system. There was already a growing movement and general concern about industrial food or Food Inc cold not have been made and become a sort of hit.
ReplyDelete--glass half full today.
I can sympathize with the smell, but in a different sense. About 11 or 12 years ago the stock yards in Louisville closed down; they were the biggest stockyards under one roof in the world (or something like that.) My understanding of that system is that individual farmers would sell their livestock there, but the livestock were raised on the individual farms. The stockyards were located near downtown (in a neighborhood called Butcher Town) really close to where I use to feed lunch to the homeless. On Sundays, when I volunteered, the smell was hardly noticeable when compared to the *sound*. Poor piggies :(
ReplyDeleteA-toid, I get what you're saying and I understand there are lot of factors in this huge system. I would love the system to change or be different, but I've seen this "movement" type stuff before and it'll be hot for a while, but as soon as some "good" news happens too many people will think, "OK, we're done now! YEA!" Then, that will be the end of it. If that makes my glass half empty, fine, but I know it's half full too...
ReplyDeleteRock
I am interested in how you said that you hadn't eaten much since you watched Food Inc. I can remember when I really started becoming aware of what I was eating and coming into contact with. It can be scary, and kind of disgusting. I also remember thinking about the messiness of just living, of eating, of nature, red in tooth and claw. We are creatures with real bodily needs and we are kind of gross. It is interesting to think about this and then think about our psychology when we choose foods based on definitions of cleanliness. What do we perceive as good for us and what actually is? How can a better sense of our 'creatureliness' inform our habits?
ReplyDeleteThe health crisis is a solid wake-up call that Americans need to make changes in our food culture; nations rejecting our food corporate conquest (McD's) that have fewer health problems is certainly strong evidence that sustainable food is also the key to our well-being.
ReplyDeleteGreat pics--I'm freaking starving!