We ship too much food too many miles. I get the dollars and cents of the massive production plants for any foods. But things like fresh meat, milk, eggs, veggies, etc, the further we ship them, the more problems arise. Namely, preservatives. We end up filling our foods with more chemically processed stuff, just so we can ship them halfway around the world. Food waste becomes and issue. Foods go bad in transit. Not to mention, the environmental side of the extra shipping.
Industrial agriculture blows? What's that you say? What are you talking about? American farms are largely subsidized by the government. Which means, farmers can't make a living without handouts from Uncle Sam. And its almost gotten to a point where it is go big, or go home. The small private farm is a hard way to make a living. So of the essential needs of living, water, food, and shelter, those providing the food don't get paid. Those that do make a living usually spray so much chemical shit on their crops, or feed their animals so many hormones to produce production just to survive.
Too many regulatory groups without clearly defined roles means no consistency with ensuring the safety of our foods. Consumerism, marketing, and advertising reign supreme and so the foods with the best marketers get bought. Kids want Lucky Charms, an absolute crap food, because they saw it on a commercial. What the hell does "All Natural" mean anyway? And just what are those un-pronounceable ingredients in my organic bread. It sure as heck isn't salt, yeast, water, wheat, or honey/sugar. And if its vitamin fortified, it must be good. And its got minerals? Sweet, give me two of the marshmallow puffs with minerals then. Tell me if you think any of the cereals in the picture below are actually healthy? But somehow they have tricked American into thinking Cookie Crisp is a healthy breakfast choice for your kids. How the fuck does that happen?
Don't even get me started on the single serving disposable beverage container. Stupidest thing ever. Especially water.
No food education. We can barely get kids to learn to read between the hours of tv, video games, and other general laziness on the couch. Kids have no idea where their food comes from. They think honey comes from bears, and noodles come from cheese. I shit you not, I saw it on Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. They have no idea about the work that goes into producing the food they eat on a day to day basis. They also don't know that ground beef can be 20% pink slime, the inedible junk parts that should go into dog food but instead are washed in an ammonia bath, ground up, and stuck into your beef. The same goes for chicken patties and nuggets. They get a chemical bath to kill the germs because its the waste product from the chickens.
On top of that, nobody learns to cook anymore. What is an oven? Is that like an old fashioned microwave? All I have to do is unwrap my food and hit no more than 5 buttons, wait 1-10 minutes, and I'm done. Right?
I heard that in the south, its not uncommon to see a toddler with mountain dew in their sippy cup,or even in bottles. It reminds me of Idiocracy, yeah, go check that movie out. They are watering the crops with the sports drink. And more people drink soda because its so easy and convenient and its found everywhere.
High Fructose Corn Syrup is in everything because that's what the midwest raises, because that's what they can make money on because that's what the government pays for. I once accidentally had honey that had corn syrup as an ingredient. How does that happen. Honey is the ingredient. Its made of honey. It comes out of a bee by some miracle of nature. You don't make it with corn product. WTF? How does that happen.
We want to buy groceries for a couple weeks all at once. The problem is, real food spoils. But shopping is such a chore because we have to go the mega store out on the edge of town, or the next town over, to get the best prices on our fake food. So we load up the urban assault vehicle and brave the Guide, or Randall Road, or whatever it is. Then we get everything we could possibly need for the next several weeks, mostly jam packed with preservatives and other mystery ingredients, grab some Starbucks, and then head back to the suburban manor to water our lawns and watch more advertising. In Europe, in city centers, they have small shops and you get groceries for the next couple of days. You don't drive, you walk. You get fresher stuff, that was grown closer to where you are buying it. You don't have the food waste at home or at the store as much because there is less logistical jibberish between production and consumption.
We believe that being fat is a genetic pre-disposition, and we call it obese, and its our god given right as an American to eat as much as we want, no matter what we weigh. I'd love to see health care for everybody, but not if I'm paying for all the medical problems that stem from people who are obese.
Dogs eat until they are full, and beyond. That's why responsible pet owners don't keep the dog dish full all the time, because their dog keep eating because the food is there and then it will get fat. Dogs are pretty stupid when compared to people. But people will continue to eat well beyond being full also. And they know how to open the cupboard and the refrigerator themselves. How are we not smarter than dogs in this instance?
Random fact: Nearly half of all food in the grocery market is wasted. It goes bad. With all our high tech gadgets and mathematical geniuses in the supply chain, you think we could figure out how to fix that. Oh, but guess what, there is no money in food. The money is in producing, distributing, and selling cheap plastic shit in unfathomable quantities, all from China. And we have to throw most of it out instead of donate it to the hungry or homeless. Its disgusting. http://www.guardian.co.uk/sustainable-business/food-retailers-must-reduce-waste
Google: American Obesity Statistics. See what comes up. Alarming.
People won't pay an extra dollar or two for real food. That's because they have to pay for all the other useless Junk they have bought, or want to buy. But then again, millions smoke cigarettes even though they KNOW that eventually they'll get cancer. Nicotene > common sense. I know. I've never been addicted and I'll never understand. I'm not partaking in that experiment. I just think of all the crazy things that people waste money on and then they'll buy the shit food. Single mothers can feed their kids for $2.99 at McDonalds AND get a toy. Plus, then they have more time to work. I'm sure the break down of the family unit has a lot to do with this.
I present no answers to you. Others have done a better job at it. Give "Deep Economy" a read. Its by Bill McKibben. And try "The Story of Stuff" by Annie Leonard. Or read any of the hundreds of books on these topics. "The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture" by Wendell Berry is another great one. Yes, that means you'll have to remove yourself from direct view of the TV. And you'll have to invest many hours in finishing the book. Get the audio tape as read by somebody famous if you must.
Anyway, I managed to drop my weight from 157lbs when I ran the Seattle Marathon and won, down to a slim 145, and that is on a 6'2" frame. And I'm tired of people making comments about my build when I'm out running a 10 miler on a hot summer day. Its now normal to be overweight, and I'm not a fan.
junk parts should not go into dog food...don't let mom catch you saying that! and you are still too skinny. :)
ReplyDeleteWell, I may be late, but she's right! Mom caught you saying that...SHAME!
ReplyDelete