New documentary aims to expose dangers of mass-produced food
Images that show animals grazing in grassy fields don’t show the reality of the U.S. food industry, alleges a new documentary, Food, Inc., which aims to show the dark side of the food industry. The film shows cattle, pork and chicken production plants, some of which were secretly recorded by immigrant workers working under cramped conditions, Reuters reports. Maryland farmer Carole Morison, for example, allowed cameras to show chickens collapsing and dying before they go on market, a condition she attributed to fast weight gain caused in part by the antibiotics they’re fed. The movie links industrial food techniques with problems like obesity, salmonella, E. coli outbreaks and environmental degradation: one woman whose 2-year-old son died from an E. coli infection appears in the movie, pushing for a law that would allow the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture to shut down plants that produce contaminated meats. While big corporations didn’t comment in the movie, they have banded together to counter claims in the film, promoting the U.S. food supply as safe. One industry spokesperson said 98 per cent of US farms were family owned and operated, accounting for 82 per cent of farm production.