Changing Dietary Habits

I came to this class knowing almost nothing about the food industry. I lived a life of ignorant bliss, regularly consuming generic grocery store bought food. Throughout the semester I have learned much about where my food comes from, what’s in it, and the industrial practices behind its construction. I have been disgusted, shocked, and horrified by some of the articles we’ve read, and documentaries we’ve watched. But what does all this mean for me? Do I plan on changing my diet? Here are two of the topics we’ve talked about over the course of the semester, and how they have affected my consumption habits:

Corn – Ever since watching King Corn in class, I check the ingredient list on all of the foods I purchase. Sure enough some corn-based additive is in EVERYTHING. Even “healthy” foods like wheat bread or nuts include corn. It seems that my diet is more of fuel than food. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be able to shift my diet away from corn in the near future. Just assessing the foods I eat most often (wheat bread, chicken, yogurt and cheese products), three of the four are likely to have some corn component to them. I know I am not willing to sacrifice any of these items, and I don’t think I pragmatically could. For example, every weekday I eat lunch at the up the hill. Where does the COOP’s chicken come from? Where does their bread come from? Living in a small town in upstate New York, my pre-prepared food options are limited. As for life after Colgate, I will absolutely pay more attention to what is in my food, and try to stray from corn. I can’t promise to be entirely committed to a non-corn diet—but my intake will absolutely decrease.

Labor Issues – Eating with a conscious is a bit more difficult when it comes to labor issues. How companies treat their workers isn’t explicitly stated on food wrappers. It’s often not even stated in the newspaper. The best way to ensure that my food consumption choices support fair labor practices, rather than labor abuse, is to buy local. It is almost guaranteed that that a small local farm will not abuse their workers, whereas a big industrial food company may. Eating local however comes at a cost. It means only eating food that is in season, and is able to be grown within a 100 mile radius. Beyond purchasing my food at Hamilton Whole Foods and the Hamilton Eatery (both of which do their best to buy local ingredients), I don’t think it is possible for me to buy local year round in Hamilton, or at home in Seattle.

An integral part of my diet, related to both corn and labor issues, is junk food. As a college student, I consume enormous amounts of junk food. It’s fast, convenient, and delicious. However, since the beginning of this semester, I have severely cut back. Multiple times I’ve looked at a bag of cheese-its and thought of the chemicals, corn, unfair labor practices and so on that went into their creation, and thrown the bag away. As the discussions we’ve had in Food class sink-in over the next few months, my consumption habits may change more drastically; not as an active political stance, but due to my pure disgust of the industrial food industry.