Wall Street Journal photo by Molly Lovegame
“It feels like there is conspiracy going on in this town. It’s like BigFood that has control over us. Every time there is an ad on my phone it is for BigFood. Every time I turn on the TV, there is a commercial for BigFood. Processed food is everywhere and there are so many options now for processed food and it seems to be getting worse every day! I mean, people expect you to eat whatever they want to sell you-just because they can make money off it! It doesn’t matter if you have any dietary restrictions, or you are trying to eat to be healthy.”
Jeremy nodded his head vigorously as he sipped his coffee and said, “You know Big Food has a lot of skin in the game. They want people to continue to eat their calorie rich, nutritionally poor processed foods. It will only get worse. People are just not conscious of the fact that these companies have used the same techniques the tobacco companies used to get us addicted to their bad food. But instead of addicting us to cigarettes they use the same techniques to addict us to food.
We decided to see just how profitable BigFood is, so while we were at the library we checked it out. The following information comes from Insidermonkey.com
Total revenue for cookie, cracker and pasta food products was around $23.5 billion. The Snack food production is a $31.4 billion industry. Even with awareness of how bad meat is it’s profits are still high at 12.6%, in the $221.8 billion industry. With average profits exceeding 23%, chicken and turkey meat have the highest margins of all food products. The $29.2 billion industry is bound to grow, as consumers increasingly try to stay away from red meat due to the health risks involved. The cereal industry is a $11.7 billion industry. Chocolate is $15.7 billion industry which is bound to live through anything. Posting an average profit of 17.2%, it was in fact one of the most profitable in the industry.
Catering to many other food productions, the sugar processing industry is not only highly profitable at 18.5%, but also big business. Sugar is a $8.7 billion industry.
Why can’t the BigFood businesses be behind a purpose besides just making money? Why is it all about their profits? And we the American consumers are getting shortchanged. We’re getting fat, and we’re getting sicker. People are just not conscious of the fact that they have food addictions.
Why is our government being so negligent on this issue? How come we have a Food And Drug Administration (FDA) that is suppose to be ensuring the safety and accurate labeling for food products and food additive, if it isn’t doing its job? The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is supposed to be responsible for ensuring accurate and truthful advertising on food products. Having all these food commercials advertising food that is bad for us doesn’t seem right. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) which is supposed to be finding links between illness in people and food safety systems of Government agency and food producers. There is a correlation between increases in processed foods and heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers. It seems to me all three agencies are not doing their jobs and not protecting American’s food supply.
It is going to take a radical different idea to get people away from eating processed foods. First, we have not done a good job of educating people about what healthy food is. And how to make it. Plus, you need a community of likeminded people who want to get healthy and can help one another. That way if you have a lapse you have a community to help you get back to healthy eating. Third, you need a plan with a lot more vegetables less, much, much less processed, and fast foods. And lastly, when you realize that your disordered eating is not just you but is a shared experience. You are not alone in this food addiction.
Photo by Drew Beamer on Unsplash
This bleak food picture is one of the reasons I started dietcommunity.com. We are planted based. We have recipes and videos of great food to make, and we tell you why the food is beneficial. For instance, beans soups can fill up your stomach and they are so good for you and that is why we have so many recipes with beans and all sorts of vegetables in them. Beans is dense and filling too, so it is easier to say no to the not-so-heathy foods that might tempt you. At DietCommunity.com have Zoom meetings, live meetings, and community posts to help one another. We offer you a free medically based plant-based diet. We want you to eat more vegetables, fruits, and grains, but you don’t have to give up meat completely. With the support of the community, you can give up processed foods and start eating better. Start thinking of meat as a condiment instead of the main attraction. And you aren’t alone in this food addiction. It’s just you and about 200,000,000 other Americans!
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