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This Omnivore's Dilemma

Kanika Sethi - June 15, 2008

I consider myself a "foodie" in every sense of the word. I LOVE to eat good food, fresh food, home cooked food, gourmet food, food that I've tried from many different parts of the world, even fast food (well, some of it...). One of my favorite activities is deciphering the ingredients in a dish served at a restaurant. Was that lemongrass in my curry? A little bit of dried coriander? Was it honey that made the dish sweeter or brown sugar?

When my first daughter was born, I delighted in feeding her -- each time I offered her a new morsel, a new taste or texture, it was as if I were eating that food for the first time myself. It was fascinating to see how she interacted -- and I mean this in every sense of the word -- with what we put in front of her. Grabbing, squishing, smelling, smearing, stuffing it in her ears, her nose, even her mouth at times, and covering her face, arms, legs, torso and clothing, of course, with it as well. My husband and I, like many new parents, were also fascinated with the end result of all of this eating -- the output in Aanya's diapers. What food was digested, what remained intact and the marvelous colors of her poo....not so much the smells.

Of course, I also made it a point to make as much baby food as possible for my daughters and reveled in the fact that I was serving them fresh, healthy, real food. I would buy mostly organic fruits and vegetables and puree them in the blender, freezing the leftovers in ice-cube trays for later. When it was time for stage 2 foods, the first thing I fed the girls was a mixture of rice and dhal called kitcherie, which my husband would turn his nose at since it is traditionally food served up to sick children (our version of chicken soup.) To my disappointment, eventually my daughters turned their noses at it as well.

I have continued to cook well for my daughters and family --- using fresh and organic ingredients as much as possible, although they do like to eat a lot of pasta. (I joke that they must have been Italian in their past lives...) We have a range of pasta on hand at home...everything from Annie's organic, whole wheat shells and pasta, to gourmet Italian made from Durum wheat and even pasta made from brown rice. Believe me, it's delicious!

Given that we socialize with other families with young children quite a bit pizza is, of course, on the menu at least once a week. We can give you a run-down on all of the joints in the neighborhood, as well as many other places you'll NEED to try next time you're in NYC. (Hint, if you don't live in NYC, or even if you do and decide to stay in, Trader Joe's makes excellent pizza dough!)

We still eat Indian food several times a week and my children are learning well to tolerate the spices I add to their food. Anything I cook can be eaten by all of us -- most of the time, my husband and I eat the children's food, but at times, if I'm a bit heavy handed with the masalas, there is always plain yogurt around to cool down everyone's palates.

So where am I going with all of this? Well, I just finished reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollen and my whole outlook on eating has been shattered. What use is going to Whole Foods or Trader Joe's and buying those organic raspberries flown in from Peru when the jet-fuel from the airplane destroys the environment more than the farming techniques from "regular" farming? How is a free-range chicken really "free" when they are kept in a coop and force-fed so much that they can't even STAND up to walk when the coop doors are finally open? Should a person visiting "hormone-free" cow really have to wear a bio-hazard suit so they don't infect the cow (and it's close, nay, very close neighbors) with any pathogens?

If you haven't read the book, I certainly urge you to do so. In it, the author follows the path of four meals -- ranging from a burger and fries at McDonald's to a meal almost completely hunted and gathered by himself -- from start to finish. It is a fascinating piece of journalism and will change the way you think about eating and hopefully go about doing it too.

Although I have not yet completely changed my eating habits, I am certainly planning to do more shopping at the farmer's market and cut down on the processed food as much as possible. I know it's not entirely possible and I'm sure we'll take the girls to McD's a few more times in their lives. However, I will hardly put a morsel in my mouth without thinking about the entire process which it underwent to reach my palate.

Until later, Bon Appétit!
Kanika

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Posted by Kanika Sethi at June 15, 2008 11:51 AM

Comments

Wow, I guess I have to read the book. It sounds compelling.

What immediately struck me however, is how different the picture the book paints is from how the companies advertise the food they want to sell us.

The media presents with images of the wholesome family farm where clean healthy people love their livestock like pets and they spend carefree lives frolicking in the fields while living pure, organic, God-blessed lives. Then the food from their pure, organic, God-blessed existences magically (no slaughterhouses, thank you) shows up on the table where happy, well-adjusted children are being served by stress-free, smiling, perfectly dressed, happy Moms and Dads. It makes you feel warm all over. What could be better for your kids than rushing to the market to buy the advertised food?

I actually feel pretty disgusted by the whole thing. It seems we have a market system based on always deceiving the customer. Yuck.

So much for truth in advertising.

1. Posted by yogi-one on June 15, 2008 03:10 PM

I couldn't agree with you more, Yogi-One. The marketing for these products is TREMENDOUS. Pollan describes one such campaign, for eggs from a "free-range" chicken, "Rosie". Rosie's entire happy story is described on the carton of these eggs. Well, in reality, there are hundreds of "Rosies" on this farm who sit in their coop and you can't imagine any Rosie-ness on their part. It's quite depressing. And yet, what is the alternative? Eggs that come from real free range chickens who eat grain and grass and actually roam around properly sell at the Farmer's market in Union Sq. (NYC) for up to $10/dozen! It's quite incredible, actually.

I find it especially difficult raising my children to believe in the farm myth -- reading them stories about farm animals, complete with gorgeous illustrations of happy cows, chickens, pigs, etc. all cohabitating happily -- when in reality, the farms that most of our livestock come from are a far cry from this.

2. Posted by Kanika Sethi on June 16, 2008 05:10 AM

It's a conundrum. Organic produce is fertilized with animal parts. Some organic companies have gotten so big, their practices have become questionable. On the other hand Kraft won't say no to GMOs, there's no labeling for GMOs, and now Johnson & Johnson wants us to think Windex is good for the environment!

We do the best we can, ever aware of our footprint. Livestock contributes tremendously to global warming (think methane gas!). Raising livestock for human consumption means less people have access to grains & staples. I can quote stats.

I think a non-flesh diet is a good place to start. It's ahimsa. Nothing is simple anymore though. Look at corn ethanol which is contributing to world food shortages. And it takes about the same or more energy to make, as it saves. Sugar ethanol is the way to go. Brazil did it years ago & they're virtually oil-independent.

A 3rd world country, gasp! Years ago I saw a documentary about bandages made from potato skins, invented in India. Cheap raw materials & virtually nonstick, esp. good for burn victims.

We never know where ingenuity will come from, but we really, really must get out head out of the sand!

3. Posted by Pamir on June 16, 2008 06:10 PM

I think Wild Oats and others have really missed the boat in terms of locality.

I think they try to stress it in their marketing propaganda, but where the rubber meets the road--their actual produce--they fall well short of their intended goal. It's availability versus sustainability.

If I had to choose between organic and local, I'd choose the latter any day (this is where my wife, Jann, and I have our differences). I've begun to think of organic food as the equivalent of "fly[ing] your Learjet to Nova Scotia to watch the total eclipse of the sun."

I think things need to happen in phases.

1. Wrest market dependency on globalism (bring it home).

2. Begin to exert influence on the market you depend on locally through legislation and conscious selection.

3. Teach other local markets what you've learned.

So, for example, with regard to the use of fossil fuels, you could see this model put to use in the following way:

1. begin to use plug-in cars that depend on electricity produced by coal. This breaks dependency on the global market with temporary disregard for the local environment.

2. use legislation to break our local dependence on coal by providing incentives for the use of Wind and Solar.

3. spread the word to other localities.

In other words, start local and build OUTWARD.

With food, it works the same way:

1. begin to buy locally produced food.

2. advocate for organic techniques.

3. teach other localities how you did it!

THE KEY IS THAT IF YOU DON'T PULL THINGS INTO YOUR LOCAL DOMAIN, YOU HAVE NO POWER TO EXACT THE CHANGES YOU WISH TO SEE.

AND GLOBALISTS KNOW THIS!!!

4. Posted by danashields on June 18, 2008 06:10 AM

Wild Oats is now part of Whole Foods. Last I was there, there was a section of local produce.

5. Posted by Pamir | Reiki Help Blog on June 18, 2008 08:57 AM

Last I was there, the hard-as-rock personal watermelon in the local produce section was rotten.

6. Posted by danashields on June 18, 2008 10:55 AM

Anyway, I think my point is valid. You either choose non-local organic or local non-organic, and seldom both.

And I believe that an iterative approach to change is better than forcing it in total.

1. pull it in local.
2. influence it.
3. share it.

7. Posted by danashields on June 18, 2008 11:07 AM

Neat article. I am in the same situation described by you. guess i have to read that book now and find alternatives to where i currently buy food too!
thanks for sharing
Nanditha
http://bindumandala.yoga.googlepages.com

8. Posted by Nanditha on August 28, 2008 02:01 AM

9. Posted by Nanditha on August 28, 2008 02:01 AM

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