Someone in my class posted this question on a class discussion board: "Most of the population is far removed from agriculture, and it is true...the typical attitude towards agriculture is complacency. In order to truly be sustainable, or even move closer towards sustainability in our food system, everybody needs to be on board. With that being said, what is the most efficient and logical way to encourage people to work towards the same goal? If the average person's attitude towards this dilemma is complacency, why are they willing to change now? It is refreshing to see some people taking small steps (recycling, buying local, composting etc) and perhaps that is a good start, but sometimes I can't help but think "sustainability" to the average person is just the latest fad to get on board with. Are consumers buying local, organic, "all natural" with themselves and their health in mind? Or are they doing it for the environment?"
Here was my response:
I don’t really agree that “the typical attitude towards agriculture is complacency”. I think a better word to describe the attitude towards agriculture is oblivion. People are no more aware of how oreo cookies are made than how brussels sprouts are grown. If we tell people “These brussels sprouts were grown on a farm in Upstate New York”, we are not providing them any information about the thought, preparation, and physical labor that went into growing them. In my opinion, people’s attitudes towards agriculture are greatly affected by consumerism. The strongest tie that most people have to the land that fruits and vegetables are grown in is the occasional bit of dirt they wash off when they buy pre-packaged lettuce in the fresh foods section of Wegmans. Yes, Wegmans will proudly advertise produce that is ‘grown locally’ (funny because they consider farms in the middle of Pennsylvania “local”), but the problem here is that people don’t understand what local is. There is a HUGE difference between picking up your CSA share each week at a local farm and buying “locally grown” peaches from somewhere in PA.
I think it is absolutely impossible to “encourage people to work towards the same goal” because we are trying to get people to work towards some giant, very broad goal that seems so far removed from peoples’ lives that it is insignificant. How can we tell people to act sustainably when they don’t even know how to grow their own vegetables? If people don’t even know what goes into producing the food that they eat, how on earth can they grasp the concept of “being sustainable”? Because people are so removed from agriculture, “being sustainable” doesn’t have any direct impacts on their lives (This gives people the mentality of “Who cares if I recycle when I can just throw my garbage away?” People don’t see where their cans go regardless of whether they recycle them or throw them away, so who cares where they go?). The whole idea of sustainability is so huge that people cannot put their hearts into “being sustainable”. People don’t look at the greater, long-term benefit for society as a whole, but instead are more focused on the instant gratification of throwing their food waste into landfills where it contributes to methane production than spending a summer turning their compost pile so they have rich, lush food for their fall garden.
When you ask people to define sustainability, they might say “Saving energy, recycling, reducing the carbon footprint”, but sustainability is not simply tackling these issues. The heart of “being sustainable” is a fundamental understanding of how our society works and how fundamental the agricultural base is to each of our lives, even if we only eat canned corn and hotdogs (like my housemate). How can we preach sustainability to people who eat neon foods (Cheetos, anyone?) that ARE NOT EVEN FOOD! In my opinion, there is a HUGE difference between food, food chemistry, and food culture. In my mind, food is what connects us as humans. We ALL need food to survive. Food in the simplest sense is the raw ingredients. People all over the world share a connection to food, but the foods they have access to differ with physical location (taking into account climate, growing season, etc.), so there is undoubtedly culture tied into raw materials too. When we start combining ingredients and processing food, it is no longer food in its pure sense; it is now chemistry, an intricate dance of molecular gastronomy that may or may not still be considered food. Before people can even start thinking about “being sustainable”, it is essential to understand what sustainability means to their lives and environment around them. Maybe if garbage dumps and compost piles were located in the centers of villages, people would start to get the picture.
Here are some other thoughts on food:
I believe that food is fundamental to human life, and what we eat serves as a life map of who we are. In order to be happy and carefree individuals, we must eat good, healthy food that is as close to the source as possible, and we must be conscious of how it is produced and where it comes from. I believe that everyone deserves the chance to eat local, organic, and sustainably produced food that has been grown with love and care, and everyone deserves the opportunity to learn more about making healthy choices in their lives. We should not need to rely on processed foods packaged in cans and boxes to sustain life, and we are all entitled the opportunity to know what we are eating, where it comes from, who produced it, and how it was grown. By exploring the world of agriculture and reaching out to individuals who are not familiar with it, we ourselves can learn and teach others about fruits and vegetables that we never knew existed, and can experiment with combining the freshest ingredients to produce the most beautiful, delicious, fresh, healthy and colorful meals.
