Random Thoughts

I recently finished Michael Pollan's new book, “The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals”, and it was a real eye-opener to say the least. As the title suggests, Pollan traces the path of four types of meals to discover where they come from and what is involved in bringing them to the table (or in one case, an automobile). His style of writing is very engaging and entertaining, making this the best non-fiction title I have “read” (I listened to the audio book) in a long while.

The book reveals often shocking details of what makes up our food system. Pointing out the inadequacies and strengths of each supply chain. It's clear that we need to change our ways, but how?

The fist meal he embarks on is the meal that, for the majority of us, occurs much too frequently in our diets. Through this fast food experience we learn about the industrial food system that supplies the overwhelming majority of our consumption in this country. Virtually everything we get from our mega grocery stores shares this system, even the foods we normally think of as “healthy”. I was shocked to learn that this system of growing food has as big an impact on our dependency on foreign oil as our automobiles do. It is not the sun that drives this food system, but rather oil and natural gas. It was also surprising to learn how much of our foods are made from just two plant species, corn and soybeans. These mono-cultures go a long way in explaining why our diets are so nutritionally deficient. Lastly, it went a long way to explain why our farmers cannot make a living on the farm any more.

The second meal explores the “organic” food movement. While the intentions are sound, the growing demand for these products has forced this food system to adopt many of the same industrialization techniques used by the traditional food market. Pollan describes the use of “supermarket pastoral”, the flowery and wholesome-sounding descriptions used by organic producers to market their products. More often than not these descriptions are a stretch to say the least. Find out the real stories behind the wonderful prose. Still, there are pluses to be found in this food supply chain, and Pollan points them out as well.

The third meal I found the most engaging. It described an operation in Virginia called Pollyface Farm. It is a totally self-contained ecosystem that is as close to the "holy grail" of food production as anything I have heard of. Their system actually improves the land, grows “happy” animals, and produces a better tasting and nutritionally complete product as well. This farm is a higher tech (or more accurately, smarter) version of the farms my grandparents ran until the 70's. These farms raised as many as a dozen different crops that all supported each other. Learn why not all eggs are the same.

The last meal pays tribute to our pre-agricultural history: explorering hunting and gathering in a modern world. While completely impractical for a method of feeding our masses, it nevertheless makes for an interesting and though-provoking journey. Pollan tackles the conscientious meat-eater's struggle with the idea of vegetarianism. We learn about gathering mushrooms and hunting wild boar. Each requires one to be in touch with nature in a strangely similar way for success.

In all the book provides plenty of thought provoking questions about our food supply without being overly preachy. Pollan encouraged us to come to our own conclusions, while sharing his own journeys in deciding “what's for dinner”.