Chatting with Michael Pollan
| Mon Feb. 23, 2009 8:31 AM PST
In our current issue, we interview Michael Pollan, the man of the moment in liberal food policy. One way to get people to eat better, he says, is to team up with allies whose economic interests happen to line up with healthier eating:MJ: Does WIC [the Women, Infants, and Children program] still specify that you buy dairy?
MP: Yes. We had a huge fight to get a little more produce in the WIC basket, which is heavy on cheese and milk because the dairy lobby is very powerful. So they fought and they fought and they fought, and they got a bunch of carrots in there. [Laughs.]
MJ: Specifically? Who knew: the carrot lobby?
MP: Specifically carrots. The next big lobby. But there is also money in this farm bill for fresh produce in school lunch. The price of getting the subsidies was getting the California delegation on board, and their price was $2 billon for what are called specialty crops — fresh fruit and produce grown largely in California.
Hooray for California! But the reality is, this is how things get done. Read the rest of the interview for more interesting food stuff.
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Comments
Liberal?
Submitted by Scrattono (not verified) on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 9:13 AM PST.
Why "liberal food policy" ? Why not just call it "common sense food policy"? I don't think we need politics to mess this up!
Producing Produce
Submitted by Keith G on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 1:32 PM PST.
A major change in my employment three years ago left me much more price conscious as a consumer. I was staggered at the high relative cost of fruit and most veggies. Astounding!! The price of meat for a week would supply just a few days of (the five servings a day) fresh produce.
Luckily, I have since embarked in a mid-life career change and am training to become a professional cook. Lucky because the meals provided reduced my food expenses. Still when cooking at home, I am amazed at how fast the dollars add up even at the produce dept. of Kroger’s.
A minimal wage worker is priced out of buying anything except bananas, cabbage, and iceberg lettuce.
Funny, I remember being told that a global market and low wage agricultural workers would make things more affordable.
the price of meat
Submitted by thersites on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 3:34 PM PST.
is kept artificially low by subsidies to the big feed growers (can you say ADM?) and feedlot operators. It's like the government is paying people an extra bonus to fuck up our food system.
I haven't read this interview, but I heard Pollan on NPR a while ago and he suggested, quite sensibly IMO, that breaking up the factory farms and incentivizing a return to small, integrated farms would be the ultimate "green jobs" program.
I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for it to happen. Obama is preferable to McCain on a number of levels, but in this area he's still too much in thrall to agribiz.
Food Sovereignty
Submitted by Odetta (not verified) on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 4:32 PM PST.
I love Michael Pollan, I've read all his books, thanks for this interview. Everyone watch "King Corn"! We've got to stop our horrid food policies, they are killing us and the planet. We need to lead the way in the world in establishing global food security and food sovereignty! Mostly my ideas come from the book Thinking Big and Jim Harkness' excellent essay in there: we need governing standards for all nations about food! US should advocate for the right of all countries to safeguard their food sovereignty through support for farmers and agriculture, border measures, and food reserves. We need to establish a grain reserve. We need egulation of the commodity markets and reformed (i.e. get rid of stupid rules and corruption) and increased foreign food aid. I also think that curbing obesity here at home is vital, as the WHO reports that there are 900,000 obese people, and 700,000 starving. Since both are a form of malnutrition - both need to be treated as dire issues.
Let them eat edible food-like substances
Submitted by Dawn (not verified) on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 6:07 PM PST.
Getting Obama to support a sane food policy might not be as impossible as it seems since the Obamas seem to have at least some locavore tendencies. Coincidentally, the White House blog had a post relating to this today.
"When you grow something yourself and it's close and it's local, oftentimes it tastes really good," Mrs. Obama said. "And when you're dealing with kids, for example, you want to get them to try that carrot. Well, if it tastes like a real carrot and it's really sweet, they're going to think that it's a piece of candy. So my kids are more inclined to try different vegetables if they're fresh and local and delicious."
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/09/02/23/Inside-the-White-House-kitchen/
At the next Governor's reception they should only serve food available through WIC and the school lunch program. Maybe 8 courses of processed corn would get the point across.
What a hilarious
Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 9:36 PM PST.
What a hilarious juxtaposition:
"... liberal ... policy.", followed immediately by "One way to get people to..."
It says it all, doesn't it?
It says it all, doesn't
Submitted by thersites on Mon Feb. 23, 2009 10:30 PM PST.
It says it all, doesn't it?
Well, yes it does.
Liberals say "one way to..."
As opposed to "the only way to..."
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