Stagnant Revolution

Have you guys seen Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution? The documentary series, which airs on ABC, follows British chef and food activist/reformist Jamie Oliver as he attempts to bring change to America's food system. Last season he was in Huntington, West Virginia and this year he is in L.A. One would think L.A., home of the celebrities, Hollywood and all around pretty people would be completely on board with change but so far (I've watched only one episode) the L.A. school district is being more difficult than Huntington!

Why is it so hard for people or rather institutions to be willing and ready for change (easy answer: money. Read Food Politics if you want an in depth answer)? It is one thing to put inappropriate things in our own bodies but if we can't protect and guide the children in our care then what is wrong with us?! I once had a 'debate' (more like an argument) with a high school teacher who vehemently opposed the removal of vending machines in schools here in Texas. His logic? They're adults, they can make that decision. Since when are 15-18 year olds adults? We won't talk straight to them about matters like sex because we're afraid that they don't have the maturity to handle it but they amazingly have the capability to make decisions that impact their health in a significant way, leading to obesity, diabetes, not to mention concentration issues that directly affect the purpose of education.

Let's also talk about what it takes to be an adult. Children are *supposed* to be taught right from wrong along the way to adulthood. When sugar and fats are being shoved down their throats starting from pre-K, do they really have the right skills or worldview from which to make the appropriate decision?

I'm all for personal responsibility and individualism (which I think are key arguments for people who believe that obesity is a personal problem) but both these concepts apply to the food problem in the U.S. as well. It is our personal responsibility to teach children good eating habits. Is it really individualistic to feed children mass produced unhealthy food?

Once again, the agencies that are supposed to protect us (USDA, I'm talkin to you) are failing us. You may feel like a small voice against a strong loud arsenal of government agencies and large corporations but we can't let the revolution go stagnant. Significant changes have been made worldwide (for example, flavored milk is no longer offered in any school in Europe) so what the heck are we waiting for? I strongly believe in Jamie's message; I wish I could say that change will start at the top but in this case, its not going to. We all have to band together, us 'little' folk, and make change happen. It starts with us and it needs.to.start.now.

What do you guys think? Should we regulate what children are fed or should we keep the system as it is? Will you get involved?

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The speculation game

I recently watched The Colbert Report. On this particular episode, Stephen Colbert had Laurie Garret on, who is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. The topic of the day: rising food prices. I'm sure we've all noticed that going to the grocery store has become increasingly expensive in the past few years and Laurie spoke about why this was happening.  I don't know about you guys but I had no idea what was going on globally causing the increase until I watched her interview.

Ms. Garret mentioned many reasons why food prices have increased:

• Fires and floods (Pakistan, anyone?) wiped out crops
• Foot & mouth disease is currently being battled in 14 countries, reducing amount of meat allowable for export
• Gas prices have increased, increasing transportation costs for food
• Speculation

It was this last reason that I was most interested in (as none of us can control natural disasters). Speculation? What is that? Speculation is the process by which investors around the world agree to buy X amount of a commodity at a later date. As I understand it, this is a problem because of the nature of supply and demand. Let's reach back far into our brains to the mandatory high school economics class we all had to take. Remember anything? When the supply of an item is low yet demand is high, the price goes up. The speculators reduce the supply of an item by buying it, putting it out of commission for say three months while demand increases, causing prices to increase. The problem is that this process is largely unregulated. Lobbyists (funded by large companies) and the companies themselves have thus far prevented regulation from being passed to regulate the whole process.

Both Ms. Barret and a special report published by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) cite high food prices as inciting factors in riots across the world. According to the IATP, developing nations across the world are now consuming less food, with 43% of people polled in these countries stating that they have cut back on food purchases. The undernourished demographic has increased because of this and continues to grow.

Think about it, if food is expensive and thus a nuisance to buy for us, think about the poor in developing countries. Not only do those people have to pay outrageous prices, there may not even be enough to go around as their governments cannot import enough. The effects of the rising prices go beyond nutrition to political unrest and unnecessary deaths caused by riots.

Once again, big business is holding the 'little' people down. And yet again, the solution is the same: regulate! Boy do I feel like a broken record writing these posts but really people, I know this is America, the land of the free and free enterprise but is it really a free life we're leading when businesses who do not have our interests at heart are underhandedly, secretively dealing to do what's best for them, not for us? I feel the answer is no.way.


Resources:

Reflections on Global Food Crisis



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