Peeking Behind "The Veil" of the Food Industry

Last night my husband and I watched the documentary Food Inc, where Michael Pollan and other narrators try to help consumers peek behind the veil that hides our food industry.  After all the reading we've done in the past few weeks, I wasn't surprised to find that it was a disturbing view of our food industry.   

Though I didn't think the documentary had much of an effect on my husband, who fell asleep for a few minutes in the middle of it (my fault...I started watching it at 9:00 pm and my husband gets up very early in order to greet middle-school students getting off the school bus at 7:00 am every day in St. Joe), I found him searching his ipad after the documentary for health information about the Boar's Head deli meats he had purchased at D &W that day.  Oddly, the first statement on the Boar's Head Q and A page says, "American Meat Institute refutes the myths presented in the new film Food Inc. Please click on the link below for more information."  The link led to a blank page.  Wow! The American Meat Institute is clearly on the defensive, and they should be afraid as more and more people become aware of what's "behind the veil." We chose Boar's Head specifically for the lack of nitrites and nitrates that are dangerous for pregnant women and young children, but it doesn't actually sound like the meats are organically produced.  After watching Food Inc, that's definitely a concern.  

After the documentary, we sat in the kitchen talking about our food options and our baby on-the-way.  It's scary to think about how to feed your family knowing that the majority of the food products available at the store are factory produced with genetically modified corn syrups.  Though my husband commented that he is afraid my participation in this class will change me forever (thus also changing some of his food habits since we share cooking and food responsibilities at home), I think we both understand that we MUST change because we are no longer just responsible for ourselves.  I've recently given up chicken, mostly because pregnancy results in some strange food aversions and I can't stand the sight or smell of it, but I'm not sure I ever want to eat chicken again.  A vegetarian lifestyle is more and more appealing as we continue to learn about the meat industry. 

I am happy to report that the documentary ends on an optimistic note.  Though food industries are very powerful, consumers are more powerful.  If we stop buying cheap, manufactured meats  and food products and opt for organic and local products instead, the food industries cannot sustain their power.   

Consider the tobacco industry:
Michael Pollan reminds us that the tobacco industry, which was just as powerful as the food industry, was defeated when consumers started to fight back. According to the Center for Disease Control's statistics, adult cigarette smokers  decreased from 42% of the population to 19% in the last 50 years.  Clearly, educating people about the harmful effects of tobacco has made an impact. 

The more we educate people about slaughterhouses, e-coli, GMOs, laboratory-produced foods, the dangers of Monsanto, etc. the more power we have to fight back.  As Americans become more aware of the harmful effects of our eating habits, the dangers of advertising unhealthy foods to children, and the carelessness of the food industry, I believe that we will make changes for future generations.    When possible, we need to speak out by using the dollars that we have (few as they may be) to support better food.  

I was still thinking about the documentary and the importance of making small changes this morning in a yoga class I attended at KVCC.  At the end of the class, the yoga instructor read a poem, called "For a New Beginning" by John O'Donohue.  The third stanza especially spoke to me about safety and sameness vs. change and new beginnings.  Though change is always a challenge, it's also a beautiful part of life and a natural result of learning.  I know it's optimistic, but I think Americans will change as they learn more.  We have already begun to make important changes to school lunches for our kids, and parents are getting wiser about the dangers of fast food.  These actions are small steps in the right direction.