My girls may have two full weeks left before it’s ‘back to the books’ at our local public school, but across the country many kids have already returned to the classroom. And, perhaps to a more high-profile extent, to the cafeteria.
Earlier this month the first daughters, Malia and Sasha Obama, were used as bait in an advertisement aimed at spurring school food reform; the White House grounds are sporting a kitchen garden; and better nutrition for public school students is prioritized on both the President and First Lady’s agenda. All of this in a year when the Child Nutrition Act is set to be reassessed has parents and teachers alike optimistic that much needed changes in school food policy are soon to come.
He is the belle of the ball; the guest of honor. The main course of today’s American Thanksgiving feast however, is far from anything early Americans would have readily eaten. As consumption rises so must production; with production so must efficiency. Unfortunately efficient is not always humane; efficient is not always pretty.
I often focus on the inherent good in supporting local growers here, in so doing what is left unsaid however, is the inherent evil in not. The health of the local economy, the strengthening of communities, the forging of bonds; these things should be enough. They should be motivation to frequent farmer’s markets instead of chain supermarkets, to purchase vegetables from road-side stands rather than South American imports, but sometimes they’re not. Sometimes being aware of the consequences of choosing to do otherwise trumps. And there is nothing wrong with that.