The Red pill or the Blue pill?

If you have had the pleasure of seeing the movie "The Matrix," then you will remember the pivotal scene when Neo gets to choose whether or not he is going to travel down the rabbit hole and see the truth of his world. Well, I am giving you same choice in this post. If you take the Red pill, you may be exposed to some truths about what you are ingesting everyday, three times a day...if you take the Blue pill, then you can go to bed tonight and keep blindly consuming GMO (genetically modified) foods, nicely packaged "meat," and "food" that can hardly be considered food anymore. The choice is yours...

For those who have decided on the Red pill...down the rabbit hole we go.

Although I already know a lot about the "food" we eat everyday, I decided to broaden my horizons today and see the movie "Food Inc." If you have not seen it - you must. This film showed how most of the government agencies who are here to protect us (FDA, USDA, etc.) are influenced by a much higher power - corporations, a.k.a. MONEY. These corporations have taken absolute control over our most basic need - food. But, it doesn't stop there...

First, I will start with mass produced meat. If you have been reading my blog, you know that I already covered the treatment of animals in CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding organizations). But, one approach I really liked in the movie was the treatment of the employees who work at these CAFOs and slaughterhouses. The movie mentions that one of the most dangerous jobs in the U.S. is working at a slaughterhouse to process mass produced meat. These employees are usually immigrants, working for little pay, doing the same task over and over, while they try to keep up with machines that pump this "meat" out. This is a breeding ground for mistakes (mixing feces in with the meat) and accidents (employees getting hurt). Next, is the quality of the meat. Where do I even start? The meat you buy at the grocery store or at a nearby restaurant is from animals who are not being fed what evolution and nature intended them to eat. Cows are not supposed to eat corn and animal parts, they are supposed to eat grass. This corn diet makes them get fat fast and that's it. Feeding animals against nature's intentions has dramatic effects...like new strains of E. coli. Another point was the fact that this mass production of meat is mainly a mixture of science and technology. Where does agriculture come into play you ask? Well...nowhere. It turns out playing God has it's advantages on these companies' wallets and sometimes deadly disadvantages for those who are unfortunate enough to eat these corporations' products.

Moving on to our limited options as consumers. Most of the meat in the U.S. is supplied by five companies. Yes, five corporations have taken on providing American consumers with almost all of their meat. The days of going to the local farm and buying half a grass fed cow are gone my friends. Now farmers with limited options sign contracts with these corporations and produce "meat" that comes from animals who may never see the sunlight. As for other products in your local store or restaurant, the options and ingredients are even more limited. Basically everything we eat comes from GMO corn and soybeans. Although we are given the illusion of having unlimited options as we wander through the aisles picking our favorite products, we don't. No matter what brand you are getting (while thinking it's different than the other one right next to it), it is all going in the same pockets of corporate big wigs who just look at us like a profit margin and who want to keep their products as cost effective as possible.

Now, for the scariest part of this movie - the statistics. I really think I only need to mention one, which I found to be the most disturbing...1 in 3 children born in the U.S. will have onset diabetes, for minorities - 1 in 2. Why is this? Because healthy, natural food is not only expensive but it's also rare. So...where does that leave the single mother working two jobs to just pay rent? They are in line at the local fast food place, ordering off the dollar menu.

My personal fear did not stop at these stats...this movie also covered how these corporations are making it almost impossible for anyone to grow their own food. A common practice since the beginning of farming was saving seeds to grow crops for the next year. Not anymore...companies like Monsanto have now patented seeds to the point that it is illegal for farmers to keep their own seeds. If you are wondering how this could happen, "Food Inc." pointed out that many past Monsanto employees are now not only a part of the FDA, but even in the Supreme Court (Clarence Thomas). No wonder why these companies have enough power to limit freedom of speech (Oprah was sued for saying she would never eat another hamburger on her show), keep people out of CAFOs and keep consumers in the dark about what they are eating.

I think I will stop here so I don't give the whole movie away...but I will warn you now - viewing this movie and going even further down the rabbit hole will lead to a feeling of hopelessness and an empty stomach because of your limited, healthy options. Anyone who is really interested in ending the production and consumption of this corporate slop we are being fed, needs to take action. The government agencies who are there to protect our most basic need of eating, have been influenced (and are even run) by the corporations who are shoving these products in our faces. There is so much work to be done and all I wonder is where to start when so many people have no idea what is going on around them and the ones who try to fight it or learn more are very quickly quieted by lawsuits and other techniques. Our ability to produce our own healthy food is fleeting and our rights to speak out against these companies, about our choices as a consumer and the horrific treatment of animals and these companies employees has been squashed almost every time.

I am sure you understand what I mean by a feeling of hopelessness. But this rabbit hole can lead to a light...for me, my personal feelings of discouragement are cancelled out every time I go to the farmers' market or the whole foods store. This is because, as I consumer, I know I have a say. I have the right to choose what products to buy...and I know that it is my responsibility to vote with my pocket book. This probably explains why I feel like an absolute hypocrite whenever I buy pop. If only it was not there to tempt me - that is the ultimate goal.

NOTE: This movie is airing in a limited amount of theatres, so you may have to take a trip to see it. I promise you - it is well worth the drive. I am sure you don't need to ask why there are limited options for seeing this movie. But, if you don't understand - this documentary will open the eyes of the American people to the fact that they are being separated from their food and these corporations don't want you to know what you are eating.