Humane Issues Round-Up: Food Edition

There are 3 recent food-related stories in the news we wanted to make sure you know about:


1. There's good news for people who care about healthy, sustainable, just food.

Recently the W.K. Kellogg Foundation commissioned a poll to gather information about American's attitudes about food (primarily produce). Highlights of those surveyed included:

• 93% said it is “very important” or “somewhat important” that all Americans have equal access to fresh produce;
• Nearly 90 % said they would pay $1.50 more each month for produce to guarantee fair wages for the farmworkers who pick produce;
• 86% said it is "very important" or "somewhat important" for the fresh produce they buy to be grown in an environmentally-friendly way;
• 75% said they support a nationwide program that would double the value of SNAP benefits used at farmers markets;
• 83% said that they "strongly" or "partly agree" that “Washington, D.C., should shift its support more toward smaller, local fruit and vegetable farmers and away from large farm businesses.” This last one is especially important with Congress discussing the most recent Farm Bill.

I was curious about the 800 people surveyed. According to the data, more than 70% were white and nearly half live in the suburbs. I was heartened to see that seventy percent identified as middle or working class, but slightly less heartened that those surveyed were asked to name which economic class they consider themselves part of, rather than sharing salary information, which gives a more accurate view.


2. Another set of new studies says that we tend to associate animal flesh and animal products with "masculinity." Researchers explored "whether there is a metaphoric link between meat and maleness in Western cultures" through six studies, looking at issues such as gendered associations and food, and implicit associations about meat.

Read the study.

Studies like this are important for helping explore cultural pressure and biases and how they influence our choices.


3. According to the Associated Press, the animal protection organization, Mercy for Animals, has released yet another example caught on video of horrific cruelty to farmed animals. This time the footage is from a livestock auction house in Ontario, California. Prosecutors have actually filed animal cruelty charges against the owner and seven employees, which is very rare.

If you wish to watch the video to find out more, you can see it here. (It's very graphic.)

~ Marsha

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