You'll Never Look at Food in the Same Way Again

The new documentary, Food, Inc. by filmmaker Robert Kenner has the potential to change the eating habits of Americans in much the same way that Frances Moore Lappé’s book Diet for a Small Planet opened people to a greater understanding of our food system for another generation when it was published in the 1970s. The Food, Inc. preview I attended in San Francisco was well received by a rapt audience. More powerful and hard-hitting than King Korn or Fast Food Nation, yet more broadly focused than the French film, The World According to Monsanto, let’s hope that Food, Inc. attracts a wide audience and nudges more people toward healthier eating. But healthier eating by itself isn’t enough.

Food, Inc. presents the clear message that our food system requires more than just changing personal habits. We need both congressional and regulatory action if we are to reverse the serious obesity and diabetes epidemic which has been precipitated by mega food corporations incorporating heavily subsidized industrially-produced and ineffectively regulated food products.

The bottom line—American food products are some of the cheapest in the world. Cheap, but not safe nor healthy. We simply need to keep the pressure on Congress and our governmental regulatory agencies to make it possible for all Americans to eat healthy, locally-grown food.

Look for Food, Inc. in theaters in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York City on June 12. To see the trailer go to www.foodincmovie.com