Food Systems

We live in a world full of inauthenticity, misinformation, and distrust.  As consumers we have become jaded, cynical, and suspicious.  False advertising, greenwashing, and the general "Wild West" nature of food labeling in our country has left us confused and vulnerable in the marketplace.  

For decades we have patronized a system that values cost-cutting, efficiency, consolidation, and technology.  Consumer welfare is not even on the list of priorities.  And why should it be?  As consumers we are getting exactly what we have been demanding all along: A system that provides us with the cheapest and most convenient "food" possible.   

We rarely stop to think about who this system is benefitting.  Four companies control 80% of the meat processing in this country.  Because of this consolidation, farmers receive a smaller and smaller percentage of the consumer dollar while prices go up on the retail shelf.  Criminal executives from Brazil are making billions off of American consumers while 40 hard-working farm families go out of business every 24 hours.  Processing facility fires, Russian hackers, and pandemics have proven that food production in this country is broken.  

How many of us can pick up the phone right now and call the person who raised the food that we ate today?  We can do that in almost every other aspect of our lives.  We can call our doctor, our lawyer, our accountant, our insurance agent, our mechanic.  We know more about the person that is turning a wrench on our car then we know about the person that raised the food that we are going to eat, that we are going to feed to our children.  

When we are having aches and pains, do we simply hope for the cheapest doctor we can find?  The one that can get us into the office the quickest, regardless of his or her credentials?  "Well, this doctor graduated last in his class, but he can see me today!"  We would never do this when it comes to our health, but when it comes to our food, we are accepting the lowest-grade option.  We puruse the grocery store shelves looking for the cheapest and most convenient products available and never think about who we are enriching, or what type of system we are voting for, or what we are feeding to our families.

There is a better system available.  I can call the person that raised the food I ate today because it was me.  And you can do it too.  If you are unable or unwilling to do this yourself, you can do the next best thing which is to participate in an alternative food system.  A system that values the farmer, the processor, and the consumer.  A system you can trust.  Shake the hand that feeds you, and know the first name of your farmer.  Opt out of the commercial food industry that only exists to serve Big Ag and Big Tech and embrace a better life for you, your family, and your community.  Follow the APPPA link on the Resources Page and begin your new food journey today.