Movie Review: Food, Inc. (2008)

Food, Inc., directed by Robert Kenner, provides an eye-opening look at how food is produced in America. The tag line of “You’ll never look at dinner the same way again” is very true. Covering the economics of food production, the large monopolistic companies producing our foods, the health risks, and the political forces keeping the status quo, Food, Inc. is a movie every foodie needs to see.

When you see the pictures of how our beef, pigs, and chicken are treated, you will start to lose the taste for them. The economics of making animals and plants bigger yet faster, has consequences. Sometimes, it means death. Literally. When you see how corn production has increased so dramatically, and where it is used, you will start to get mad.

As in many industries where there are 3 to 5 major corporations running the show, our food production is no different. Companies like Tyson, Perdue, Monsanto, IBP, and Cargill have such monopolistic powers, they destroy more small farmers than Walmart gets accused of whenever they move into a new town. The heavy-handed approach they take, and the political power they garner, will also make you mad.

One of the themes of the movie is the impact such food production methods have on our health. As I mentioned earlier, the impact has dire consequences. When one looks closely at our society and see diabetes and obesity on the rise, one has to wonder why. Through demand from the fast food industry, food mass production yields cheaper cheeseburgers and fries than healthier foods.

The movie does a good job showing where some companies are making strides in providing more natural and healthier alternatives to the mass produced genetically modified foods. You’ll be surprised when you see some of the companies. And gladly, the movie does an excellent job offering ways people can take action in a variety of ways to enact change in the system. Some methods are political. Some methods are at the grocery store.

There’s no doubt that the natural and organic foods market is increasing. More and more people are doubting, with good reason, the quality of mass produced food. It brings to mind when I was in Greece back in the late 90′s and how much I enjoyed the food over there. It smelled and tasted so much fresher. It did because it was. I swore off processed foods. That lasted a whopping 2 and half days. Gladly today with farmers markets and organic food stores, I’m able to introduce more quality foods back into my lifestyle. This movie will give you the urge to do so also.

I liked the movie very much. It hit me emotionally. Enough so, that I will probably take some actions they recommend. I give it 4 stars, and highly recommend that you see it.

Here are some items from the movie, and resources to check out: