Happy Food

Sarah’s Social Action Snapshot

TakePart, Sarah Newman
Published March 10, 2009

A lot of the food we eat now is pretty sad. How can it present a happy face to us when it’s laden with heavy doses of pesticides, hormones, Genetically Modified Organisms and covered in antibiotics, with perhaps a sprinkling of Salmonella and e-Coli on top. Not exactly what you want to sit down to eat three times a day. Despite these alarming facts, we can each make happy food choices for each meal. I am referring to nourishing meals that are made with happy foods free of all of the nasty stuff I mentioned that will bring a big grin to your face. I had several meals that made me really happy while at Polyface Farm in Virginia. My hosts were Joel and Teresa Salatin, residents of a 50 acre farm nestled in the glorious Shenandoah Valley, south of Washington, DC. Joel looks like your stereo-typical farmer. He speaks in a heavy drawl, greeted us in blue jean pants and top and is devoted to the farm that he inherited from his parents. However, beyond the facade, Joel is actually a radical farmer (or as he labeled himself, a lunatic farmer) who is quietly helping to revolutionize our food system. Joel is a star of Michael Pollan’s Omnivore’s Dilemma and our upcoming documentary, Food, Inc. He runs a sustainable farm that really shouldn’t be viewed as radical; it’s just unusual because it’s non-traditional but really should be the status quo in agriculture. Joel, along with his son Daniel and a team of interns, raise pigs, chickens and cows in an ecologically sustainable way (”beyond organic”). All his animals lead happy lives by roaming the fields rather than being held in small confined areas, standing in their own feces, as is the norm on industrial farms. Since they’re enjoying life in the fields, they eat what grows in the pastures (grass, not corn!). And, their waste is recycled amongst the animals, creating zero waste . Industrial agriculture, on the other hand, produces enough polluted run-off equivalent to some US cities. And, most importantly, Joel and his team care greatly about the animals rather than viewing them as merely a consumer commodity. poly3 I’m a stubborn vegetarian who didn’t switch to meat after visiting Polyface. However, I developed a much greater appreciation for farmers like Joel who raise their animals under natural, humane conditions while ensuring our environment is protected. Whether or not you’re a vegetarian like me, you can make your meals a lot happier but choosing as many sustainable products as possible. Learn more with Environmental Working Group’s latest produce pesticide list, the Eat Well Guide for local food sources and Polyface Farms. Click here to read this post.