I'm glad Oliver is trying this out. If nothing else to educate people about the realities of food production.
So am I. I think the American people really need to know what is going with the USDA - and how it works. I loved that section - frustrating as hell though. Also could have a backlash - in that it reinforces the view that big government is bad news. But the problem with the USDA is really that it is trying to do two conflicting things at once - provide nutritious food to Americans, and aid farmers and food corporations with their costs. The latter was why it was created. The whole nutrition bit was added later, and not it's prime directive, unfortunately.
And good point on corn and soybeans - Indiana has the same problem, it's a farm state, but it's produce no one can eat. Soy and corn are used for fuel and cattle. Not humans. Same with Kansas - which is mostly ranch land and land for providing food for livestock.
The East Coast and West Coast are the ones that provide food for human consumption. And half of that is exported.
I remember when I interviewed for a legal job with Iowa Beef Packers - finding out all the production issues and that most of the meat was taken from other states.
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branchandroot
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Date: 2010-03-28 11:31 pm (UTC)So am I. I think the American people really need to know what is going with the USDA - and how it works. I loved that section - frustrating as hell though. Also could have a backlash - in that it reinforces the view that big government is bad news. But the problem with the USDA is really that it is trying to do two conflicting things at once - provide nutritious food to Americans, and aid farmers and food corporations with their costs. The latter was why it was created. The whole nutrition bit was added later, and not it's prime directive, unfortunately.
And good point on corn and soybeans - Indiana has the same problem, it's a farm state, but it's produce no one can eat. Soy and corn are used for fuel and cattle. Not humans. Same with Kansas - which is mostly ranch land and land for providing food for livestock.
The East Coast and West Coast are the ones that provide food for human consumption. And half of that is exported.
I remember when I interviewed for a legal job with Iowa Beef Packers - finding out all the production issues and that most of the meat was taken from other states.