What a hectic day! Rushing around like a headless chook. You come home from work absolutely dead to the world. Exhausted. Ready to flop on the couch. The last thing on your mind is cooking dinner. So you whip out a frozen meal and chuck it in the microwave. Bing! Five minutes later, dinner is served.

Sixty or so years ago this scenario was unheard of. Centuries ago, this would have been unfathomable.

 

We don’t need to trace all the way back to the days of the hunter and gatherers to understand that we’ve lost a connection with the land. It’s been a slow process years in the making where modern society has forged a wedge between producer and consumer and it continues to grow wider.

Farms have been converted into mass factories of mono-crop. We’ve seen it with the factory farming of animals and exposing the truths behind this industry caused quite the uproar. You simply need to type ‘Factory Farming‘ into any search engine. Google with procure over 5 million hits and Youtube, over 95,000 videos. The same light is being shed on conventional agricultural farming practices and the impact this is having on our standard of living, the environment and our health.

So farmers and consumers alike are joining forces and are standing up for our right to quality organic food and it’s our duty to support them in these endeavours in whatever way possible. Farmers markets are sprouting up and growing in popularity in the cities. Likewise, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs are gaining momentum.

 

Can it really be true? Is the voice of the people being heard?

I think there is still hope. You needn’t look too far to see evidence of this because even the big supermarket chains are reacting and trying to keep in step by providing a greater variety and availability of organic foods and grass-fed meats. Beware though. Complacency is going to be our worst enemy. We can’t just sit back and expect the world to somehow sort itself out. So it’s time to get re-educated about what we value in our lives.

Back in the old days, our ancestors lived off the land in such a way that some of us have never witnessed or experienced first hand. The earthy richness of fertile and untainted soil between your fingers and toes is something divine but crazily enough, something so rare these days. It’s a connection that we tend to be deprived of in the big concrete jungles where we march around at high speed in Louboutin heels and Moreschi boots.

 

What does it look like to work for your food?

My mother grew up in an age where her and her 5 sisters were responsible for helping their Ma and Pa farm the land. Girls… farming?! Well, I’m sure after the 6th child, my grandparents came to the sad realisation that a boy was not to be, so they had to make do. Much against the way of their time, they’d just have to train up the girls to work the land. So to work they went and work hard they did. They were responsible for growing their own food which involved ploughing the land, harvesting the crop, fetching the eggs, milking the cows, slaughtering the animals and that was all before 6am! Ok, maybe not all before 6am, but to put it in perspective, I struggle to get dressed before 8am some mornings! They probably grew 90% of the food that they ate and shared an appreciation for where their food came from that a lot of us have lost these days. The next generation may not even have the chance to gain this understanding unless we educate them ourselves and take the appropriate steps now to preserve our fortunate way of life.

 

This same mother of mine is now a primary school teacher. She shares with me countless stories of children having no idea where milk comes from. They think you buy it from a supermarket and that’s all there is to it. Who would think that they couldn’t do the math that Moo=Milk. Many can’t even identify 50% of the fruits and vegetables that are available to them to eat because they don’t even eat half of them! They believe that a lunchbox should consist of potato chips, muesli bars, poppers and manufactured ‘fruit’ sticks. Children grow up learning how to read nutritional labels rather than knowing what to do with a carrot. Real food doesn’t need labels. Any wonder we are a sick society suffering from eating disorders, health problems and obesity.

 

Our reality is that we live in a world of convenience. It’s so easy to roll up to the supermarket in your 4×4 and fill a trolley to the brim with your supplies of groceries for the week. There is no concept of hunting and gathering in mainstream society. We no longer have to work hard for our food. It’s become an expectation that we should have access to anything and everything at any given point in time. Famine and drought are of no concern to the modern consumer because why does it matter? We can simply import food from overseas if need be from a place where there is no drought. Forget the poor farmer around the corner struggling to keep his livelihood alive.

Now don’t get me wrong. This is also a HUGE blessing that our modern advances in technology and industry have brought us. I for one will not deny that my love for coconut oil has been satisfied and supplied by the likes of South East Asian producers. The globalisation of our food supply chain is nothing new to me. I have an international business degree and am well aware of the many opportunities this has brought to the international market place. But nor am I so short sighted that I choose to ignore the pitfalls. No. I’ve come to learn that we need to expand our level of thinking and think beyond the money, the cost savings and the variety of choice as consumers.

The basic economics behind your food

One of the fundamental principles of economics is supply and demand. To me, the question of which comes first is similar to the age old debacle of the chicken and the egg. I use to think that first, consumers demand and only then, markets supply. But why on earth would we need to employ Professional Marketers then? What would their purpose be otherwise? So you see, it’s not such a black and white picture after all. Yes, we have fundamental demands that keep us alive. But really, do you think consumers demand 10 different flavours of instant noodles? Markets are being artificially contrived and from that choice, as consumers, we respond. These superficial markets then become our reality and suddenly we can’t imagine a world without them. Suddenly, I can’t imagine a life without coconut oil!

The problem is, we are a society that has adapted to this convenience and no longer see it as a privilege but rather, the norm. Our needs are being forged by intelligent corporations who are finding new ways to make the next dollar. It’s simply expected that your local supermarket will carry 5 different varieties of apples all year round so you can simply choose based on your daily preference. We’ve lost touch with what should be considered economically, environmentally and socially functional based things like seasonal availability. So how the hell do we expect to go without when we have lived for long under these conditions. Are we prepared to face the inevitable day when this reality will dissipate and such a market place falls out from under our feet.

 

Enter the SLOW movement.

 

This is to help those of us who may not have direct access to a farm or the space or the time to grow our own food. Yes, healthy food does require extra energy to source and prepare. Yes, if may even require some planning and organisation. But you know what, the benefits you will reap far outweigh any possible benefits you could extract from eating that tray of frozen peas and canned spam whilst tuning into the latest episode of The Biggest Loser. Your health is worth more than that. Your future hinges on this. Your very standard of living as you see it today depends on you making the right choices for yourself today!

 

Seasonal

Shop and eat food when it’s in season based around your local environment. This is the way we were born to eat and your body even craves certain foods based on seasonal availability. Winter just screams for warm, earthy root vegetables whilst summer is all about fresh, crisp and light tropical fruits. Foods that are in season make sense financially too as they are more affordable because of their abundance. Anything that’s not in season in your little corner of the globe has to be imported from elsewhere and this is a drag on the environment due to transportation costs and fuel which ultimately, comes out of your wallet. So even more reason to celebrate the coming of each new season with the excitement of new foods! Here is a great resource on eating seasonally in Australia.

 

Local

We do not want to outsource food production. I’m telling you this bluntly. We do not want other people to have control over what we eat, determining when we eat it and at what cost. It’s food for crying out at the top of my lungs. Not gadgets, shoes and cars. So this may sound a little outfield but I swear, I do not wear aluminum foil on my head and believe aliens are going to abduct me. This is not a conspiracy theory I am conjuring up to freak you out. It’s real and it’s happening now.  By supporting local farmers and buying locally, or taking it one step further and growing your own food, you are helping to secure the future of food production in your neck of the woods for future generations. It’ll taste better too. No kidding, apples imported from overseas can be frozen for up to 12 months. That just seems wrong. So get talking to your local farmers, get organised and seek out local markets or CSAs in your area.

Organic

Studies upon studies have been done pitting organic produce against their conventional counterparts, comparing their nutritional values, if there’s that much difference in the amount of leftover chemical residue and the impact on the environment. The heart of the matter is, by shopping for organic food, you are minimising your exposure to potentially harmful chemicals and toxins, increasing your uptake of quality nutrients that would otherwise be degraded from conventional farming, and supporting organic farmers who are doing the right thing by the land. Chemicals that are pumped into our soil will remain there for generations to come. Mono-farming practices will strip soil of essential minerals. So you make the decision for yourself whether the cost is worth it. I encourage you to take the first steps to sourcing at least some of your grocery cart organically.

Whole

Real food in it’s natural state. Full stop. We are natural beings that require food in its whole and natural form for optimal nutrition and sustenance. Need I repeat that darn word ‘natural’ again? ‘Food’ manufactured in laboratories are not fit for human consumption. Chemicals and additives that are pumped into processed foods do not work towards building you up and fulfilling your nutritional needs. Do your body a favour and get real. Your body will thank you for it. It’s never too late to save your health from nutritional deprivation but the key is to start now.

Now the aim of this post was not to get all cynical about big business and caught up in all that who-rah. What I do want to do is to help you become an educated consumer. To think about these things and then to take action on what is in your capacity to do so right now.

Vote with your dollar. Make it count.

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