There is no mechanism currently in place allowing the USDA to close a processing plant that has repeatedly produced contaminated meat. Ground beef filler routinely goes through ammonia sprayers before being added to ground meat. The deadly Hemorrhagic E-coli has developed because of the overuse of corn feed and antibiotics as well as the unsanitary conditions of cattle on factory farms. These are just a few of the things I learned from the well researched film Food, Inc.Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma, and Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation are co-producer's and their commentary is interspersed throughout Director Robert Kenner's 1 &1/2 hour film which gives a thorough overview of the "unintended consequences" of applying the mass production techniques of the industrial revolution to farming and food production.
Covering the dangers and cruelty of factory farming, commodity crops, the conflict of interest amoung many higher ups in the FDA and our legal system, Kevin's Law to give the FDA the ability to enforce their mission, and Monsanto's genetically modified seed program, it nevertheless leaves the viewer with a sense of hope and empowerment.
The food industry has created multiple layers of laws to protect themselves covering everything from liable - Oprah Winfrey was sued because she said Mad Cow Disease made her not want to eat hamburger (she won) - to a lack of labelling for questionable practices such as cloned foods, rBST hormones, irradiation and genetically modified foods.
The only sure way to avoid food with these treatments is to buy food labelled organic or from a local grower who can share their growing practices. The large food corporations are nevertheless trying very hard to weaken the organic label's credibility.
Near the end of the film Gary Hirshberg of Stoneyfield Farms shares his belief our food supply is heading in a positive direction as corporations are jumping onto the organic tractor band wagon. He points out that as a result of consumers clearly showing they prefer healthy food through their buying practices, not only have these corporations bought many of the small companies that produce healthy foods, Kashi is now Coca-Cola for example, and Tom's of Maine is now under Colgate, but large retailers are carrying more and more organic and natural products.
So vote with your dollar and buy the purest food you can afford so that our markets will stop selling products that kill us with heart disease, diabetes and diseases like e-coli. As Hirshberg states in the film "The sale of another million dollars (of healthy food) to WalMart helps to save the world".
Related reading viewing:
The Future of Food - DVD
King Corn- DVD
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