On Industrialized Food

An interesting conversation is going on over at Wal-Mart’s Check Out blog. Normally the bloggers there cover movie releases and new gadgets for you PS3-XBox-BluRay console, so those of us concerned with social justice issues don’t take much notice. But astonishingly, one of the writers addresses a serious issue: industrialized food production. Author Rand Waddoups writes:

What do you think should and can be done in the short term to make the industrialized food chain better?  What products should Wal-Mart have that they don’t to meet your desires for a more sustainable food assortment?  If you could choose one item you would want remove from stores, what would it be?

Wal-Mart’s sustainability efforts are hindered by a number of factors inherent to its business model, and industrial food is one of them. No matter how small a box you put it in, a pesticide-laden apple forced to grow in massive quantities and shipped in from South America presents serious environmental problems. And let’s not even get in to processed food. Here are some salient quotes from the discussion, mainly in the comments on the post:

• Wal-Mart should adopt a non-GMO policy, refusing to sell any foods which are, or are derived from, genetically modified organisms.  Short of this, Wal-Mart should use its influence to promote mandatory labeling of GMO foods so that consumers can make an informed choice as to whether to consume GMO foods.
• The only thing that can be done to make the industrialized food chain “better” is to make it go away altogether. If Wal-Mart truly wants to become sustainable—and I do mean economically viable into the forseeable future, because the death of the planet means Wal-Mart’s profits will shrink—it will transition away from the warehouse on carbon-dioxide emitting, nonbiodegradable wheels business model and start rebuilding the local food infrastructures it so handily demolished throughout the 80s and 90s.

• Walmart should stop carrying selling imported farmed shrimp.  Shrimp is the most popular seafood among Americans, and to feed the growing demand, over 83% is imported from countries like China and Ecuador.
• I agree with the above, Non-GMO policy first, then rebuild the local food infrastructure. Provide more fresh local produce and healthier food options. Whenever I go to Wal-Marts I feel I’m walking into a future death trap as I look at all the obese and ill-health consumers buying the usual commercially marketed products that provide little nutrition. I am appreciative you are aspiring to learn more about nutrition and to improve the lives of your consumers instead of furthering “bad choices” of consumption.
• 1) LABEL. Where food comes from, if it’s conventional or organic, and whether or not is contains genetically modified ingredients. This is the easiest thing to do infrastructure-wise, would greatly benefit your consumers, and gain you some respect.

  Support local food infrastructures. Walmart would have to sell produce and other food products produced locally-to each store-in order to be remotely sustainable.  It would reduce carbon emissions, protect family farmers, encourage healthier eating and more. This is necessary, but it would take an immense infrastructure shift that takes time, money, and planning.

• What can Wal-Mart do to fix the problem? Wal-Mart itself IS much of the problem. The entire concept of Wal-Mart destroys the uniqueness of locally owned stores, not to mention their ability to keep money in the community. Local food is about that in addition to being about flavor, freshness. supporting small farmers, reducing oil usage, etc.
• One of the biggest complaints I’ve heard registered against WalMart is that it destroys local communities (under-cutting prices of small businesses and wages of workers, etc.). I think this question of sustainability is an opportunity to address that in a modified way. I can’t ask you to go out of business in order to reclaim an older and better version of small America, but I can ask you to support local economies (and reduce environmental impact) by having WalMarts source their fresh produce, meat and poultry from local farms.

Think Wal-Mart will actually act on any of these suggestions?

Posted by Alex Goldschmidt on Friday, February 29, 2008

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