I feel like I really resonate with the quote above–although, again, it's from Animal, Vegetable, Miracle (AVM from here on out). :) It seems that Food, Inc. just reminded me of what I had read and been excited about in AVM.
Last year at about this time, I read AVM and couldn't WAIT to plant my garden and visit our local farmer's market. But, as life has a way of happening, money allotted for the garden was spent elsewhere on more pressing things…by the time we could swing it our tomatoes went in the ground way too late. I think our poor tomato plants bore about 2 small hard tomatoes a piece. It was an unfortunate harvest to say the least. And, my excitement for the farmer's market waned as the temperatures spiked to near triple digits. The grocery store just seemed so much nicer (and cooler) when it came to shopping for our food. Might I add that meat from the farmer's market is insanely expensive, too? Eeep!
I think after seeing Food, Inc. and reading AVM, I am more impassioned to just continue to become more aware about our food system and what I feed to my family. As a mom who stays home with her kids, nutrition is one of my primary responsibilities–and I want to do it right and not take the lazy way out.
I think we'll focus on eating meat as a supplement to the meal, not as the star of the show as we are accustomed to. We've also started our garden much earlier this year. Our seedlings are starting to grow and our raised planting beds will go in very soon. I can't wait to see if we can get a better harvest of tomatoes this year! Wanna see how cute they look right now??
I'm glad to have watched Food, Inc. as I believe it's important to have a gut level check every once in a while. We needed to reset our mental menus and I needed to be motivated again to seek the very best in nutrition for my family. I have been opting for convenience more times than I'd like to admit this winter–and I'm hoping the summer days will bring a more healthy diet.
A reader, Allison, sent along this photo of an agriculture truck she passed the other day. It looks exactly like the chickens we passed–although, I think her picture actually does show ducks. Is this for a giant duck pate operation? Ick, regardless.
The chickens I saw were much dirtier and mangier. But, other than that, this pretty much looks like what I saw. Yuck. Nasty. Gross.
Anyway, we have a guest blogger talking about her experiences watching Food, Inc. tomorrow–so be sure to check back then! You guys are fabulous, hope your weekend is so wonderful!