Food is a requirement for survival, we all need it, and so we eat it. There are those who are very health conscious, and those who simply eat what they can afford. At 27 years old, working two jobs and trying to complete my degree, I buy what I can afford. Sometimes, this means how much money I can spend and sometimes this is how much time I have.
Most of the time I try to plan everything out; prepare a grocery list and even meal prep for my busy weeks, yet in fast paced American there are times that buying food is all a matter of convenience. To some it comes down to what they can fit in their carts that wont break the bank.
After reading Michael Pollan’s book “In Defense of Food” I realize that ignorance inside our modern day grocery stores may be the cause of so many unhealthy people. I admit a I buy what I like, especially if it’s cheap, even if that mean white cheddar cheese its. I never really thought twice about the chemicals that have been added, let alone what those ingredients are doing to my body because they taste good. Healthy food is more expensive, and your dollar doesn’t quite go as far. So we sacrifice the quality of our food just to have more.
Pollan wants for us, as consumers to be more diligent when we shop, really look at what we are buying, to ask ourselves if the products we purchase are legitimate or imitation. He discusses how important it is that we begin to understand our relationship with food. We need to know what we are eating and how it is effecting us health wise.
Is the problem with our Food System based on the lack of knowledge when it comes to our relationship with food? Can the more we know help us become a more health conscious community of consumers? I believe it’s possible, more people just need to read Pollan’s book.
It is such a challenge to eat healthy, especially when it seems like the heather a food is (organic, non-GMO, gluten free, etc.), the more expensive it is. This is a part of the vicious cycle that keeps people overweight, and fast food restaurants and junk food companies in business. People can’t afford healthy food, so they eat cheap processed foods, which makes them overweight, and they continue to buy the cheap unhealthy food. As a 21 year old myself, I try my hardest to eat healthy as much as possible, but in reality when you’re paying for your own food, it comes down to saving money, and you’d rather have quantity over quality.
To respond to your question, I believe that part of the problem with our food system is a lack of knowledge when it comes to food, but this certainly isn’t the whole cause of the issue. People of course need to be educated about what they’re putting in their body’s, but I feel that responsibility also lies in the companies manufacturing and selling unhealthy, processed foods. It’s cheaper and faster for companies to produce foods like this; for example, replacing sugar with high fructose corn syrup gives food a longer shelf life, and is cheaper. But for the consumer, this is much worse for the body, and highly addictive.