Nourish

I recently watched the documentary film Nourish, which is a 26-minute version of Food, Inc. The film short is split into three sections, making it easy to follow.

The first section is dedicated to unveiling the global interconnectedness of our food system. Narrator, Cameron Diaz, refers to this as “Food with a hidden map.” Do you ever think about where and from whom your chocolate comes from? A lot of the chocolate in our supermarkets come from Ghana. The average farmer here makes less than $1 a day. The film also talks about the lack of knowledge on what seafood is sustainable to eat. For instance, we have lost 90 percent of the ocean’s big fish specifies due to overfishing.

[This wasn’t in the film, but if you’re interested in learning more information on what seafood is sustainable to eat in your own hometown, check out the Seafood Watch website, http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/sfw_recommendations.aspx?c=ln. They also have cool pocket guides you can print out.]

The next section of the documentary is dedicated to the transportation of food from “Seed to table.” Here, Michael Pollan speaks about the monocrops, such as corn, that have come to dominate the American food supply via large corporations. Since monocrops are unnatural, there is a high need for pesticides to keep these crops going. The overabundance of pesticide usage has run off into the Gulf of Mexico, creating a “dead zone” of aquatic life along the cost. So although organic foods are more expensive, each time your buy organic you are taking one little step to better the environment.

The final chapter of the film is entitled “Vote for work.” When you purchase organic, fair trade products you are ensuring that workers are paid and treated fairly. For the past 60 years or so the Western diet has transformed into one found on science, technology, and industry. And the human population is not adapting well to this diet, as seen by the chronic diseases that have prevailed from ingredients such as high fructose corn syrup. In conclusion, the video tells us that our actions reveal the world that we “vote” for and the practices that we value. Therefore, even the slightest behavior changes that we make can have significant environmental impacts. Start out by eating one local, organic meal at least once a day, and these modest changes will eventually become habits that support a sustainable world.