What’s at stake, he says, goes far beyond a slim figure or personal health. Eating more local and organic food could reduce our reliance on fossil fuel and foreign oil. It could even affect our national security. “At the rate we’re losing farmland to development, by the end of this century we’ll be importing almost all of our produce. We may be happy getting computers or clothes from China, but do we really want to get our entire food supply from them?”
Pretty heavy stuff, and you’d expect the expert quoting it to have strict dietary rules of his own. So what does Pollan eat? “I tend to buy organic, shop at farmers markets, and avoid feedlot beef—which I think most people would do if they saw a slaughterhouse. But I am not a food fascist. If I’m at someone’s house, I eat whatever they put in front of me. Certain social values are just as important.” Besides, incremental change is the real key, he says. “If we all made just one good decision a day—whether it’s organic, local, grass-fed meat, or just cooking from scratch—that would have a tremendous effect.”
By Robin Rinaldi
