I finished reading Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma. What a good page-turner of a book it was! And sometimes it was a stomach churner too. But I found it always to be thoughtful.
The book is about the omnivore’s dilemma: what’s for dinner? (or breakfast or lunch). As omnivores, humans can eat just about anything which makes figuring out what to eat more difficult than you may realize. For thousands of years humans have, through various religions and cultures, placed rules around what’s good to eat, thereby limiting choices and making eating a little easier. But these days our dilemma has become less, “gee is this dead deer I found while hiking through the woods still edible?” and more “McDonald’s or organic chicken from Whole Foods or a salad from the farmer’s market?” Pollan gamely wades through all the choices to reveal to us the reality behind what’s on the plate (or in the paper bag).
Industrial agriculture, of which a McDonald’s meal is a prime example, is bad news. Industrial agriculture isn’t just McDonald’s. It is also pretty much what is on the shelves at the Piggly Wiggly, Cub, and Albertson’s. But those who think they are opting out by shopping at Whole Foods might be surprised to find out industrial organic isn’t much better. Sure no pesticides or hormones have been added to the food, soil and water, but that’s about all that can be said for it. Industrial organic is still large-scale factory farming.
Pollan discovers that the less processed your food and the more local its origins, the better. Grass farming, an intensive farming method of raising livestock by caring for the land and the grass upon which the animals feed, treats the whole farm as one biological system and if done right, actually improves the land. Grass farming is necessarily a small-scale operation and there aren’t very many of these kinds of farms in existence.
Of course the best kind of meal is one that is completely hunted and gathered. Pollan goes wild pig hunting and mushroom hunting. Between the pig and the mushrooms and the various other aspects of the meal, it took him several months to put it together. He realizes how impractical and impossible eating like this would be on a regular basis.
The book isn’t just about what kind of food is better for the environment. It is also an investigation into why we eat the way we do. Pollan finds that a Candaian historian named Harvey Levenstein, who has studied the American “foodways,” nicely sums up the American view of food:
taste is not a true guide to what should be eaten; that one should not simply eat what one enjoys; that the important components of food cannot be seen or tasted, but are discernible only in scientific laboratories; and that experimental science has produced rules of nutrition that will prevent illness and encourage longevity.
And so we are subject to food fads, high protein, low carb, low fat, oatmeal, omega-3. Such eating will continue until we start paying attention to the food itself. That is precisely what Pollan wants us to do. He is not trying to change the way anyone eats, though after reading the book I don’t know how someone couldn’t change their eating habits. He is trying to get us to pay attention, be aware, know what we are eating, how it was made and where it came from.
This book is excellent reading for anyone who cares about food. If you have read Fast Food Nation or watched Super-Size Me and found yourself concerned about fast food, this book is a good next step. But be warned, you might not eat the same way again. And you might find yourself adding books to your TBR list for further reading.
I just watched a documentary that I highly recommend called _The Future of Food_. It mainly focuses on genetic modification, with more emphasis on the politics of food than the health concerns. When the small farmers featured described how Monsanto ruined their livelihood, I actually cried.
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I really liked Fast Food Nation, so I think I will have to read this as well. I’m just afraid it is going to make me not want to eat at all (well, that isn’t likely to happen, but will make me think twice when shopping!).
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Sounds a bit like reading “Diet for a New America.” After reading one third of that book I was a vegetarian, after two thirds I was a vegan. Industrial agriculture–plant and animal–is pretty hideous.
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I read Omnivore’s Dilemma over the holidays and couldn’t put it down. What a great read! Ironically, the day I finished it, the FDA approved cloned food.
I liked Omnivore’s Dilemma so much, I added his previous book, The Botany of Desire, to my reading list. Anyone read that one?
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I started TOD last week, and it’s great, but now I’m in Seattle and it was too big to bring along. I picked up Sam Harris’ The End of Faith today at the Barnes & Noble across the street, and that’s just about as scary….
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I read the Botany of Desire after Omnivore too, and it wasn’t bad. I found a lot of the history fascinating, but felt that he tried to be just a wee bit too meditative and thoughtful on what he was writing about. It felt forced at times.
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I read Botany of Desire and loved it so much I gave a copy to my dad. I read Omnivore too and gave a copy to my son for Christmas. Both are great! It sure is hard to eat well on a strict budget but oh so worth the effort. And I love knowing more about where our food comes from, even when I chose to eat some junk.
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Sara, that documentary sounds really interesting. What our government and corporations have done to the farmers in this country is a crime.
The book won’t make you not want to eat Danielle, it will just make you think twice about what you eat.
Sylvia, Pollan did a good job on writing about vegetarianism/veganism. He did it too strictly from an animal right’s perspective though and left out some of the broader issues about why people might choose not to eat meat. I did appreciate his investigation into industrial organic though since most peole think if the label says organic it must be ok and environmentally friendly.
Donna, how ironic you finished the book when cloned food was announced as ok! I’ve read Botany of Desire and enjoyed it very much. The chapter on tulips was rather dull I thought but the one on apples was a real history lesson.
John, I can see how the Harris book would be just as scary. At least with food you have a measure of control, with how other people think and act, not so much.
Zia, Pollan’s attempts at philosophy do tend to be a bit lame. I think he realizes that, at least in Omnivore, when he makes fun of himself for his purple prose on hunting.
Cloudscome, I agree, I like knowing more about where my food comes from too. I feel more conscious and conscientious.
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I couldn’t wait to hear your thoughts on this book. I can’t say I’m too surprised about The Whole Foods issue although it’s disappointing. For us city dwellers where Whole Foods is the best option what else can we do? I wonder if Farmer’s Marekts are considered better alternatives? Anyway I’m definitely adding this book to my list. Sounds not only like a good read but an important one.
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Farmer’s markets are definitely better alternatives because they’re local, and you’re therefore not paying to ship your food. I read somewhere that if you compare eating non-organic food that’s local vs organic that’s not, the net net is that the organic ends up being worse for the environment.
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I was reading a book the other day that said how our societies had reached this odd point of civilization where we we, as individuals, were no longer able to accomplish all the basic chores for survival, and our food was a case in point. If we have a crisis now, food shortages are going to be a terrible problem because we are all so dependent upon an organised food chain. Certainly made me want to grow all the vegetables in the garden and farm fish.
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I read an article the other day about this guy who never buys meat from anywhere – instead, he picks up roadkill or animals that have just died and are lying about or something and eats those instead. All very commendable, but when he mentioned that he would also pick up and consume people’s run-over pets if he came across them, I got very angry indeed. But as for badgers and things, waste not want not, I suppose. I think it is vile, but then I’m veggie anyway!
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This sounds like such a great book — thanks for the review!
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This is up next on my nonfiction list. I’ve already got people waiting to borrow it! Thanks for the review.
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If you have local farmer’s markets that is a viable option. The internet also has a wealth of information, there may be a food co-op or community supported agriculture in your area too. Maybe even a grass farm. I prefer organic too, but Zia makes a good point. I’m also learning that even if some farms aren’t labeled organic they still might be, or very close to it.
Litlove, it’s scary isn’t it? Pollan quotes some corporate policy wonk at one point who says that he sees a future for America where all our food is processed and imported from somewhere else and what a good thing that would be. Pollan admits that part of the appeal of hunting and gardening is knowing that if you had to, you could raise your own food. Made me want to turn my whole yard into a vegetable garden!
Oh Max, that sounds pretty gross. Even if I weren’t veggie I’d be disgusted by it especially the pet part. Still, there is as you mention a certain waste not want not element to it.
It really was an interesting book Dorothy.
LK, I’m looking forward to finding out what you think when you read it.
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I have it on the TBR, and naturally, want to pick it up right now — will put it into the queue for my next “round” of reads.
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LK, guaranteed you will not look at your food the same way again.
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