Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

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I recently watched Jamie Oliver’s television show, Food Revolution. The premise of the show revolves around Jamie Oliver attempting to change the eating habits of residents in various communities through education and work with the schools. I’ve seen a few episodes so far and definitely think it is worth checking out.

The show combines two genres (reality television with cooking) in a way that transcends them both. The reality aspects of Food Revolution are not about influencing others out of self-interest and the cooking aspects of this show are not simply about spicing up a dish. Rather, Oliver finds an innovative way to blend them together to reflect the broader social importance of food in our society.

The show reveals that the role of education is need on all levels to change the U.S. dietary habits. Once the public is educated they will demand change and the food industry will start to take notice, providing healthier offerings. In the show, we see the scale of the problem when we look at children at an elementary school who cannot properly identify a tomato. We see the scale of the problem when Oliver met an obese family to teach them how to cook quick, healthy meals—only to discover that the family went back to eating fast food and unhealthy pre-packaged meals the moment he left. And we see the see the scale of the problem when he tried to initiate a change in school lunches, which were quickly rebuked. This food revolution is not just a TV show; it represents a movement to change people’s eating habits for the better and raise awareness of the issue.

A quote from Marion Nestle discusses the importance of the show. She states, “I like the way he’s just in there getting his hands dirty up to his elbows, dealing with people on things that nobody wants to talk about and telling the truth as he sees it, no matter how uncomfortable it is. And, yes, it’s exploitive; but…people are talking about it” (Organic Connect Magazine, 2010). I definitely agree with her and believe the show serves as a catalyst for change. Between Michelle Obama's “Let’s Move” campaign and the recent legislature of a new school-lunch program, the timing is now to tackle childhood obesity.

The show is definitely worth watching so far, even just one episode. While targeting childhood obesity will involve a massive undertaking, I hope that the issues he brought out in his show can translate into action.

http://organicconnectmag.com/wp/2010/07/marion-nestle-how-the-food-industry-hijacked-nutrition/