When it comes to processed food, the documentary Food, Inc. makes us aware that what we don’t know can hurt us (Ross). This film opens the public’s eyes to the inevitable truth: the food we’re eating is unhealthy and the companies that produce it are very conscious of it. So many issues arise in this documentary that are otherwise left untouched for the fear of angering the big manufacturers of the food industry. Such topics include how the workers at food processing plants are treated, how our food has become corrupt, and how food borne illness enters our stores with the knowledge of the manufacturers, but without the knowledge of the consumer. These subjects illustrate how corporate America can get by with anything.
In the 1970’s, five major companies controlled 25% of the meat market; in 2009, four companies control more than 80% of the meat market (Kenner). Today, McDonald’s is the top purchaser of beef in the United States and has been for a while. The McDonald brothers invented the procedures of fast food; they trained their staff to do one thing over and over, paid employees low wages and made sure they could be easily replaced. Even if a consumer doesn’t eat fast food, they eat meat produced by this system. Additionally, companies have complete control over what is put on the labels. Most of the time, labels are covered in a beautiful farm scene, possibly in Wisconsin, when in reality the product is from Mexico, Venezuela, or Spain (Sietsema). A bit deceiving? Yes. And corporate America is well aware of it. They want to create an image of peace and serenity when the animals could have suffered for hours before they was slaughtered and died in pain or a farmer could have had no choice but to produce the food on your plate. The industry gives them no choice of how their food is raised, fed, or slaughtered. For instance, chicken farmers put growth hormones in their chicken’s food so the chickens can be raised and killed in half of the time they were half a century ago. But the chickens aren’t even owned by the farmers-they are owned by the companies that constrict the farmers with contract after contract, each one leaving farmers with more and more debt. If a farmer can’t even control what he/she feeds the animals, where the animals are kept, or how they’re taken to slaughter, what is left to control?
As soon as the consequences of the irresponsible decisions appear, companies disappear. The careless mistakes that these food “icons” make come at high societal costs, environmental costs, and health costs. Our food has become increasingly hazardous without our (the consumer’s) knowledge. E.coli is appearing in our meat daily and innocent people are getting sick and even dying. Because cows in CAFO (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation) stand ankle deep in their own manure every day, it can be transferred after slaughter into the meat that is then sent into stores… all with the knowledge of the companies that produce the meat, if you can even call it that (Ebert). That meat is not just sent into stores, but also to fast food companies. Fast food is heavily subsidized which makes it cheaper for the consumer compared to fruits and vegetables. This leads to a fatter America that is infested with Type 2 Diabetes. Also, farmers are beginning to become allergic to antibiotics because of their exposure to them when caring for animals. The integrity of our food is gone, along with our immune systems; all thanks to the stuff we call food.
Corruption. When we hear this word, we typically think government not food and that the government controls and regulates our food, but recently, that's not necessarily the case. Government officials such as senators, judges, presidential advisors, and others, who were in charge of making sure facilities were sanitary and regulating the products, were and are still controlled by the very companies they were supposed to be scrutinizing (Ross). The centralized power was being used against the people who are producing the food and the consumers are being left in the dark on purpose. These companies are suing anything that criticizes a product and even the USDA for trying to shut down unsanitary plants. Now, the USDA doesn’t have the authority to shut down a contaminated plant, so the companies are left to self-police-they don’t care is the food is unhealthy for the consumer, they just want money. As consumers grow more and more aware of issues like these, they turn a blind eye and don’t ask questions in fear of the answers they might receive. The people in Washington who we trust with our well-being are making decisions for the country but they do not have to live with the consequences-they will be the downfall of this country.
This society is of the people, by the people, for the people-not of, for, or by corporate America. The citizens of the country have been run down one too many times by the companies who supposedly represent us. They hang debt over farmers which basically makes them slaves to the company. The scare tactics they have used are getting old and people are learning that buying local and organic food, voicing opinions, and slowly integrating organic food into large enterprises like Wal-Mart can make a huge difference. This faster, fatter, bigger, cheaper mentality is going down the toilet, along with the companies who created it. We, as a culture, are so aware of technological advances that we have put our blinders on so we are ignorant to what really matters; we did not and do not want our “perfect view” of our “perfect society” to be ruined. But now that everything is being shoved into plain sight, we take off our blinders and start to make a difference.
Ebert, Roger. "Food, Inc." Chicago Sunt Times (2009): n. pag. Web. 11 May 2011. <http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090617/REVIEWS/906179985>.
Food, Inc. June 2009. Television. 11 May 2011.
Ross, Joanne. "Faster, Fatter, Bigger, Cheaper." ReelTalk (2009): n. pag. Web. 11 May 2011. <http://www.reeltalkreviews.com/browse/viewitem.asp?type=review&id=3058>.
Sietsema, Robert. "Dying to Eat in Food, Inc." Village Voice (2009): n. pag. Web. 11 May 2011. <http://www.villagevoice.com/2009-06-10/film/dying-to-eat-in-food-inc/>.
