Food Issues Resource Roundup

Food has been in the news a lot lately (of course, when isn't it, since it's such a core part of our lives), from Michelle Obama's campaign to end childhood obesity, to new studies about hunger in America to the use of antibiotics in livestock.

I've recently come across several resources that can be useful to humane educators, parents and concerned citizens in exploring food issues with others. Here are a few:

Chef Jamie Oliver won the $100,000 TED prize for his talk about obesity in America and the need to teach children healthy food habits and to transform the food system. Oliver's plan includes teaching people how to cook (including starting kids at a young age), increasing access to fresh food, and encouraging businesses to put food education at center of their business. You can watch his 20 minute talk below:



This summer brings a new documentary, Forks Over Knives, that looks at our relationship with food and examines the premise that many of our "diseases of affluence" can be controlled, and potentially reversed by changing our diets. The film interviews several physicians, nutritionists and researchers and focuses on the personal journeys of two doctors and researchers, Dr. T. Colin Campbell and Caldwell Esselstyn. Check out the trailer:




Two new books that look at difference aspects of food issues include:

Free for All: Fixing School Food in America by Janet Poppendiek. The book explores the school food programs in the U.S. and offers a vision for transforming the system to offer fresh, healthy food for all children.




On a Dollar a Day: One Couple's Unlikely Adventures in Eating in America by Christopher Greenslate and Kerri Leonard. Written by two high school teachers (one of whom is a graduate of IHE's M.Ed. program) who first decided to do a food economics experiment by eating on one dollar a day each for a month, the book explores issues surrounding food economics and food policy, from food stamps and hunger to industrial agriculture and the actual costs of eating a healthy diet. The website includes a few lesson plans for educators.


~ Marsha

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