Food Friendzy: Discussing the Farm Bill and Government Food Policies
The food culture in America is largely defined by the people and their continuously developing eating habits. The TV dinners, eating out, and quick fast food runs have evolved from nonexistent to the default dinner in American households; it has become easier for working parents to either pick up dinner from KFC or stop by Publix and grab some frozen Lean Cuisines, than it is to cook a healthy, real meal for the family. So, yes, the American people themselves are indeed ruining their own food culture. But they are not the only ones; government involvement, regulations, and procedures involving food, its production and distribution also heavily contribute to the depreciation of the value of food. Farm bills, subsidies, school policies, and Government agencies like the Department of Agriculture are key players in determining the state of food in this country. They make the calls by determining the price and creating a market for different goods. And in doing so, they are the ones who indirectly affect the world food market. This is because America is a superpower, and every one of its decisions has some sort of an impact on an international scale. So the food issue isn’t just affecting the rate of obesity in America; it affects the prices, selection, and availability of foods around the world.
Food is one of the most underrated topics in American politics. There is always some issue more important, like immigration, the economy, and the current war. Every one forgets about the long range and far-reaching effects that the farm bill and its counterparts can have on the economy and the state of food. As Michael Pollan says in an article about the current farm bill, “few pieces of legislation have as profound an impact on the American landscape and environment” than the farm bill itself (“You Are”). It promotes large scale production and discourages local farming. This trend away from localized...