I just saw the film Food, Inc. (heard about it on Oprah). It was very enlightening. Basically, it traces the food we buy at the grocery store (in particular, meat) back to it's origin. It's appalling to learn of how "industrial food is making us sicker, fatter and poorer". The American meat industry is basically run by 5 major companies who control about 80% of the meat consumption in our country and how they engineer meat to make the animal grow bigger faster and the conditions in which the animals are raised and butchered are filthy, grotesque and inhumane. This film's main goal is not to promote vegetarianism, but to encourage consumers to purchase meat free of antibiotics and growth hormones. Even better... only purchase chickens that are cage free and beef that is grass fed instead of corn fed. Of course, that kind of meat is more expensive but here's how I think of it... I'm saving money in the long run in medical costs. There is so much more that this movie covers. I highly recommend it to everyone. I take my job of feeding my family very seriously. What I feed my kids now will help determine what foods they choose to eat later, as adults, and ultimately whether they will develop health issues like heart disease or diabetes (I realize genetics plays a role too). To learn more about the film Food, Inc. click here.
