Michael Pollan’s solutions to the industrialized food system are to turn inward focusing on individual action that insulates people from the larger and more problematic food supply chain. However, the choices that people can make about their food do not exist in a vacuum; there political and economic forces that constrain what individuals are able to do in terms of their food buying habits. Because of this, one person’s ability to buy local, whole foods do not help another person’s ability to do the same. MacKendrick, Stevens and Menaites point this dilemma out by showing our tendency to use individualistic consumer action to ineffectively combat larger systemic problems.
Both ideas contribute to fighting environmental and health problems that stem from mass production of food. There is no doubt that the industrialization of the food system is extending beyond its environmental limits, and producing health problems. The increasing amount of information about the unintended consequences that arise from all kinds of solutions can be debilitating when trying to make conscious choices of the impact of our consumer habits in terms of food.
Food is inherently political and the topic of many policies. For example, the Atlantic Fish Farms in Puget Sound were disruptive to the local ecosystem and habitat, and local activists, citizens and retailers engaged with the state government to protect Puget Sound, while illuminating the farm’s harmful impact on the waters they occupy. Separately, local co-ops opposed Driscoll berries when it was discovered that they were unethical and inhumane in their labor standards. The campaign was effective in utilizing consumer awareness and political activism to change the actions of a large company. Paying attention to policy and joining groups or retailers that are involved in addressing the problems created by our industrialized food process is helpful in establishing better practices for people and the planet.