Green Thumb, Hamden NY

Food Inc. Reading Response

I wrote this reading response after watching, "Food, Inc." for my Anthropology of Food class. It was quickly put together and unfortunately, not revised of errors, excuse the typos! Definitely watch the film-it's great...

I had first heard of Food, Inc. from my previous employer, a vegan, Israeli acupuncturist who shared similar life choices as myself. She explained to me that the movie was very similar to what I was interested in pursuing for my Master’s Thesis. After a quick Google search of the film, I immediately bought tickets to see it at my local independent theater. However, for several reasons, I chose to skip the filming. I will discuss the reasons for why I initially hesitated to watch the film, as well as include why my assumptions were revealed false after viewing the film for our Anthropology of Food lecture.

First, already a vegetarian, I find it hard to witness the savages that the animals, specifically pigs, in factory farming are put through. Often, I find that these exploitative films, specifically in the name of “animal rights” merely display a montage of horrifying footage for the sake of scaring the watcher out of eating meat. These methods do not work. Personally, I have never met a person who gave-up eating meat due to these scare tactics. Rather, I have met some young adults who prove their bravery through their endorsement of cruelty; I like to call it the “brutal” factor, whoever can be most unsympathetic to animal and human rights, wins. However, while there were several scenes in which we view animals being abused, the intent, I believe, wasn't to bombard the viewer with endless gruesome images, akin to a horror film testing our bravery, but rather informative. Yes, we pity the animals, but as we see with the recalled meat, we pity the waste of their lives, the turning of life into mere commodity without any regard for its intrinsic value. When I witnessed the small-scale farmer, with his antiquated use of “cone technology”, I wasn’t horrified or enraged (perhaps slightly saddened) because the life of the animal was respected. By presenting the facts, the movie did not need the traditional gimmicks of having Joaquin Phoenix or Pamela Anderson crying over a pile of slaughtered animals.

Another reason I was weary to watch the film was because many environmental or animal rights documentaries are presented in terms of the extreme political left. I will not discuss my own political views beyond saying that I do not place my trust into any extreme thought, including both the far left and the far right spectrum of our political system. That being said, the director did not merely present the film only to one, liberal, demographic, but rather allowed the viewer to see how both political parties are either adding to the current food crisis or working to improve it. Also, as we see with the sympathetic women who lost her son to E-coli poisoning, the ailments these foods cause do not only affect the rich, poor, right, left, white, black, or Lation, they affect everyone. I hate to use such a redundant buzzword, but lets say, food, and the lack of integrity within our system, are bipartisan, and leave it at that.

My favorite role within this film is the Stonyfield owner with his “if you can’t beat them, join them attitude”. I would like to do some research on the company to learn about their practices and how they have changed since Stonyfield’s original creation in 1983. If Stonyfield’s practices are still reputable, they would be an incredible example of what people can do, within the actual capitalistic framework, and not the fictional utopia of what could-be.

One of the most effective aspects of Food, Inc. was that the film presented a solution to the problem. There are too many times where I read an article, watch a film, or listen to an activist talk about how capitalism and the corporate world are the cause of the disgrace of our food industry. Whether it is the case or not, it is here to stay, and unfortunately cannot be unclaimed. Many Americans will not cut down on their meat consumption, will not travel long distances to purchase their foods, and will especially not work 2 jobs, attend night classes, and then go home to tend to their rooftop gardens (aside from some Hunter graduate students). Consumers need a realistic option. Kenner not only presents the “vote with your fork” option; he shows how large corporations, such as Walmart, are persuaded to stock their shelves with organic and antibiotic free products because their buyers made it clear this is “what they wanted”. Kenner also acknowledges that “vote with your fork” is not always a viable option. Many people do not have the time or money to purchase organic or locally grown foods. This is where Kenner claims that we need to push at a policy level to have the creation and manipulation of our food available to us. [On a side note, I would like to say that Kenner’s choice for ‘the sympathetic working class family’ did not incite much sympathy for me. Rather than spend your money on Burger King, you can easily buy vegetables and pasta (like my own family during hard times) instead of the four burgers and Dr. Pepper soda. As the small farmer explains, ‘if you are going to complain about $3 eggs, don’t do it while holding a 75C soda’.

Food, Inc. specifically took a look at the American food system and corporations that control it. While this topic is personally of great interest of mine, I feel the film would have had more depth if the director included a global edge to the film. For instance, it would have been fulfilling to add the fact that the European Union is adopting many of the issues that we are concerned about within our own country, including the of labeling cloned and genetically modified meats. Knowing that other countries are championing our own initiatives would have been an uplifting, and informative touch to the film.

Also, it would have been beneficial if the director included a deeper look into the role of the immigrant factory worker. Specifically, how these corporations exploit the workers through their illegal status. I assume that the director only glossed over these subjects and did not include any notable court cases concerning these very exploitations, because the cases were dismissed.

In total, while there were obvious flaws to the film, including the glossing over of important topics, and the portrayal of a limited group of people, it did however provide one of the more realistic approaches to battling the American food industry. It would have also been persuasive to have heard these companies responses to the film, however the lack of this is not the fault of Kenner. He tried to include the statements of companies such as Purdue, Tyson, and Monsanto, they simply refused.

Thank You

I would like to take this chance to thank these individuals for their generosity and aid. Without them, I would not have been able to perform my fieldwork this summer.

Al Milo of
Dunwell Elevator Electrical Industries, Inc.
879 Grand Street Brooklyn NY 11211

Steven Principe of
Principe Agency
2697 North Jerusalem Road
East Meadow, NY 11554

Mary Morello of
Mary's Contracting Services

Don Spanno of
Interstate Batteries of New York
Peekskill, NY

Michael Galina of
Rabinowitz & Galina Attorneys at Law
94 Willis Avenue
Mineola, NY 11501

Richie Centore

Edward Dolan of
White Rose Construction & Maintenance
531 70th Street
Guttenburg, NJ 07093


Anthony Colao of
Flag Waterproofing and Restoration
750 Elmont Road
Elmont NY 11003

aka, My Pops, who, without his enduring aid and supervision, I would never get anything of quality done.

Guerrilla Gardening

Most of the information that I receive on Guerrilla Gardening is from the book:
On Guerrilla Gardening: A Handbook for Gardening Without Boundaries by Richard Reynolds

You should also check out the website: www.guerrillagardening.org if you have any further interest or if you want to become a volunteer for a Guerrilla Gardening troop.

Through this website, I have found a recipe or guide to making see bombs (aka green grenades) and will no longer be buying seed bombs in the store (I have found them for purchase at an outrageous expense at the store Anthropologie).


I find it important to make your own for several reasons. First and foremost, when purchasing seed bombs, you are not tailoring the bombs themselves to suit the needs and native ecology of the area you are throwing them. This was my primary concern when throwing store bought bombs. Second, when creating your own, you are absolutely sure of the ingredients which go into the mixture. Just like when cooking your own food, you want to know exactly what you are putting into the ground and whether it is actually harmful or not. Third, I prefer to not pay an exorbitant amount of money to a retail store when I can create the items on my own for a meager fraction of the cost.

I chose the most common type of seed bomb. Here is a description coming directly off from the provided website:

"1. Classic Clay Seed Ball

A mixture of clay soil (or potter's powder), compost and sees in the ration of 5:1:1 with water to bind. This is the most widely used method and their invention is credited to Japanese biologist and farmer Masanobu fukoka.

PROS: Easy to make at home, cheap and easily customised to local condition, moulded into any shape. All the ingredients are entirely natural.

CONS: Dirty to carry, the clay can easily become baked solid which then slows or prevents germination if there is insufficient rain."

Included on the site is a video demonstration as well as a documentary. Generally, for the other methods of seed bomb creation, there are pdf directions for how to make them.

If you are interested in volunteering, go to the previously posted website and click on enlist. You will find me as Natleenewt. Also, while reading On Guerrilla Gardening, Reynolds listed many areas in NYC as well as (more surprisingly) Delaware County, NY as hot spots of Guerrilla Gardening. I will be spending a lot of time in Delaware County, specifically in Delhi, and will post back to you anything I see or hear about this progressive movement in this area.

The Onset of a Guerilla Gardening Campaign

Just a little update:

On my ride home I threw out several wildflower seed bombs (if you don't remember what a seed bomb is, refer to an earlier post about guerilla gardening for a more detailed explanation).

A seed bomb, in short, is a ball of dirt and compost with some sort of seed embedded within it. You throw the the ball out of moving car, or wherever you would like, and it remains there until it rains and is implanted in the ground. Personally, I prefer to throw these seed bombs in the divider of highways where there is plenty of fertile land going to waste.

Anyways, here is a SHORT list of places I threw seed bombs:
Denver, CO
Deadwood, SD
Chicago, IL
Greenwich, CT

I will be doing some more guerilla gardening throughout the month of August.

Also, while staying at a KOA in Durango, CO I noticed that they had an herb garden as well as many other KOA's with recycle centers. I am going to do more research into the official policy of KOA (Kampgrounds of America) and look into how environmentally responsible they are as a whole, or if this was just the policy of the individual site.

July Conclusion and Apology

You gotta live and learn
You gotta crash and burn
You gotta take some stances and take some chances
You gotta laugh and love and take all life has to give
You gotta live and learn so you can learn to live
-Darius Rucker

My experience in Utah has been informative in many ways. First, it proves useful to know that agricultural landscapes can be created by people who have not grown up in the industry. Danny, as I have written, grew up in California and went to college to study film. He realized after moving to Los Angeles that he was disenchanted with the city life and craved the country; this is when he began considering opening his own vineyard. He started the vineyard on a vacation house his parents purchased which the previous owner had not watered in over five years. He learned about starting vineyards through reading an endless supply of how-to start-up books. This is truly remarkable and inspiring, and as it is a perfect illustration of how possible urban sustainability actually is. An upbringing in the field, as we learn, is not as important as drive, initiative, and environmental literacy.

Post-Utah served to be a disaster, epic illustration of poor planning, and unfortunate misplacement of trust. I left the choosing, planning and contacting of the New Mexico farm to another individual. Long story short, the contact which the planner was in correspondence with turned out to have given us wrong information. She had told the others at the farm that we were arriving a week earlier and by the time we arrived no one knew we were coming and had completed most of the harvest. On top of this, there was nowhere for us to sleep and basically no room for us without us being invasive and a nuisance. On top of this, the "farm" was actually a poorly organized three acre field. There were MANY other issues with the living arrangements which I will not include here for respect for the individuals inhabiting the residence at the current moment. Bottom line, the farm was inhabitable and I immediately left.

To say I am disappointed with the outcome of this trip would be an understatement. In the past, I have learned to take the leadership position in group projects. My attention to detail, persistence, and integrity have proven my work is reliable and consistant. Unfortunately, post-bachelor degree, I thought that I could rely on others to be as meticulous and well researched as myself. I was wrong. I have relearned that the only work I can count on to be of quality is my own.

I sincerely apologize to anyone who donated to this cause and trusted me to perform the research and work that you are all accustomed to receiving from me. I am embarrassed. In fact, I am mortified and desperately seek forgiveness. I do, however, assure everyone associated with this project that I WILL be doing another week long work exchange at another organic farm. I am already looking into a particular one in Suffolk County, Long Island and am in correspondence with the owner. This time I assure you I will not be working in conjunction with any other individual and the work will be performed solely by myself. I assure you I will put my best effort into the research. I thank you all again, everyone who follows my work as well as everyone who donated, and I hope that you trust that I have learned my lesson. I will continue to put out the quality of work I have in the past. I hope you continue to place your faith in my education and work.

Sincerely,

Natalie Colao

Montezuma Canyon Ranch Day 6

Today is our last day at the ranch and fortunately, it was also a day off! We went to Recapture Lake, a 250 acre, 150 foot deep, man-made lake only a few minutes away from Monticello. We brought two pontoon boats, two kayaks, fishing poles, and a dog; it was a truly relaxing day at the lake. Our intention was to catch dinner, we brought all the cooking supplies and even a watermelon. Yet, as luck would have it, we arrived at the lake just as soon as thunderstorms started to role in. After minutes of deliberation whether or not we would take our half metal boats into the lake, we finally left, defeated, and went to the museum.

After about an hour of touring the museum lobby (the entrance fee was $5 and no one wanted to pay it, we can learn enough in the lobby we all said)...the storm rolled through and we raced back to the lake for sun and fun. We had pontoon boats, kayaks, and plenty of swimming. Fishing did not go as well. Because of the storm, none of the fish were biting and all I or anyone else caught was a tree or a few twigs.

Later that night we all had a great farewell party which included venison burgers, a log cabin and some house music over satellite radio. We also took a night ride/hike through the canyons. It was an experience to say the least.