I’ve always assumed that the fruits, vegetables, grains and meats we get in the grocery store are top quality, grown and raised on farms and ranches. I’ve made some disturbing discoveries, though. Have any of you seen the movie Food, Inc. by filmmaker Robert Kenner? It appeared on PBS in April last year. If you haven’t seen it, you may want to check it out on YouTube.
In the movie, Kenner reveals the truth about factory farming. Michael Pollan, author and journalist, the narrator in the movie, comments, “The industry does not want us to know the truth about what we are eating. We probably wouldn’t want to eat it.” He even goes so far to say, “It is probably dangerous.” Why?
A handful of huge corporations concerned mostly with profits have taken over the production of our food. They own the seeds and dictate to poultry and beef farmers how the animals are to be raised and what seeds they will use. The movie names those companies.
Farmers have found that it is more cost effective and more productive to use assembly line techniques to the pain and suffering of the animals. Animals raised on factory farms have had their genes manipulated, are pumped full of growth hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals. They are caged in close quarters with little to no light. They are fed GMO grain and corn–Genetically Modified Organism–biochemists actually are able to modify the genes in these plants to resist disease, tolerate drought, fight fungus and to be unappealing to insects. And sometimes subjected to mutilation.
Not only are these modern techniques inhumane to the animals, but they are dangerous to humans. According to Cornell News, the grain-based diet fed to cows promotes a strain of e coli that is very dangerous to us. The following website explains why this kind of feed promotes the growth of e coli. http://www.naturalnews.com/027185_ethanol_ecoli_corn.html#ixzz1WBrnbckB
In one part of the movie a chicken farmer, who exposes the way chickens are raised, is interviewed and subsequently loses her contract with Purdue. This post from a vegetarian site pretty well sums up what the farmer revealed:
“The broiler chicken industry produces 6 billion
chickens a year for slaughter. This industry is ruled by only 60
companies which have created an oligopoly. Broiler chickens are selectively bred and genetically altered to produce bigger thighs and breasts, the parts in most demand. This breeding creates birds so heavy that their bones cannot support
their weight, making it difficult for them to stand. The birds are bred to grow at an astonishing rate, reaching their market weight of 3 1/2 pounds in seven weeks. Broilers are raised in overcrowded broiler houses instead of cages to prevent the occurrence of bruised flesh which would make their meat undesirable. Their beaks and toes are cut off and the broiler houses are usually unlit to prevent fighting among the birds.”
I’ll let you read for yourself how other farm animals are raised in the farm factories. For more information see: http://www.idausa.org/facts/factoryfarmfacts.html
While this site above promotes a vegetarian lifestyle, we do have other alternatives. Kenner feels, for one thing, that public exposure of the dangers of smoking changed the way we view the tobacco industry. He thinks that public opinion can change the way the food industry produces food. He calls for more organic food purchasing and for protection for farmers who want to do things differently from what the farming corporations are dictating. Some of the factory-owned or run farms have powerful lobbyists and powerful influence on the FDA and other government organizations. Sometimes organic farmers, co-ops and raw milk farmers are closed down or harassed by government agencies under the influence of factory farmers. You may be interested in this Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/millionsagainst If you check, there is a chapter for your state.
We can also purchase foods from local farmers. Many communities have farmers’ markets where local farmers can sell their produce. Generally too, small farmers use less pesticides. Buy what is in season.
So what am I doing to see that my family is eating wholesome foods? First of all, I am shopping and buying from local farmers as much as possible. At least the food is vine-ripened and not gassed. They may have some pesticides, but I wash them thoroughly with a mixture of Basic H2 and water. (For a free sample of Basic H2 contact me at ksshakleerep@gmail.com)
I’ve also started buying organic as much as I can afford. I’m still looking for a place to buy grass-fed beef. Some friends of ours buy a beef cow from a small local farmer and have it butchered and dressed to place in the freezer. I am looking into doing that too. A neighbor of ours sells lamb. Costco’s has reasonably priced organic chicken breasts. We’ve also put in a small garden this summer. The family doctor of a friend told her to buy organic dairy as much as possible. So we do that too. A few local farmers sell eggs from chickens that are cage-free.
I don’t buy everything organic as it would be too expensive. But I figure if I at least eat some organic foods, I am getting more nutritional value than if I continued to eat food from the supermarkets. If you are fortunate enough to live where there is a Whole Foods market, that is where I would go.
I’m finding, too, that the organic vegetables I’m buying taste better,and are more flavorful than what I’ve been getting the last few years. They taste like the vegetables my dad and grandfather used to grow. So to me they are worth the extra expense. I just plan my meals carefully and stick to a shopping list to stay within my budget. Buying in bulk helps save money too.
We’ve also started taking vitamins and other nutritional supplements, especially in the winter, as I feel the food we get off-season probably doesn’t have all the vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals needed to support good health. That too will be a subject of a future blog–what is happening to the beneficial phytochemicals in our food because of modern farming methods?
