Last night my Film and Food meet-up group went to see the film Food, Inc. We typically see films to learn and discuss technique, storyline, and film-centric subjects. It’s not often we get the opportunity to combine our interest in film with our passion for food, so this was a very well attended event. Afterwards, the film energized the majority of us to enthusiastically discuss the problems and issues it profiled, and to try and understand what it was trying to say, and what we as consumers should do about it.
As someone who has spent his life (virtually) in the food industry, I was appalled by what was shown: both from the filmmaker’s effort to manipulate and sensationalize, as well as from the industry’s effort to silence them, as well as silence the story behind the issues profiled. It really was not a good depiction of either side’s potential position.
However, as an insider to the industry and its practices, I quickly realized how the industrialization of America’s food over the last several decades is intermeshed with a number of other major issues we face today as a country: obesity, hunger, healthcare, nutrition, and even to some extent the current financial crisis. The reality of Food, Inc. --- even without the manipulative sensationalism that some of the film portrayed --- plays an important role in what America is now, and will become over the coming decades. The incredible complexity of the entire supply chain, interspersed with the political and corporate barriers that exist, will make it an issue that will not easily be solved.
That brings us to personal responsibility. Staying within the movie theme, I also recently saw the film Julie and Julia, highlighting the impact that Julia Child had on American tastes and cooking in the 60’s and 70’s. A feature article in the New York Times Magazine last Sunday entitled Out of the Kitchen further discussed how our personal eating habits have radically changed over the last several decades, and the impact this has had on America and our future. It was penned by Michael Pollan, who was also was a spokesman and partial narrator in the Food, Inc. film mentioned above. This is the nexus, tho not a surprising one. The article quotes NPD spokesperson Harry Balzer (a good friend to the food industry) that “…what people call cooking today would cause our grandmothers to roll in their graves…” Evening family dinners are declining rapidly, cooking beyond the microwave is declining rapidly, and the true “assembly of several ingredients into a main course” has declined so much that it is no longer statistically measurable (my household is obviously an anomaly, as we have family dinner every night…) What has replaced it? Often, the frozen dinner, the microwave, and fast food take out…and sometimes just plain non-stop snacking.
And as a country, we are fatter than we have ever been, and it shows in our waist size as well as our health statistics. I loved Balzer’s wrap-up comment for the article: “…you want Americans to eat less? I have the diet for you. Cook it yourself. That’s it. Eat anything you want as long as you cook it yourself.” He had predicted earlier in the article that a resurgence of real cooking would never happen. Wow. Thanks for the encouraging words, Harry.
So how do I mesh these two issues? The food industry needs to address its part by producing better, more nutritious food, with less trans fats, no high fructose corn syrups, or additives. Food companies must step up as well, balancing shareholder equity against the ethical strategies necessary to begin producing safer, more nutritious foods for the long-term good. Sometimes you must lead, and not merely follow. This is already occurring on a small scale, thanks to pressure from both consumer activists and government (in direct response to that activism). Organics and local food movements will help a little too. But the bottom line is that we must again “look to our Mamas”. It’s about EDUCATION, it’s about NUTRITION, and it’s about instilling the right values in our kids by DOING not just TELLING. Our school systems as well need to again address nutrition in the schools (like when I was a kid) and provide better school lunchroom food, as well as teach children about cooking and nutrition, exposing them to the fun it can be. We as consumers and parents all must all begin to “pull the thumb” and not just “point the finger” over this issue.
A final word, and another link. This weekend, David Leonhardt published a thought-provoking article in the New York Times magazine entitled Fat Tax, addressing the wellness issue, and its nexus to these issues of personal responsibility and healthcare.
But I am also a realist. These issues all have tentacles into our current financial challenges, the crisis in healthcare, present tax policies, government subsidies, and special interests. It won’t be easy to resolve, and it certainly won’t be resolved in the next few years. Confucius said “Every journey begins with a single step.” For the food industry, consumers, and the government, it’s time to take that first step, as well as retain the focus to follow it through its logical process.
So, what do you think?
“We have met the enemy and he is us” --- Pogo