Agriculture, Food and Poison

The recent news about dioxin contamination in food in Germany (meat, milk, eggs, cheese, etc.) once again highlight the critical links between agriculture (and livestock production), food and health. Surely the criminal irresponsibility in certain individuals is the cause of these circumstances: nonetheless all this again evidences the unsustainability of industrial approaches applied to agriculture. Also because industry has imposed not only its methods but also its values. This unsustainability is clearly evident at economic, environmental, health and ethic level.

It is thus necessary a deep re-thinking in many approaches, values and methods. Several times I have written in this blog that there are too many absurd behaviours in our lifestyles. Too many people is inclined to spend also 300€ to buy a cellular phone at least once a year but pretending to spend very little to buy food. This foolish idea that food must be extremely cheap is the main principle on which the industrial overexploitation of soils, plants, animals and people fundamentally acts.

We must acquire a clear awareness about our real priorities: we don't need the last generation of hi-tech gadget, we need to reconstruct a sane and normal relation with what we everyday eat: paying the right price, not the cheapest one.

We don't need to fight against great distribution companies and corporations (which are the interface with which consumers get directly in contact with agro-industry) but rather re-create those critical relations with who produces food. People living in small villages surely can have direct contacts with farmers but also who lives in the cities can change his/her lifestyle. Instead of spending time on sunday in a big mall it could be better to visit a rural village and his farms spending time outdoor, buying and eating food directly by who have cultivated them. Probably you will spend more money, but you will save a lot in medicine and psycho-analysis.

I suggest to re-construct an awareness about food: eat less but eat better. Don't waste your time watching TV, move your ass and go in the country! Above all children must be involved: they are too fat... Create, if you can, your own garden for family consumption (it is good for your stomach and your mind), do some excursions to discover genuine food, traditions, people, places, tastes. Above all, be informed: read the labels and also many books because a wide literature exists about these issues by now. You have no excuses. Wake up...