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What if I told you that America's food system is broken? What would you say?
Would you defend it by pointing out the abundance of choices offered in today's average supermarket, estimated to be over 45,000 items?
Would you cite that per capita spending on food has dropped
significantly over the last 50 years, freeing up incomes to improve
quality of life? Would you talk about how American innovation is not
only feeding our citizens, but is also feeding the world? Or would you
quietly ask what a food system is?
While perhaps it's not "broken," America's industrial food system,
which dominates food sales, has developed side effects that are
accelerating in severity, especially diet-related health (e.g.,
obesity, diabetes, asthma, allergies) and environmental (e.g., chemical
toxins, soil degradation, carbon emissions) issues that can no longer
be ignored.
The food industry's insatiable drive toward cheaper, more convenient
products has also disrupted the simple pleasures of cooking, eating
and/or sharing meals with family and friends, turning food into an
accessory, a lofty drop from once being an intimate part of our daily
lives.
The good news is there is an increasingly vocal ground swell of
advocates and experts working to reverse the downsides of industrial
food, with the high-profile personalities becoming lightning rods for
the powerful, entrenched corporate interests being challenged, which
commonly label them as "elitist" or "anti-ag." Such
claims, both untrue and unfair, are designed to minimize any impact
these knowledgeable voices have on public opinion and consumer
spending. Look no further than industrial food's aggressive reactions to the Food, Inc. documentary to see it in action.
One thing is clear, we can no longer allow industry to control the
dialog, but fighting fire with fire, especially the use of fear to
influence consumer behavior, doesn't sit well, and would probably be
less effective than other approaches. To that end I've attempted to
define the concept of "Pro Food" based on a set of core principles that
get at the heart of why I and others are dedicated to driving these
principles into mainstream culture through communications and
alternative food systems.
PRO FOOD IS...
What Pro Food ultimately becomes is up to those who recognize and
embrace its ideal of healthy, sustainable food systems and make it
their own. For it is up to all of us, from farmers to eaters, and
everyone else who cares about the food they eat, to carry Pro Food
forward and make its vision, its values a reality.
In some very interesting ways, Pro Food draws parallels with the
early years of the Internet, when it was still isolated from the
mainstream in government and university labs. People, especially
entrepreneurs, were starting to eye the Internet as something that
could revolutionize communications and collaboration, that could
democratize things long centralized. At first, they had no idea what
was going to stick, but began applying time, energy and money in search
of winning formulas.
This is where I see Pro Food today, which makes it financially
exciting for those with solutions to the problems we face. I look
forward to joining them and others on this exciting journey.
Every Kitchen Table is a proud supporter of Fight Back Fridays.
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
What if I told you that America's food system is broken? What would you say?
Would you defend it by pointing out the abundance of choices offered in today's average supermarket, estimated to be over 45,000 items?
Would you cite that per capita spending on food has dropped
significantly over the last 50 years, freeing up incomes to improve
quality of life? Would you talk about how American innovation is not
only feeding our citizens, but is also feeding the world? Or would you
quietly ask what a food system is?
While perhaps it's not "broken," America's industrial food system,
which dominates food sales, has developed side effects that are
accelerating in severity, especially diet-related health (e.g.,
obesity, diabetes, asthma, allergies) and environmental (e.g., chemical
toxins, soil degradation, carbon emissions) issues that can no longer
be ignored.
The food industry's insatiable drive toward cheaper, more convenient
products has also disrupted the simple pleasures of cooking, eating
and/or sharing meals with family and friends, turning food into an
accessory, a lofty drop from once being an intimate part of our daily
lives.
The good news is there is an increasingly vocal ground swell of
advocates and experts working to reverse the downsides of industrial
food, with the high-profile personalities becoming lightning rods for
the powerful, entrenched corporate interests being challenged, which
commonly label them as "elitist" or "anti-ag." Such
claims, both untrue and unfair, are designed to minimize any impact
these knowledgeable voices have on public opinion and consumer
spending. Look no further than industrial food's aggressive reactions to the Food, Inc. documentary to see it in action.
One thing is clear, we can no longer allow industry to control the
dialog, but fighting fire with fire, especially the use of fear to
influence consumer behavior, doesn't sit well, and would probably be
less effective than other approaches. To that end I've attempted to
define the concept of "Pro Food" based on a set of core principles that
get at the heart of why I and others are dedicated to driving these
principles into mainstream culture through communications and
alternative food systems.
PRO FOOD IS...
What Pro Food ultimately becomes is up to those who recognize and
embrace its ideal of healthy, sustainable food systems and make it
their own. For it is up to all of us, from farmers to eaters, and
everyone else who cares about the food they eat, to carry Pro Food
forward and make its vision, its values a reality.
In some very interesting ways, Pro Food draws parallels with the
early years of the Internet, when it was still isolated from the
mainstream in government and university labs. People, especially
entrepreneurs, were starting to eye the Internet as something that
could revolutionize communications and collaboration, that could
democratize things long centralized. At first, they had no idea what
was going to stick, but began applying time, energy and money in search
of winning formulas.
This is where I see Pro Food today, which makes it financially
exciting for those with solutions to the problems we face. I look
forward to joining them and others on this exciting journey.
Every Kitchen Table is a proud supporter of Fight Back Fridays.
What if I told you that America's food system is broken? What would you say?
Would you defend it by pointing out the abundance of choices offered in today's average supermarket, estimated to be over 45,000 items?
Would you cite that per capita spending on food has dropped
significantly over the last 50 years, freeing up incomes to improve
quality of life? Would you talk about how American innovation is not
only feeding our citizens, but is also feeding the world? Or would you
quietly ask what a food system is?
While perhaps it's not "broken," America's industrial food system,
which dominates food sales, has developed side effects that are
accelerating in severity, especially diet-related health (e.g.,
obesity, diabetes, asthma, allergies) and environmental (e.g., chemical
toxins, soil degradation, carbon emissions) issues that can no longer
be ignored.
The food industry's insatiable drive toward cheaper, more convenient
products has also disrupted the simple pleasures of cooking, eating
and/or sharing meals with family and friends, turning food into an
accessory, a lofty drop from once being an intimate part of our daily
lives.
The good news is there is an increasingly vocal ground swell of
advocates and experts working to reverse the downsides of industrial
food, with the high-profile personalities becoming lightning rods for
the powerful, entrenched corporate interests being challenged, which
commonly label them as "elitist" or "anti-ag." Such
claims, both untrue and unfair, are designed to minimize any impact
these knowledgeable voices have on public opinion and consumer
spending. Look no further than industrial food's aggressive reactions to the Food, Inc. documentary to see it in action.
One thing is clear, we can no longer allow industry to control the
dialog, but fighting fire with fire, especially the use of fear to
influence consumer behavior, doesn't sit well, and would probably be
less effective than other approaches. To that end I've attempted to
define the concept of "Pro Food" based on a set of core principles that
get at the heart of why I and others are dedicated to driving these
principles into mainstream culture through communications and
alternative food systems.
PRO FOOD IS...
What Pro Food ultimately becomes is up to those who recognize and
embrace its ideal of healthy, sustainable food systems and make it
their own. For it is up to all of us, from farmers to eaters, and
everyone else who cares about the food they eat, to carry Pro Food
forward and make its vision, its values a reality.
In some very interesting ways, Pro Food draws parallels with the
early years of the Internet, when it was still isolated from the
mainstream in government and university labs. People, especially
entrepreneurs, were starting to eye the Internet as something that
could revolutionize communications and collaboration, that could
democratize things long centralized. At first, they had no idea what
was going to stick, but began applying time, energy and money in search
of winning formulas.
This is where I see Pro Food today, which makes it financially
exciting for those with solutions to the problems we face. I look
forward to joining them and others on this exciting journey.
Every Kitchen Table is a proud supporter of Fight Back Fridays.