What if I told you tomatoes were picked green and then ripened with ethylene gas, would you believe me? What if I told you that the majority of the food in your supermarket was nothing more than a clever rearrangement of CORN, would you believe me? Would you believe me if I told you that part of the reason for deadly bacterial outbreaks such as E. Coli is because cattle is fed corn instead of the grass that they are naturally designed to digest? Does all this sound too far fetc
hed to you? Before watching this film I might have thought so. I recently watched Food, Inc. and I was shocked and saddened by the information uncovered in this documentary. I was so disturbed by it that I obviously couldn’t focus on anything else to write about, so here is my rant.
There is something freakishly wrong with chickens that are not only redesigned to produce more white meat and become full grown in half the normal time, but are also so deformed that they can’t take more than a few steps before collapsing to the ground. There is something horribly wrong when most farmers have very little control over their business and are enslaved by the debt they are forced to accumulate in order to keep their contract with the big corporations that manufacture our food. There is something terribly wrong when a chemical company is not only allowed to OWN a food crop but is also allowed to investigate and prosecute farmers that save their own seeds on the grounds of patent infringement. Regulatory agencies that are supposed to protect us by making sure our food is safe are controlled by the companies they are supposed to be checking up on.
What is wrong with this picture? How did we get here? Why weren’t we aware? How do we fix this mess? These are questions that I encourage you to find answers to. Don’t take my word for it, research for yourself and do something about it!
This is still a democracy; you can send out a message and make a difference every time you make a purchase. Here are a few things you can do to get started:
1) Read the labels, know what you’re eating and where your food is coming from
2) Buy organic or sustainable food
3) Support companies that treat workers, animals and the environment with respect
4) Choose foods that are in season
5) Shop at farmers’ markets www.localharvest.org
6) Ask you school board to provide healthy lunches
7) Watch the documentary for yourself or do your own research
You can also visit www.takepart.com/foodinc for more information on how to make a change. Its time to remove the veil, take responsibility and do our part!
Guiselle Marroquin ...facilitating healing one body at a time... www.massagebyguiselle.com
When Mad Cow Disease began to spread by the 1000′s in the mid-90′s, I stopped eating beef. I still eat chicken, turkey and fish and while I know these are living creatures, I always suspected the same cruelty. It is my own ignorance that I ignore. Your article is very cognizant of this epidemic and offers a look into the corporate greed and suggests ways to resolve this crisis. Bravo!
By: K. Kielley on 28th,January,2010
at 12:28 AM
Thank you K. for your comment. Unfortunately there is a thick veil between us (the consumer) and what goes on behind the scenes from the farm to the supermarket. Change will only come once we educate ourselves and take a stand. We can all make a difference by telling friends and family, reading labels and knowing what’s in your food, supporting farmers, etc. …..and don’t get me started on how it is financially better to keep feeding us poison and keeping us fat so that they can just turn around and sell us a pill to make the symptoms go away! It’s a disgusting reality but there is always hope and room for change!
~Guiselle
By: livingintheflowblog on 5th,February,2010
at 6:22 PM