Whenever I watch a documentary, I always keep in mind that there’s an agenda behind it. The agenda may be for the common “good,” for promotion of an ideology, or for promotion of a more devious agenda. There are many reasons and motivations behind the creation of documentaries; some of them are outright fiction – and the producers know it. All should be viewed with the knowledge that they represent a point of view, which may be one man’s truth and another man’s lie.
As with all documentaries, Food, Inc., had an agenda. The stated agenda was to enlighten the masses about the “truth” of our food supply and the role of government and monopolized corporations in the food industry. The movie highlighted the horrible factory conditions that both animals and humans are subjected to in order to feed the masses. It also highlighted the seed farming industry and the use of genetically modified seeds in our crops. I happen to be in agreement with many of the positions presented in the movie. Therefore, my blog should be read with a critical eye, because I also have an agenda. I believe my agenda is for the common “good,” however, there are many others who would disagree with my opinions. I will do my best to back my position with reference links, though I’m sure others can find links that counter my arguments. My agenda, is to take an opportunity to inform others for the purpose of calling others to action. My agenda, is as personal as it is public: I have two children, and I want my children to live in freedom. I do not want my children beholden to the government or some monopoly for something as basic as food for their survival. In this blog, I’ll summarize the movie; then I will discuss the politics of food.
Summary, Food Inc.
The first really important bit of information to come out in the movie was that the food supply is controlled by just a few companies. Basically, a handful of corporations control the majority of the world’s food supply. Actually, the movie could have ended right there, because if that doesn’t raise the hair on everyone’s head, I don’t know what can wake people. All of the animal abuse that was highlighted, all of the worker abuse, and the disgusting and unsanitary conditions in these factories are a product of the fact that there are few corporations who control it all. Bust up the corporations; put the small farmer back in business, and Eureka! the conditions will improve. Most of the farmers who were interviewed did not like the way things went down.
The movie highlighted the mistreatment of animals that were kept in the dark, in squalid conditions, standing in their own waste; and how these conditions have aided food borne illnesses such as the deadly e coli bacteria, which has killed many. The animals have been given hormones to grow, they’ve been engineered to grow faster and larger than evolution intended. Cattle have been feeding on corn when their natural diet is grass, and their bodies have no way to break down the e coli bacteria due to their unnatural diet. E coli is spread through the feces of the animals, who stand in it, and when the animals are slaughtered their carcasses are covered in it. Since so few corporations own the cattle (4 of the top beef producers control 80% of the meat market), the meats produced are mixed and distributed far and wide. The result is that millions of pounds of distributed meat may contain the deadly e coli bacteria. Hmmm, what’s in that hamburger? The industrialization of the cattle farming and meat packing industry poses many safety issues for consumers. Where did that cow come from? Is the meat in my hamburger from one or several hundred cows? Am I playing roulette every time I take a bite? It takes just one infected cow to contaminate entire “lots” of meat. They grind it up, and it all mixes together. The bacteria grow and spread. Next thing you know, you have sick people from California to New York. The young, the old, those with suppressed immune systems have a good chance of dying from e coli.
Okay, we all remember the gruesome animal images, so I think I’ll move on to the topic that I feel very passionately about: GMO seeds and Monsanto corp. As stated in a previous blog, Monsanto has the seed industry pretty much sewn up. They are responsible for the vast majority of corn sold in the US to consumers, food manufacturers, and farmers. The corn seed used by Monsanto has been genetically modified and is patented by the corporation. The resulting plant does not produce new seed; therefore, farmers using GMO seeds are beholden to a cycle in which they must purchase seed each year for new crops. This also affects farmers who do not use the seed. The GMO seeds also tend to infiltrate the crops of nearby farms due to natural sources like wind and pollination. Monsanto employs investigators to check the crops of farmers whose properties surround GMO farmers: when they find that the crops contain Monsanto seed, they sue the farmer. This equates to extortion. The farmer either buys the GMO seed, and thereby feeds the Monsanto monster, or is put out of business due to the lawsuit. This is 1984, it’s the Hunger Games! It needs to stop. The fact that corn is used to feed cattle, farm raised fish, chickens, and is used in countless products that you’d never dream had corn, should be reason enough to stand-up against such a corporation.
This is my story and I'm sticking to it (for now, because it wouldn't be very reflexive of me to say I won't budge).
The third layer of the issue is wholly political. If people believe that the US government is here to protect them and the food they eat, um… how can I put this lightly? Well, in my opinion, they are out of their minds. The government is in bed with Monsanto and other food industry mega-corporations. For instance, Monsanto has employees working inside the very departments that are supposed to regulate the food industry, and this has been going on for years.
The government has created a false market through farm subsidies. The movie hinted that capitalism and greed is the main agenda for these mega-corporations, but true capitalism does not involve public funding of private industry. True capitalism promotes the economy through real supply and demand, and competition. The supply and demand of corn has been manufactured by the government, engineered; no different than the engineered corn seeds. Farmers are paid to overproduce corn, keeping the price low so that the corn can be fed to cattle, farm raised fish, and used in countless products. Since the government helped Monsanto create a monopoly on corn through patent rights and repeated backing in lawsuits, there is no competition. Capitalism is dead in the food industry, and we are left with a monopoly that continues to grow. The only way to effect change is to get the government out of the food industry, break up the monopolies, and go back to more localized farming and production.
I’d like to point out that the GMO corn seeds have been engineered to tolerate high concentrations of herbicides. These seeds are known as RoundUp Ready seeds. Farmers can spray large quantities of herbicides on their crops to kill weeds without killing the crops. These herbicides are now prevalent throughout our food system. Cattle, chickens, farm raised fish, and humans all eat corn made from GMO seeds. Additionally, some weeds have grown resistant to the herbicides due to overexposure, so farmers use more product on their crops to keep the weeds down. The EPA has stated that the amount of lifetime exposure to the toxin in herbicides is negligible and that there is no public health issue. Of course, I’m sure it has nothing to do with Monsanto employees working within the government.
So, I’ve summed up the movie and my opinions, now for some research questions/ideas.
1. Are GMO seeds safe?
2. What are the benefits of GMO seeds?
3. How has GMO affected the food economy?
4. Is GMO the best way to feed a growing world population?
5. Do organic foods contain GMO seeds?
6. Absent patent rights, would more farmers embrace GMO? How would a de-monopolized food industry affect farming?
7. Are there local farmers who grow non-GMO crops?
8. Are there local farmers who raise grass-fed cows? (Free roaming)
9. Are there local farmers who raise cage-free chickens?
10. What can consumers do to demand a change in government policy with regard to the food industry?
Post Script Notes/links:
Monsanto seed market share. (Graphic showing global market share)
State Dept. push for GMO.
Organic farmers sue Monsanto over patent rights.
Updates on lawsuit.
Hypocricy of FDA. (Do you still believe they want to protect you?)
Monsanto seed varieties. (GMO Alfalfa, huh?)
Roundup Label - hmmmm, what's the on your veggie?
On another note:
Cattle Ranchers: Federal Gov't mismanagement (theft) of public lands, killing of wild horses, for big corps.