Food

I have been following news about food in the U.S. from several perspectives. For example, since 2008, approximately 15% of the farm conservation land, supported by a Federally subsidized land management program, has been brought back into production to grow corn and soy for the Chinese market. In another area of food information, the caramel found in many cola drinks has been condemned by scientists as a carcinogen due to its processing with ammonia under high heat and pressure. Billions of people worldwide drink this carcinogen daily.

The whole world of feeding 7 billion human beings is vast. There are cultural differences and agricultural differences determined by growing seasons and conditions. There is food for the effete in Manhattan and food for the starving in Somalia. There is little discussion of morality or ethics in the area of food production and preparation. But eating is a common human necessity.

Think of how responsibly you eat. Do you simply eat to your budget? Do you eat for health and well being? Do you eat to achieve a certain body type? Does it occur to you to check where your food is coming from? Do you actually shop for and prepare your own food at home? Do you grow your own food?

Fast food eaters have distanced themselves from the reality of their food and its source. Gourmands may understand the exceptional nature of their food, but may have no idea of the human labor and intelligence it takes to present it to them on a restaurant table. A starving child in a desert plain may savor a corn gruel with the same gusto given to the perfectly grilled steak by an obese American.

The more distanced we become from our food's sources due to overpopulation and urbanization, the less responsible we become in our attitudes toward food and hunger. We become dependent consumers. This dependence breeds selfishness and entitlement, distanced from any solid knowledge about what it costs to feed ourselves in the big picture of humanity and the planet. Our focus become the acquisition and consumption of food over the growing and provision of food.

I believe that humanism must include a reverence for the planet and its resources. One of the most elemental ways in which we interact with the planet is the growing and preparation of our food. The planet feeds us. Developing a humanist practice can start in the garden and in the kitchen. By learning the process of growing food, harvesting food and preparing food, I have begun to understand what it means to be a human being in harmony with my planet in a very real and basic way.