tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post114299088542745015..comments2024-02-03T07:12:06.620-05:00Comments on U.S. Food Policy: Is Whole Foods Wholesome?usfoodpolicyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17098394318544229984noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-1143207775949303622006-03-24T08:42:00.000-05:002006-03-24T08:42:00.000-05:00Mcauliflower also has a great post on this topic o...Mcauliflower also has a great post on this topic on her smart and entertaining Brownie Points weblog. Still, I agree more with extramsg and anonymous on this one. What I like about local farmers markets, small independent health food stores, and major upscale whole foods retail chains alike is that they all compete in a marketplace of <I>food and ideas</I>, not food alone. If Whole Foods makes an error of judgement, such as over-emphasizing organic (low-pesticide) produce and under-emphasizing local (low-energy-use) produce, the chain's customers will soon set them straight. No need for regulation from city council.usfoodpolicyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17098394318544229984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-1143169507617832982006-03-23T22:05:00.000-05:002006-03-23T22:05:00.000-05:00At all of the Whole Foods I shop at the state or c...At all of the Whole Foods I shop at the state or country of origin of the produce is listed, so you can, to the extent possible, attempt to buy organic and local. Not perfect but better than most other supermarkets.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-1143063100956434512006-03-22T16:31:00.000-05:002006-03-22T16:31:00.000-05:00And the left always accuses the right of being abs...And the left always accuses the right of being absolutist....<BR/><BR/>I find it interesting that there's been such a growing movement to "take down" Whole Foods. I think what it shows is that what the left likes least of all is success.<BR/><BR/>Even the fossil fuel issue is only another piece. What about the efficiencies in land use. It takes a hell of a lot more resources to grow a tomato in Wyoming than it does in California. However, while you can raise a cow on less acreage in California than you can in Wyoming, the land in Wyoming has fewer alternative uses.<BR/><BR/>Why do fossil fuels get privileged before all other costs? Has global warming become the eco-left's raison d'etre, like abortion for the Christian right or feminist left?<BR/><BR/>It's also worth noting that the market to a large degree does take these costs into account. (Not as much as it would if we had a truly free market where tariffs, subsidies, and externalities usually allowed to be discounted by government regulation didn't alter the accounting.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9437268.post-1142997221037442612006-03-21T22:13:00.000-05:002006-03-21T22:13:00.000-05:00Maloney is correct that "organic" does not automat...<I>Maloney is correct that "organic" does not automatically mean "local," although he overstates the degree to which that is a problem</I><BR/><BR/>I feel like I've been floggin the same horse- but this is a popular race this week...<BR/><BR/>“The food we put into our mouths today travels an average of thirteen hundred miles from where it is produced, changing hands at least six times along the way.” <I>Coming Home to Eat</I>, Garry Paul Nabham. <BR/><BR/>This simple quote gives light to the crux of fossil fuel consumption still being tied up in the problem when non-local organic produce is purchased, and sustained. <BR/><BR/>To preach "Buy Organic" is an oversimplification of a thick problem- one that the Slate article does a good job of bringing to light (it's certainly stirred up a number of online discussions: eGullet, Treehugger, SlashFood...). <BR/><BR/>My city council just made a <A “ HREF="”" REL="nofollow" HTTP://WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM/2006/03/16/NEWS2.HTML>very unpopular vote</A> to allow a Whole Foods to develop in our downtown. In fact we’ve just now dubbed WF as "the Texas chain-store massacre". This development will put a WF in direct competition with our locally owned grocery stores and our downtown farmers market. (The item that greased our councilors' palms- a promised parking garage that is needed on that part of town.)<BR/><BR/>When more than one-third of all truck traffic is carrying food, I think looking at how WF impacts local economies is a very valid point of discussion. Personally, if I have to choose local vs imported organic, I’m choosing local.Jocelyn:McAuliflowerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00740967128867118223noreply@blogger.com