Food Industry just that: An Industry

As environmental studies students we have learned the negative impact our food industry has had on our crops, livestock, and even our own health. It seems so obvious that we should change our ways or else we will continue to see local farmers go out of business and processed foods become a larger part of our diet. However, the later is what seems to be taking place. Our culture, and the norms we are comfortable with, tell us that certain foods are acceptable and certain are not. Because our food is a part of the capitalist system it is treated practically the same as the clothing industry; make as much product for as cheap as possible and sell as much as you can.

To sell these "products" marketers will do nearly anything and much like the media's objectification of women, food is also made into something needed, wanted, and prized . Sometimes, the two are even done together:

As humans, we see a beautiful woman eating one of the most unhealthy things humanly created and connect the two. I would guess that she hasn't eaten many of these before or after she made this ad ( or even during the ad) but if we connect Hardees with Padma and brussle sprouts with the food every kid in the movies hates, its pretty easy to see why the average college student prefers a burger to a salad with brussle sprouts.

While I was watching travel channel earlier, Andrew Zimmern travelled to some place in NJ where this guy eats and sells all kinds of bug dishes and is trying to turn peoples way of thinking away from the idea of nasty gross insects to healthy, abundant sources of protein. However, getting people to put large spiders and cockroaches into their mouths willingly is hard. The interesting thing is, these insects are arthropods and very closely related to crabs and lobsters; food most consider delicacies. Andrew Zimmern even said the spiders tasted somewhat like parts of crabs he had tried before.

For some reason, this:

Looks more appetizing to most than this:

My point in all of this is that while we keep debating whether or not there should be subsidies for this that or the other, and whether or not local or organic or both should be focused on, we should take a step back and realize thins are not going to change fast enough if the mentalities behind the food we eat are not changed. Until then Arby's will be "good mood food", we will still "badababa baaa love it" and be able to "have it our way"...