Food Inc exposes the corporate and controlled food industry of America (much of which effects and applies to us here in Canada too). They cover the topics of organic and local foods, foodborne illness, diabetes and obesity, nutritional labels, factory farming, genetic engineering, pesticides, farm worker protection, environmental impact, cloning, and the global food crisis. The wide range of issues and drawbacks with the way the food industry is operating shocked me. At the same time, the overall message of the film was empowering and inspiring. For a documentary, I also found it incredibly engaging.
What impacted me the most, and this is the point I would like everyone to take away from this blog post, was the idea presented that buying an item is actually the act of voting for that item. The same way our votes add up in an election to affect politics, our purchase decisions add up to the way the market responds. If I buy processed, genetically engineered foods, I am declaring that that is what I want. On the other hand, if I buy organic, local foods, I am declaring that that is what I want. If stores want to stay in business, they will provide what the people want, and the prices of those healthy choices will come down as they become mainstream.
Here's a trailer for Food Inc. I hope it intrigues and inspires you enough to go out and watch the film.
Have you already seen Food Inc? What did you think? Did it inspire you to make any changes?
This movie has inspired me to make changes. Makes me really want to buy local. After seeing some of the smaller local farmers that grow crops organically and raise their animals in a healthy way, it really made me want to make sure I was supporting the local farmers. Buying organic meat is more expensive, but if everyone buys it, it will drop in price. I think changing your diet to choosing more natural foods will help with your health, and I just feel better knowing what I am supporting.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I made the beneficial "mistake" of watching this movie. I say mistake because sometimes ignorance is bliss, right? WRONG- it really forces you to acknowledge what you are eating and what's going on in our country and what our government is allowing us to digest on a daily basis. We immediately researched our area for local farm markets, switched to organic and all-natural. Of course our budget got hit pretty hard, so to compensate (mainly the price of meat) I started cooking at least 2 vegetarian meals a week.
ReplyDeleteOf course, in the end I was glad we watched it (we did purposefully avoid it for a while), I learned an incredible amount of information about our food. I have always been one of those people who accept what I'm told and doesn't really question anything. So, I assumed the food my parents bought me and fed me was good for me. Now I know to feed and nourish my family properly. :)
@Brittany
ReplyDeleteWow! Your comment made me so happy and excited. I completely agree with what you were saying about ignorance being bliss (not). It's just easier not to know, but it's so important to know! I accept that people will make their own decisions, but it bothers me so much when I see or hear people making poor choices when they don't realize it's bad. Great work making those changes in your life!