Table Talk, Take Two (Guest Blogger: Michael Pollan)
Readers:
Thanks for all your posts, which were full of interesting comments and provocations—but not a whole lot of new eating algorithms, I must say. I await more of those.
There were a lot of interesting posts on the challenge of eating well on a budget, as well as some proposed strategies and solutions. The fact is, we have a food systems (ie, a set of agricultural policies) that encourages farmers to grow lots of corn and soy, the building blocks of fast food (in the form of high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated soy oil and all the other industrial ingredients teased out of those two remarkable plants) and effectively discourages farmers from growing real food people can eat. The result is that the unhealthiest calories in the supermarket are the cheapest, and the healthiest calories the dearest.
But processed food is not necessarily so cheap—it’s only cheap on a per-calorie basis. It costs money to design, produce, market and package those Honeynut Cheerio Cereal bars with the layer of synthetic milk-like material in the middle. If you compare the price of those bars to the price of the oats they’re made from (79 cents a pound for rolled organic in my market), you’ll quickly see that the processed version is no bargain. They’ve figured out a way to get you to spend several dollars a pound for oats by adding sugar, “convenience,” and fortified vitamins --about which all you need to know was supplied by one reader: “An old preacher of my acquaintance used to say that, "enriched" foods was like a guy robbing you of all your money, then tossing you a sawbuck saying, "now you're enriched."
To eat well doesn’t necessarily take a lot more money, but it probably does take more time. What people are buying when they buy processed foods is convenience, by and large. Many people don’t think they have enough time to cook any more, and the food marketers are very good at flattering our sense of busyness. Look at how they portray the American family: either stressed out in the morning trying to get out of the house (does no one have an alarm clock that works?!?!?) or relaxing with snack foods in front of the TV. Hmmm. It’s worth thinking about what you actually do with the time you save by eating convenience food. Is it really better spend than cooking a meal for people you love and then enjoying it with them?
As Leslie Batchelor wrote in her post, “Always prepare your food with love, gratitude, and joy in your heart not anger, frustration, bitterness, sadness, etc.... Enjoy the process of making the meal! I swear the food tastes better and is better for us.”
Till next week….
Let’s see more of those rules of thumb. My favorite thus far: “Always leave room for an apple.”
Susie Rosenberg on February 19, 2008 at 11:14 AM
There's a parallel process that plays out in herbal medicine.
Nutrtionism is a science that reduces food to its component parts. We lose the wisdom of the old ways of preparing and eating whole foods when we follow the recommendations of nutritionism, as Mr. Pollan so eloquently illustrates in his writing.
In herbal medicine, there's reductionistic thinking when we isolate, purify, and encapsulate "the active ingredient" of a plant, as opposed to using the whole plant in traditional ways as a tea, infusion, balm, or tonic---or even inhalation.
It's the difference between drinking a tea of St. John's Wort versus a capsule of concentrated hyperidum---the constituent believed to be the active ingredient in treating depression.
Or even more so, the notion of using complementary herbs---like a complex tonic made from new spring growth as a means of "waking up the body" after winter. (The so-called 'spring tonic.')
I'm a whole-plant amateur herbalist, and a physician, and while I appreciate, use, and prescribe drugs in my practice, I can't help but think that we've lost a significant amount of healing power even as we've gained science.
Susie
Bill Harshaw on February 19, 2008 at 01:36 PM
I realize it makes a more interesting story if you have a villain (food industry + nutritionists) but the risk is you show yourself out of touch with trends in society. Compared to 1970, the life of a professor of journalism may be mostly unchanged. But as for the rest of us, we smoke less, fewer of us work at physical labor in manufacturing or agriculture, we have more cars, we drive further to work, we drive more often to school activities and sports to get our kids in the right university, more of us live in households where all the adults work at jobs (single-parent households or two-worker households), more of us live alone, either as young singles or oldsters.
Your mantra seems to me to boil down to one word: "Cook". But the cooking of your grandmother's day was usually done by a woman whose full time job was housekeeping. Today, we don't clean house, we don't cook, and women have paying jobs. (BTW, I recommend Bill Bryson's recent book, The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid,not only for a description of life in the 50's, but also because he reprints the Life magazine photo of the food a 4 person family ate in a year.) As you observe in other connection, food ways are part of the overall culture, something that's as true for Americans of 2008 as it is for other cultures.
urbanworkbench on February 19, 2008 at 03:31 PM
Having recently started gardening and urban foraging for food production, I can sympathise with your thoughts.
The amount of time we now spend growing, collecting, preserving and storing foods, on top of even cooking with better food available at the supermarket is huge. The whole economy is now based on a system where families have two incomes and no time for anything other than earning more money.
As such, we end up with processed and prepackaged "convienience" foods that have less of the good stuff and more of the questionables.
Note: Urban Foraging in my context refers to finding fruit that the bears would otherwise eat!
Paul Kobulnicky on February 20, 2008 at 07:00 AM
Think globally but eat locally ... and here I am not necessarily talking about locavour eating. Grow and raise as much as you can yourself. It may not be much but it changes one's mindset.
I am always amazed when I fly into a European city or when I travel in Europe by train or bike (we bike a lot) at how much personal space is taken up by gardens and maybe a small backyard flock. When you know what good from the garden is, it affects how you view the rest of the world of food.
As for time to do gardening or cooking ... get a life. I do a high-powered full-time job yet I have a large garden, I cook and bake and I do all of my own home repairs myself.
Good for you Michael in publicizing these issues.
zentrainer on February 20, 2008 at 09:46 AM
I have to go look up the definition of "algorithims".
I agree with some of the other posters that life is busier now. I work really long hours, with one day off a week just to pay the mortgage and the basic bills, no frills like cell phones, movies, medical insurance, etc. I have a very physical job and am beat when I come home. My dream is to walk into my house empty handed and just sit.
I come home loaded with empty lunch box, equipment of the day, water jug refills, etc. I come home and clean, do laundry, and, as I call it "milk the cows", meaning I feed the pets, scoop the litter box, get everyone water, scoop the yard.
I don't have a husband with a high powered job (though I am accepting applications) so I do the gardening, yard work and house repairs myself.
So I do understand the point that it seems hard to cook.
One thing that I do is on my day off I cook several large things. A veggie roast, a large pot of beans, a giant vat of soup. I make a huge salad with the basics once a week. As the week goes by I pull my already cooked food from the freezer and reheat, adding bits - tomatoes to the salad, tofu and rice with the beans.
As for preparing my food with love...yeah, that was "In The Kitchen With Rachel" from the 60's and 70's wasn't it? I find my frustration and anger helpful when chopping veggies! :-) It doesn't have to be a sacred event for me. I can listen to the Ramones, dance around, stop to play tug a bit with the dogs (who are waiting for their dream - for me to drop food on the floor), and still cook a great meal.
It seems to me that some action is required outside of my kitchen. I need to lobby my legislatures to make sure farm subsidies(sp?) subsidize farmers and not agri business. And whenever I can afford it, support the local farmers not agri business.
Oh and here is a southern tip. There is a thing called Chow-Chow, a condiment that the local farmers here make. It makes the simplest meal taste fantastic!!!
Ploughshare Farm on February 20, 2008 at 05:03 PM
I would like to respond regarding the issue of lack and money as to why folks no longer eat well. I think mostly the issue is about priorities. Today, the average family spends only 10% of their total budget on groceries. 50 years ago, this was nearly double. Instead, the newest gadget and it's monthly service bill (such as an ipod, cellphone, cable, etc.) has taken priority in the budget over eating healthy. In addition, folks spend just as much going out to eat as they do on groceries.
I am an organic vegetable farmer... (you can visit us online at www.ploughsharefarm.com) and part of my mission is to help consumers understand just how much time, energy, money, and RISK goes into providing good food. You may pay a bit more however the benefits of having REAL FOOD is definitely worth it!!!
There is a real issue though regarding accessibility to fresh and quality food especially in the poor and urban areas that does have to be addressed. (I'm only 1/2 way thru Michael's new book-so perhaps he does address it there). Studies have shown that in low-income neighborhoods with few or no supermarkets, often referred to as food deserts, people shop in convenience stores and eat fewer fruits and vegetables, and were far more likely to eat poorly and suffer health consequences. Also, residents of low-income neighborhoods pay more for fruits and vegetables, often having lower quality than those shoppers in more affluent communities.
It is one of the reason's that I, along with a nonprofit called the Emergency Foodshelf Network helped initiate a program call "Harvest for the Hungry" which connects small farmers like myself with families living in poverty. Additional information on the program can be found at..
http://www.emergencyfoodshelf.org/EventsAndNews/UpcomingEvents/EventsItem.aspx?pkID=191
I have been very outspoken against subsidies for farmers. Because it has been one of the leading reasons for the cheap calorie mentality of many Americans. However, one area I do see that the government could intervene is to assist low income consumers (and institutions such as schools, hospitals, nursing homes etc.) with vouchers to purchase from local and sustainable farms.
--Gary Brever
KB on February 20, 2008 at 08:30 PM
We have been vegetarians for about six years and recently have gone back to eating some meat and fish and reducing sugar and starches. I have slightly modified a diet I came across on the internet - the no-S diet. For me it means no sugar, no starches, no seconds, no snacks ... except sometimes on weekends and special days. Also I try to eat at least two fruit and/or vegetable servings at every meal. The no-S diet helps with my tendancy towards mindless eating and eaing too much.
I live in a very large city and it is relatively easy to find good organic produce (and I am growing some too) but it is VERY HARD to find humanely raised, pastured or organic poultry, eggs, meat and dairy. I have found exactly one place to buy really good eggs and milk and I can only get them on Saturday mornings if I am amongst the first to get to the farmers market before they run out. I may breakdown and buy a freezer so I cam buy a whole or half animal form a farmer. Also I like to cook the cheaper cuts and variety meats but it seems that in organic or grass-fed meat, you can only find the premium cuts, mainly steaks, for sale.
I don't mind the high prices, so much, it's just difficult to find good food! I think that higher prices are leading me to cook smaller portions which is a goodmthing.
Also I am cooking for my dog as well, which I never dreamed that I would do, but why support inhumane and bad food by buying pet food?
A lot of people just don't know how to cook these days and it's probably very daunting to learn once you are already immersed in busy family raising. This problem may be another product of our affluence. I learned to cook when I was young and poor and single and it's just second nature and a lot faster than going out to eat and better too.
Christa Avampato on February 21, 2008 at 05:40 AM
Thank you so much for your 2 posts on Omnivoracious.com. I appreciate how simple you can make a complex subject. Your 10 guidelines from your last post were so intriguing to me that I printed them out and posted them on my fridge as a reminder of ways to live a healthier life. With all of the confusing information out there about diet, I look to you as a source of information to help me separate fact from fiction.
Candace Hack on February 21, 2008 at 06:59 AM
I just got in on all this bloggy fun, so even though it's a little late, I'm going to share my food algorithm.
I'm a volunteer coordinator for the education wing of a small-scale organic farm in Indiana. Part of working with volunteers, especially those high school or college, is giving them a little educational time. In an effort to reach a particularly challenging group of college kids about food issues, I decided to abandon my typical lecture and came up with these humorous guidelines:
For a diet low in energy costs and high in nutrition, just remember, LOSMOE!
Local - choose this first when possible
Organic - local AND organic is best
Seasonal - you don't need melons in February in Indiana
Meat - as in, eat less of it and choose locally grown
whOle foods - "real" food that actually feeds you
Educate - learn where your food is coming from
It's certainly not very refined, but I've found that it works! Students laugh, get engaged, and most importantly--they remember. One student even suggested that SLOWMOE would be an equally effective alternative that makes a little more sense (at least it resembles an actual term in the English language).
-Candace Hack
George Rockwell on February 23, 2008 at 10:16 AM
I'm an Executive Chef and feel obligated to provide my dinners with the healthiest options available in our area. Chefs should consider themselves "keepers of the food" and do what ever they can to educate and provide their clientele at the least some of the better choices. I became a vegetarian almost a year ago, eating mostly organic produce, with minimal animal byproducts, starches and sugars. At 57 years old, its changed my life. I lost significant weight, gained notable mental clarity and energy levels have soared. Michael Pollen has been one of my biggest inspirations. We all have to take responsibility for our diets and what we eat and most importantly where our food comes from! I firmly believe industrialized food is slowly but surely deteriorating our our health. I recommend we all scrutinize our sources for better choices. Food as nature intended is all the "nutritionism" we need!
Sain Appetite'....Chef R
Bob Kociolek on February 23, 2008 at 02:59 PM
It's amazing, isn't it, that modern society has produced so many productivity enhancing and time saving technologies and tools and yet many have been duped into believing they have no time to cook. It's similar to the argument that teenagers today are far wilder than ever they were in the past. It is simply not true. You have the time. You choose to do something else with it. And quit whining that grandma is not at your beck and call.
Amy on February 23, 2008 at 04:12 PM
I have to admit, I am constantly baffled by all of the complaints that eating better is "too expensive" and takes "too much time". Now, there are certainly people for whom these are valid complaints - people living at, near, or below the poverty level certainly have grave concerns about the cost of food, and whether their resources can be stretched further. But most of the people I hear these complaints about have plenty of money for their $100 cable bill or their $100 cell phone bill or the several hundred dollars they spent eating out or buying the latest gadget, etc. And as for time, they certainly seem to have time to read all of the latest blogs and watch the latest TV show. But spend that precious time and money on the food that will fuel their system? Horrors!
I live in New York City. I live a lifestyle that is the epitome of "not enough time and money". But it's about choices - we all have them, we all make them, and we would all be empowered by accepting that and owning our choices. And the choices I have made include taking the time to cook meals, taking the time to shop as much as possible at the greenmarket, and spending money to get good ingredients. Because if I can't invest time and money on the stuff that fuels my body, then I'll eventually run out of time and energy for all of the other things I spend my time and money on.
I don't have any new rules of eating for you. I'm still working on the ones you've already suggested. Especially that "only eat at a table" one. That one's a toughie for me. :) But I'm all about not eating things I can't pronounce, and finding my food locally.
richard demers on February 23, 2008 at 09:59 PM
Michael Pollan, thank you for two great books. Here are my policies
"The more packaging, the worse it is." Like the individually wrapped Biscotti, in a plastic tray, in a cardboard box with a plastic window, in a plastic grocery store bag. This indestructible product will not taste anything like Biscotti should. Most of the healthy foods don't even have packages because they actually grow in the ground. Oh, and of course GoGurt is the perfect example.
another
"Don't Eat It, If You Can't Figure Out Where It Came From". if somebody isn't able to tell you the source of the ingredients (i.e. dairy, produce, meats and fish especially) its probably not worth your time. The same for beer and wine.
also
"Eating is an agricultural act." and i will add "political" and "economic". i think i stole this from Carlo Petrini or Alice Waters or somebody, but, remember WHAT YOU BUY THEY WILL MAKE MORE OF. if you support organic, local, sustainable, eco-friendly, use YOUR money to support that. what you spend your money on is equivalent to casting a vote for who succeeds and who gets voted off the island.
and finally,
Stop being a "Consumer" by mindlessly powerfeeding yourself and educate yourself in food, become a Gastronome, you will love it.
thanks for keeping it slow Michael
Chef Rick
Chris Wegwart on February 24, 2008 at 05:19 PM
First want to thank you for The Omnivore's Dilemma. Along with "Real Food" by Nina Planck, it has completely changed my life. I wanted to offer some words of wisdom I heard regarding processed food and what we should eat while attending The Natural Gourmet Institute, a culinary school in NY. "The longer its (shelf) life, the shorter is yours."
Michelle Gienow on February 26, 2008 at 06:13 AM
The food-buying algorithm in our household (home to two young children) is "don't buy it if you wouldn't feed it to the baby" -- which led us, the parent figures, away from all sorts of unhealthy (though tasty) temptations. It was tough to give up our favorite indulgences, but we know that kids learn to eat what they see other people eat.
Reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" led us to further cut down on pre-made foods (OK, except for emergency rations of boxed organic mac & cheese) and re-commit to local eating. We are probably at 70% local now; if we could find a nearby source for wheat, we'd close the gap further. To get there we joined a CSA, supplement at the year-round farmer's market, and joined a buying co-op that brings pastured dairy products, eggs and meat to Baltimore, Maryland from Amish farmers in Lancaster, PA. In the summer we can go more than a month without visiting the grocery store, which is fantastic, and the bounty extends into this winter after I spent much of last summer canning and freezing local produce. It is supremely satisfying to serve my boys local, organic berries in February -- not only are they not getting elderly fruit flown in from Chile, but I get to enjoy the sense memory of picking the berries in the hot summer sun, especially pleasureable on a winter morning.
Canning, by the way, is becoming positively trendy among Gen-X and Gen-Y mothers with young children. Via Craigslist and the local Pennysaver, my friends and I have received dozens upon dozens of free canning jars as well as supplies (pressure canners, etc) from senior citizens who are delighted to pass on both their canning equipment and knowledge.
For KB who lives in the large city but has a hard time finding pastured eggs and milk, and variety cuts of pastured meat, check out your local Weston A. Price Foundation chapter for leads. THey'll be delighted to direct you, and I suspect you will be amazed at the resources in your town; grass-fed meat and dairy co-ops like the one we belong to (which is one of three in Baltimore that we could choose from) are proliferating exponentially, moving products efficiently from farmers to buyers. We order online each week, and pick up our order at the delivery point, paying the farmer directly. This way you're never disappointed when the farmer's market sells out before you get there.
http://www.westonaprice.org/localchapters/index.html
Happy eating!
Michelle
Julia Kaplan on February 28, 2008 at 08:49 AM
Here is your "new eating algorithm" :
There is a new book just came out: "Quantum Eating" by Tonya Zavasta. Very encouraging and economical approach to extending one's life expectancy and saving money and time at the same time.
Best wishes to all.
Julia
Max Schwanekamp on February 28, 2008 at 09:24 AM
Michael I think a missing component from your algorithms is "Eat where you live." By that I mean three things:
* "Eating locally" -- that is, to eat food that simply has grown in your part of the world. It makes sense that food shouldn't be carried over vast distances for humane, environmental and economic reasons.
* Eating food that focuses your regional flavor. For example honey from your own area will have pollens and particulate from your region, helping your body be more a part of its environment, perhaps more resistant to disease (poison oak honey is very popular here in Oregon); wild herbs grow everywhere, and represent a distinct and essential nutritional and medical component of your locale. Learn about some of them and eat them occasionally; Cows eating grass in your area concentrate many streams of "food energy" from your region into the meat they become. In contrast, factory farm animals concentrate the industrial corn-petroleum-soy complex so well described in The Omnivore's Dilemma.
* Eat in places that make you feel, well, alive! "Eat meals, and eat them at tables" is generally true, and eating "with others whenever possible" is too. But one can have an absolutely fantastic picnic meal sitting alone on a hill overlooking the city or after a hike along the river. Eating is not just nutrition, but it's also communion with other people; we also need to be part of the world we live in, the place we live, when we eat. Open the kitchen window, have a picnic. Make eating in part a matter of engaging with the part of the world where you live.
Florida on February 28, 2008 at 10:21 AM
Have you read and/or what are your thoughts on The China Study by T. Colin Campbell?
John J on March 05, 2008 at 07:21 AM
Your book inspired to change my daily diet since when i read it with my class.
You directly, and exactly pointed out the problem of obesity on America with you proper, and numbers of data.
Thank you again, and appreciate your research of out food.
Truck Bed Covers on October 19, 2008 at 04:59 PM
I try to avoid processed foods whenever possible and try to eat either raw or organic foods.
I visit the farmer market at least twice a month to get the freshest fruits and vegetables, which are grown locally.