food... any questions?

Is food a keyword today? Perhaps a better question would be, when has food not been key in any way, shape, or form? From bears to bugs to Bill Clinton, many of the motives for our daily activities are centered on obtaining the means for survival, namely, sustenance. Yet as we’ve evolved from simplistic hunter-gatherer roles to supermarket customers, we’ve in turn created various philosophies regarding food and its role in our lives and subsequently redefined it on numerous levels.

Before delving into the historical and ideological events surrounding food, it is important to note the organization of this post. A large part of this essay will be focused on simply stating the obvious, since philosophy can often ignore the more subtle simplicities of a concept. I believe that the fact that there is so much confusion and speculation about something as simple as food justifies this take on the subject.

Though perhaps food’s place in our lives has been increasingly overshadowed by technological, social, political, and economic advances and changes, none of the events or inventions humans have influenced or created would have been possible without its constant presence. Cities and towns first became possible after agricultural techniques were born in the Fertile Crescent in 10,000 B.C.; today, many of the ways in which our society operates would not be possible without large-scale food production or food processing plants. Food quality standards today are also at a record high, as books such as Upton Sinclair’s, The Jungle, led to public awareness and policy changes regarding health and cleanliness regulations within food processing. As food security within developed nations became increasingly stable, the number of more superficial philosophies surrounding food increased. In some cases, philosophies are a result of Gina Mallet’s observation that, “Once necessity is satisfied, we eat for pleasure;” others, however are redefinitions of necessity itself.

Interestingly, history is riddled with various food-related ideologies. Perhaps the most influential philosophy on the American eating perspective was the one that arrived on Plymouth Rock: Puritanism. The Puritans were not concerned with food as a medium for pleasure and enjoyment, rather, they argued against it. Food was eaten only so that one could continue living and working. Later, ideologists such as Harvey Kellogg and Sylvester Graham pushed early vegetarianism and simple eating (i.e. food without flavor) as a means of preventing impure thoughts and masturbation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Diet). This “food-as-fuel” mentality persisted through the development of the American nation into the 20th century, when the rise of ethnic classes, new food safety regulations, and European influences culminated to produce a philosophy whose proponents are referred to as “foodies.” Foodies generally support organic or sustainable food production methods, as well as keeping food in a local context (this has in turn created a foodie denomination known as the Locavore Movement). This platform, however, though it may be perpetuated by many of America’s educated and wealthy, is merely one against many other philosophies not concerned with palatability.

The reasoning behind the adoption of food philosophies varies; some are spurred by ethical or religious reasons while others are due to health concerns or, more frequently, “health” concerns. Fad diets, such as the South Beach Diet or the Atkins diet are generally concerned with weight loss or weight management (which is often seen as inversely proportional to an overall level of health). This type of food faddism views food more as a wild animal in need of taming than a source of nourishment and comfort. Such philosophies generally ignore concerns regarding food production or quality (including taste) and instead pay homage to our Puritain roots of eating only what is “best” for you.

Harvey Kellogg would be proud.

The increase in popularity of such diets has also resulted in a food product explosion. As these items are not actually food in a holistic sense, the term foodstuffs was coined as a blanket descriptor for such goods. Many of these products are processed to the point where most natural ingredients are eliminated; this resulted in the practice of food product enhancement, or, the addition of vital nutrients “back” into the food. Some of these goods, such as nutrition bars, protein enhanced water, and calcium chews are so far removed from actual food that they are instead referred to as nutrition supplements, meal replacements, or even food alternatives. The fact that modern-day consumers are searching for “alternatives” to food exhibits the real value placed on the things we eat (interestingly, most diet and low-calorie foods are more expensive on a cent-per-calorie basis than the majority of unprocessed foods). Americans on average spend less than ten percent of their income on food, as opposed to Europeans who spend about thirty percent (Indonesians in 2006 spent 49.9 percent); the cost of food in the United States also (on average) fails to reflect the environmental, social, and political costs associated with various food-related processes. There is still an overarching mentality of having what we want to eat when we want it and for cheap. We continue to take the staff of life and place its value below that of cosmetics, concerts, cars, and other consumer objects (most of which we could easily live without) for the sake of reserving capital.

The under-appreciation of food in developed countries in turn affects global food security, as highly populated poorer nations struggle with rising costs of staple goods. A good example of security suffering under the whims of the wealthy is the ethanol fuel movement, which sacrifices land that could be used for food production for the sake of producing an alternative fuel. Agricultural and food subsidies are often also put in place to try and convince farmers to grow certain crops, but such foods are often not nutritionally rich. This in turn has contributed to Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) research to try and create higher-yield crops or foods with (again) nutritional enhancements. In spite of all the research and aid surrounding the current food crisis, global food security remains a high-level concern for all nations.

Let’s again ask the question: why ought food be a keyword today?

Perhaps all the previously discussed issues can be neatly tied together Jeremy Iggers, an author for the magazine Philosophy Now:

“Food as a topic for philosophical investigation may be especially timely today… Today, food and eating occupy a role in our culture that only a few decades ago was occupied by sex: food has been eroticized and problematized and made the source of enourmous anxiety… a generation or two ago, our (Western) individual identity was much more defined by our social roles and relationships – hence the emphasis on sex; today our identities are much more strongly linked to what we consume.”

What is important in discussing food is to think outside of the realm of personal economy and interest and begin to explore the greater financial, environmental, social, and political costs surrounding food. We need to start caring about the thing that allows us to exist on this planet, and we need to stop being blinded by superficial ideologies so that we can begin to understand the real issue at hand.

Food is key because food is food; regardless of the discussions, the confusion, the ideas, fears, and pleasures, it is what it is and there is nothing else.