Food Inc. should be required viewing for anyone that eats food.  We watched it tonight, and will never walk down our grocery store aisles the same way.  The film takes a close look at where the majority of our food comes from and the dramatic changes that have taken place over the last 40 years.  A few facts from the movie:

  • In the 1970s there were thousands of slaugterhouses producing the majority of beef sold in the U.S.  Today there are only 13.
  • In the 1970s the top 5 beef packers controlled about 25% of the market.  Today they control about 80% of the market
  • The average chicken farmer is required to invest $500,000 in their business to meet demands.  They make on average $18,000/year
  • 70% of processed food have a genetically modified ingredient
  • 1 in 3 Americans born after the year 2000 will contract early onset diabetes; among minorities the rate will be 1 in 2

These facts point to a central theme in the movie.  That the consolidation and control of our food production by a handful of corporations has resulted in a deterioration of food quality, safety, farming, and environmental protection.  While our food choices expand and prices drop, the health of our animals and our people are deteriorating.

As with most documentaries, the movie is fairly one-sided, missing a voice from a big food production company (they declined interview requests).   But the movie makes a compelling argument to take a closer look at the food on your plate and the impact of your choices.  It also delves into the issue of food prices and the need for large-scale change so that lower income families can actually afford to eat healthy.  As with other social-action films, the movie leaves you with a list of steps you can take to help make a difference.  If you have the ability to buy locally grown or organic foods, your actions create demand.  And that demand is the best way to shift this business of food.