Movie Review: The Future Of Food
Awhile back, I sat down for 90 minutes and watched the movie The Future Of Food. I think it’s a great watch for all of us that actually care about what we put in our bodies. It could be a good introduction to family and friends that don’t quite understand why they should care about where they buy their food or how it affects them.I highly recommend that you watch this or put it on in the background while you work.
The Future Of Food
The Key Points
Here are a few of the things from the movie that jumped out at me. Feel free to discuss and, of course, add your own.
Loss Of Farms
Only 2% of our population farms. That means each farmer is providing food for 50 people (counting themselves). This is a sharp turn from 100 years ago when 1/3 of the labor force was farming. I’d speculate a few reasons for this:
- Better technology means farmers can farm more land
- Kids leaving to chase other occupations
- More centralization into industrial farms
Is this good or bad or unimportant?
Loss Of Crop Diversity
We’ve lost 97% of the crops that we had at the turn of the 20th century. That includes over 5000 types of potatoes, 2000 types of rice, and thousands of types of apples. And of course, there are the big three that provide a hefty majority of our calories: corn, wheat, and soy.
GMOs
- Round-Up Ready corn is registered as an insecticide. Catch that? A food is registered as a way to kill insects.
- Monsanto is not afraid to sue farmers for having patented seed, even if they didn’t plant it. Should we let a company own our food supply (especially once “their” seeds start evolving and spreading, as organisms do)?
- Is this another case of man trying to beat Mother Nature? How has the worked out for us in the past?
- Do we have a right to know if our food is GMO? 80-90% of the population thinks so, but Congress hasn’t voted on it though the bill was introduced in 1999.
- Do they cause allergic reactions? It seems so.
- Here’s one that really irks me: genetically-modified plants that require spraying with proprietary chemicals to germinate.
Government-Industry Ties
Check out the discussion of the Government-Industry Revolving Door around 43 minutes in. There are numerous stories of people back and forth between the major food corporations and the EPA, FDA, and USDA (and even the Supreme Court). Is it possible for the government to be unbiased and work for the public good when high-level officials have direct ties to the industry they are regulating?
The Free Market And The Food Bill
If the Food Bill subsidizes the big three crops mentioned above, is the market really free? The Food Bill is why we are so overrun with products filled with corn, wheat, and soy, which is in turn a major reason why crappy processed foods cost less than whole fruits and vegetables. Now you know why people say “it costs more to eat healthy than to eat crap.” (Of course, there are further government regulations that keep the market from truly being free too.)
Intellectual Diversity
We’re also losing intellectual diversity throughout our university systems and government due to control by the large biotech corporations. Due to research dollars funneled into states and school systems, Monsanto and others can strong-arm legislators into not opposing GMOs. It is pretty well assured that no question-raising research will be conducted at schools relying on biotech dollars.And check this out…it’s not just in the food supply that it matters:
They allowed the patenting of one of the genes responsible for breast cancer. And many researchers working on a cure for breast cancer were no longer allowed to use that gene in their research because another company had patented it and charged them very high fees.
Food Consolidation
If you buy your food at the grocery store, you have no idea just how few food suppliers that comes through. Here are a few stats from the flick:
- 80% of our beef products come from just 4 companies
- Nearly all of the seeds our farmers use come from 4 clusters of companies
- It’s projected that by 2018, all retail food by 6 firms, only one of which is based in the US (Wal-Mart)
Are you willing to give up that much control to someone whose main motivation is profit, not your health?
Discuss
So give me your thoughts on a few things:
- Is it a good idea to be able to patent food? Is this a key element of capitalism? Should life be patentable?
- Is the control of food interests by a few major companies a good idea?
- What, if anything, can/should we do to change things? As the last line of the movie says, “It’s up to you.”
Is there anything else that struck a chord with you?
About Scott
Scott Kustes loves to cook and loves to eat. He started Real Food University to help you get maximum enjoyment out of the meals that you eat. To find out more about how he has rebelled against the fast food culture and counting calories or carbs, join the Real Food Revolution.
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Of course you know, Scott, that like most folk in the CF community I reply with a resounding “no” to the first two discussion points. Placing patents on food is as ridiculous as owning water; they are vital parts of a complex system necessary for our survival. Trying to bottleneck that system will never work out well.Similarly in approaching a food monopoly, at least in mainstream food business, a system which is most resilient at its most diverse (as all naturally complex systems are) is made vulnerable to a greater range of negative influences and we are more vulnerable to exploitation from groups who do not have the health of their clientele as priority #1.For the third point… there is much we can do, of course, at the most basic level we must vote with our dollar. My partner and I have been buying almost exclusively in-season, locally produced, sustainably produced foods. This includes all animal products. Let me tell you, if you want to eat locally and sustainably in Indiana through the winter, develop a taste for squash and greens.
It is true, though, that this is somewhat more expensive. For us, not disastrously so, as there’re only two of us and we’re both income earning adults. What about a low-income family with two or three children, though? Quality food is difficult to come by for these folks; as we all know, the least-expensive stuff is the least healthy to be found in the store.To address this, combat the trends of the food industry, and of course to keep ourselves healthy (not to mention save a few pennies 
), we’re starting Little Flower Farms. (little flower is the name of our neighborhood in Indy). Here’s the site -Little Flower Farms(apologies for the shameless plug. 
)Our goal is to get at least ten households “urban homesteading,” growing their own food sustainably in an urban setting. Next year, we want to add ten more, and so on. Operating as a co-op, we hope to grow enough food to provide for a significant portion of our own needs, and offer the surplus at either prices competitive to the crap-but-cheap foods low-income households are forced to rely on, or perhaps just give it away.If more urban centers develop these kinds of practices, the largest socioeconomic base supporting the current mainstream practices could be derailed. Of course, this goes back to the fact that far fewer people are farmers; now, they’ll just be farming in the city or suburbs. So, spread the word! To anyone who reads this, get something like this going in your own town, if there isn’t one already. Whenever you can, shop locally!Those who practice business as Monsanto does will be tough to beat; already such a force in the industry, if the buying trend moves away from stuff made with soybeans, you can bet anything they’ll try to patent tomatoes and broccoli. I’m not a mathematician, but I’d bet if even 20% of households in the US were growing some form of fruit or vegetable and growing a variety of heirlooms, it would be almost impossible for them to stamp out biodiversity. I think the only reason it happened the first time around is that we, as a people, we ignorant of the cost of convenience. Now we know.Cheers,Frank D.
I’ve seen this movie a couple weeks ago and it scared the genetically-modified crap out of me. I second the recommendation. I myself donated to the Center for Food Safety afterward (albeit I’ve yet to receive their book gift).
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Scott – I can’t say enough ‘THANK YOU’ for imbedding this video in the newsletter. I hope everyone in the Fitness Spotlight community gets a chance to watch this.I saw this video when it first came out which was around the same time I started my journey on healthy lifestyle with fervent passion. I watched it again when I got this newsletter and what caught my attention this time around was this –(“Monsanto’s BT corn is registered as an insecticide because every cell has been engineered to manufacture a natural bacterial toxin”). And to think that most Americans are made up of 75% corn (based on the typical American diet), this is pretty scary. Does this mean we are Round Up ready???This documentary points out another good reason to avoid grains. We may not be out of the woods for long if BIG Ag companies continue their pursuit in genetically modifying other soil grown foods. Back in 2002, I went to a health workshop where the nutritionalist was talking about Monsanto experimenting with injecting chemicals in potatoes so the worms would not eat them – I don’t know if these ever made it to the market.We as food consumers still have a say in what we eat so we need to buy fresh foods from our local farmers, join a CSA, and/or get involved in your local health support groups.Here are some other documentaries on food that have been on my watch list:King CornFreshFood, Inc.The most recent food documentary I heard about is “Farmageddon”. The book did not get rave reviews and I have not read it so I will reserve my comments.
“Is it possible for the government to be unbiased and work for the public good when high-level officials have direct ties to the industry they are regulating?”No. There is too much lobbying and funding going on between corporations (food, health care, pharma) and officials that are supposed to be acting in the best interest of the people of the country. Until this ends, we will have to fend for ourselves at the local/community level.
Frank, good to hear from you! I think that is a great organization you guys are setting up there. I’ve often wondered just what we could do if people took 1/4 of their yard and grew food. Most people just grow grass, which they cut because it grows too tall, then they water it to make it grow. Good luck with it!I hear ya on eating squash and greens…it’s not much better 150 miles south in Kentucky! Luckily, I love squash and greens of all types.I think the part that infuriates me most about Monsanto is that, if they own the patent, and they can sue you even if you didn’t plant their seeds, but the seeds wound up in your field somehow, what stops them from just driving around “accidentally” distributing seeds around the nation?CheersScott
lel, potatoes that the worms won’t eat? I haven’t heard of that, but it’s pretty scary. If it poisons the worms, I’d imagine it does the same to humans, at a much lower level of course.I haven’t seen any of the others you mentioned, but one day I will.CheersScott
Unfortunately, as long as palms are being greased, you’re absolutely right. It won’t be until we the people demand campaign finance reforms and changes to lobbying rules that we can really trust the government to act in our best interest.
I’ve seen food inc. and thought it was enlightening and scary. I will watch the future of food too. I wanted to recommend a show I’ve been watching: Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution on ABC. His show focuses on changing the food schools serve for lunch. He apparently convinced the schools in Britain to spend 1 billion dollars to change the food they serve. He’s trying to do the same in the U.S.It’s amazing to see how much we don’t really know about the food industry and how this processed junk is made. It’s pretty gross. I’m really glad all these movies and shows are popping up about this issue. I’m a high school teacher and the crap that’s offered in the cafeteria is shocking. It’s all about money instead of what is good for the kids.We’ve become so disconnected with our food, the way it’s made and even with the person who’s making/preparing it. I hope more documentaries focus on these issues.
This is an awesome discussion!I wanted to let you know about another documentary, which will be released to PBS stations this September, called Eating Alaska (http;www.eatingalaska.com). it is has been playing with films like “Fresh,” and “Ingredients” and “Food, iInc.”Eating Alaska is a humorous examination of the realities & ethics behind what we put in our bodies and where it’s from. In an inquisitive and accessible journey from the source to the shelves, stopping everywhere in between to answer such essential and universal questions as:-Local vs. Organic?-What can be learned from indigenous food practices?-Vegan vs. Vegetarian vs. Omnivore?-What are the consequences of our current system?-Could you actually kill an animal for its meat?We welcome more screenings, be they in a gym, a school, library or your house! From Nome to NYC we’ve had people eat long with the film, bring in worms and chickens as part of sustainability events and add local speakers and workshops!Cheers and eat well.