Week 7.docx

Anthropology- week 7 th Monday February 24 , 2014 Global food movement -The global food movement is a social movement. It represents a group of people who want to change food -starts from the idea that our food system is broken and needs to be changed -there are a lot of different issues with food, so that means there are many different food movements Goal of the food movement: change the way that we interact w food, and change how we think about our food and how we use our food -because we are no longer the ones who are making our food, we are so disconnected with it -the policies and laws associated w food are profit driven, not food driven -the idea is to transform our relationship w food and to move away from industrial models -using food to talk about other social problems- ex animal rights really looks at economic issues -specifically wants to change the fact that we as consumers have become disconnected w our food- instead of buying food from the actual farmers, we just buy it from the grocery store, not from where it actually comes from -when we become disconnected, our knowledge about cooking food diminishes, and we no longer think about food- because food is being brought to us -our taste for food changes bc the food brought to us is altered, whereas if we made it, it would taste different- industrialized food is processed Rise of food movement -Fast food nation- book -this book talks about all of the issues w fast food and all of the health implications -you need to think about the ethical, environmental and social issues w food, and because we don’t make our own food, this is diminished -We can do this by growing our own foods- this way we get to know our food and know where it comes from -people started questioning the role of industrialized farming in our lives- this changes how we see food -mass production of food is bad, and we started realizing this Michael Pollan -brought food issues to the mainstream -not an academic, but a journalist -he has made people aware of food -eat food, mostly plants, not too much -look at food as a whole, not at the different parts of food -we need to move away from looking at the nutrients of food, and look at it as a whole -real foods: whole foods Food and Identity -since food is a choice, what we choose to put into our bodies shows who we are as a person -if you are a healthy person, then you eat healthy. Our choices about food reflect our larger ideas about the world, ex. If we think it’s wrong to kill animals, then we make a point to not eat meat -food is something that we have in common, but also something that we use as separation from one another. It’s a way to show who belongs in a group and who does not -vegans don’t eat meat products bc they are part of the movement that stands for animal rights. People who aren’t vegan don’t do this, so they are a different group -some foods are culturally specific -cooking foods can help you identify with who you really are, and can also bring back memories of your life -Food can also be used as an identifier- birthday cake is associated w birthdays in north America -certain foods become associated w certain groups -Canadian foods: maple syrup and poutine. We identify ourselves with these foods, but also outsiders use these as identifiers for Canadians. Ex, canadian bacon example Dominant food regimes -this is what we’re being told is our food system -this is the dominant food system- its promoted by our government (health Canada) and in our food guide -used to be a food pyramid, now a food rainbow -its based on a westernized model of food- focused on the relationship between food and health —we eat to be healthy -This focus on nutrients is called nutritionism- we judge our food by its nutrient content only. Nutrition labels help us see this Globel movement= many movements -they all have different focuses, but have a similar goal= how we can create change and use food -can be community based, but also individuals can carry it out -Mainstream