Saturday, April 23, 2005

New www.MyPyramid.org satire site

That was quick! A tart satire of the new USDA guidance system, MyPyramid, quickly has been posted by critics of the USDA's comparatively friendly stance toward the nutritional benefits of meat, dairy, and conventional agriculture. The new site has the address www.MyPyramid.org, in contrast with the USDA's www.MyPyramid.gov. It borrows USDA's graphics and mimics the USDA site's organization. At times, the wits adopt USDA's voice:
Many of USDA's top officials have worked in the Agribusiness industry, providing the expertise necessary to develop a pyramid that best represents the truth about healthy eating -- it's not what happens to the food before it gets to your table, but simply that you eat substantial servings of all foods -- Following these guidelines will help ensure the health of American families while guaranteeing the health of Agribusiness Corporations around the world.
At other times, the satire is more explicit. There is no author listed for the site, but one may speculate based on a couple of the external links. One link leads to a CBS news article about obesity, and another leads to a commentary criticizing the new MyPyramid from the generally vegetarian advocacy group Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. I suspect that CBS news is not the author.

[Thanks to Informed Eating for bringing this site to our attention].

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