About five years ago, a Mr. Dave Murphy phoned us here at Renewable Farming LLC and asked if he could visit with us at a convenient time and location.
Dave was organizing a nationwide campaign he called “Food Democracy Now.”
Our family thought that if such a group could have an impact on farmers — our clients — we should know his objectives.
So I spent a couple of hours in Clear Lake, IA, visiting with Dave and the potential of Food Democracy Now. He envisioned a grassroots educational and activist “movement” aimed at securing a safer, healthier U.S. food supply.
His reasoning was sound: By 2006, the Centers for Disease Control had already documented a rising trend of chronic disease rates in America. Obesity was soaring. The current generation of Americans was on a health course to reverse gains in longevity — and on top of that, on course to see rising disabilities and soaring medical costs.
In our meeting, I remained somewhat skeptical that a “consumer movement” could catch fire and change the course of food consumer habits, especially when any skepticism about the safety of genetically modified foods was fiercely opposed by the “biotech” industry, most of the U.S. food processing industry, and the federal agencies charged with guarding our health.
But today, the regular reach of “Food Democracy Now” is approaching a million regular followers via the internet, and the group’s support base is rapidly gaining strength.
The health evidence indicting GMOs, glyphosate and other agricultural toxins in our food is mounting with each year. Public health authorities are increasingly conflicted on this issue worldwide.
And there is indeed a “food revolution” worldwide. America, Brazil and Argentina are becoming more isolated as GMO “islands” in a world where major nations are banning cultivation of GMO crops.
Public awareness of the GMO controversy has reached such a wide audience that another GMO educational effort has launched a feature movie dramatizing the personal impacts of GMO foods.
It’s a film titled “Consumed” by Daryl Wein. It’s already scheduled for theatre showings in 146 U.S. cities, and rising. You can see the trailer and the details about it at this link: www.consumedthemovie.com
Dave Murphy’s Food Democracy Now organization is encouraging everyone to see it.
“Consumed” joins a rising number of other movies — almost all documentaries — describing the health implications of GMOs and companion chemicals such as glyphosate.
1. One of our favorites is a documentary called The Beautiful Truth, filmed by a father who records his teenage son’s search for the link between food and cancer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jEvQLNg3OJM
2. A hard-hitting documentary by the Institute for Responsible Technology is Genetic Roulette. Its creator, Jeffry Smith, has also authored books documenting the consequences of GMO foods worldwide.
3. One YouTube presentation at a TED lecture series has propelled an executive mother of four, Robyn O’Brien, into a national speaking phenomenon. Her Austin 2011 presentation at a TEDx lecture has topped a million views. Here’s the link.
4. We wouldn’t be surprised to see Moms Across America generating a movie showing the unsavory facts about glyphosate in our diet, in mothers’ milk and in just about everything. We just learned a few days ago that glyphosate is found in our municipal water supply at Cedar Falls, Iowa.
There are dozens of other “food movies” challenging every aspect of our fast-food, corporate food system.
Published Nov. 22 by Jerry Carlson