welcome to shrewdfood!

Gentle reader, welcome to shrewdfood, a space for me to wax poetic, prosaic or downright ineloquent about the ethics of eating. I first started thinking about this topic several years ago, after reading Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser. Before that book, the only "ethical" consideration that I had given to my food intake was carnivorism vs. vegetarianism vs. veganism. And without much thought or research to back me up, I came down firmly on the side of my carnivorism. (Still do, but I feel slightly more researched now.)

Reading Fast Food Nation gave me some insight into the ethical quandaries that come hand in hand with our eating decisions. In his mission to expose some of the shadier practices of the fast-food industry, Schlosser covered a whole array of topics, from animal welfare, to the conditions of employees at slaughterhouses, to the use of antibiotics in feedlots, to the wages and treatment of fast-food employees. I was alternately shocked, startled, saddened, or angered. But my new knowledge did not, for the most part, change my behavior: I still bought store-brand ground beef or Tyson's chicken at the supermarket, ate at Subway or Burger King if the occasion arose. My food choices were driven by three factors: cost, convenience, and health-consciousness (which, at the time, meant low-fat... more on health issues in later entries!). Although my eyes had been opened by Fast Food Nation, I found it easier to pretend I didn't know the back story of those chickens, pigs, and cattle.

Now, six years and many books, articles, lectures, and movies later, I am both better-informed and even more confused. I have begun to change my eating habits in a way that Schlosser probably intended, but I find it surprisingly difficult at times, in ways that I'll detail in future posts. Meanwhile, the debate surrounding the ethics of eating has grown in scale and in prominence. Today's debate is no longer as simple as vegetarian vs. carnivore; instead, we must make informed decisions about words and labels such as natural, organic, raw, cage-free, free-range, local, sustainable, seasonal, and fair-trade (or their alternatives, which usually don't appear on labels: corn-fed, factory-farmed, CAFO, inhumane, caged, antibiotic-ridden, chemically enhanced, etc). With this blog, I hope to help myself and interested readers make sense of our food choices. I plan to write about my daily experiences, dilemmas, and decisions with regards to ethical eating. I hope you'll come along for the ride.