Review: The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan

This is Susie again, (as usual).

I finished a very intriguing, thought provoking, and at times disturbing book this week by journalist Michael Pollan. The Omnivore's Dilemma delves into a 'natural history' of four meals, each representative of different idealistic and practical food chains.

The first meal is a McDonalds dinner, eaten, as many fast food meals are, in the car. Although the author chose fast food as his best (worst?) example of this industrial agribusiness food chain, he could have easily chosen a 'normal' meal from any supermarket or Walmart. He follows the path of corn from its evolution over time from wild grass to the grain we know today and the voyage from fields in Iowa to the food fed to the sick cows in CAFOS (Confined Animal Feeding Operations) t0 its voyage to food processors who chemically dismantle it into a number of products incorporated into a large percentage of the food we eat almost every day. I fancy myself somewhat knowledgeable about the food I eat, and try to eat healthy foods, avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup in products when possible, but I was blown away at the amount of corn that enters my body, in one form or another. I found this section of the book interesting and informative, but a little bit depressing. What can I possibly do to change things, when I am so much a part of this food chain?

The second section discusses industrial organic, such as Whole Foods and their products, and growers like Earthbound Farms and Cascadian Farms. The author again follows the history of organic from outlandish hippie movement, to profitable corporate specialty food movement. Along the way, it seems there have been a number of compromises on the part of once idealistic farmers. In order to industrialize a great deal of fossil energy is used, some quality is lost, and a number of other changes in basic small organic philosophy must be made. It seems to be an improvement over general supermarket fare, but not much. Also, a number of things, like CAFO's are not much different. Animals are still living in cramped, miserable conditions for their short lives, simply without the antibiotics or animal byproducts in their feed. Worth the money for organic fare? Perhaps.

The third section of the book discusses a 'beyond organic' movement. Pollan chronicles a successful enterprise in Virginia, Polyface Farm. (Check out www.polyfacefarm.com if you are curious). This food movement is arguably the most idealistic, and one of the most difficult to incorporate into one's life. The beyond organic theories encompass such things as the slow food movement, local food (read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle for a terrific treatise on this), and 'layering' animals and the environment together in ways that are beneficial for animals, other food items, and humans. This chapter made me want to go buy a farm outside a large metropolitan area and give farming a try. On a more practical scale, I can grow my own produce, and frequent the Farmer's Market for meat, produce and other items. Also, if any CSA farms were around, they can be a great option.

The fourth section discussed a meal foraged, a method of obtaining food the author admits largely impractical, but still an important aspect of our relation to food. The author learned to hunt, shooting a wild pig in California, hunted mushrooms, took ripe unpicked fruit from a tree, caught yeast from the air for a slow sourdough bread, and even searched for abalone in the ocean. The meal that he prepared and shared for this section ended up being his crowning glory for what it taught him about our relationship to food and individuals as humans. And, the author made me understand the intrigue of hunting in a way I didn't ever think I could.

The prose in this book is beautiful, I don't know how many times I had to stop and reread a sentence just because it was so arresting. The author is a talented writer dealing with a pressing and interesting subject matter and I highly recommend this book to friends and family.