Words to live by

Eat food.  Not too much.  Mostly Plants.  These seven words put together by Michael Pollan in "The Omnivore's Dilemma" is a motto most people can live by.  That is the takeaway from the folks who make the recommendations for the government's guidelines on what we should be eating.  Specifically, we should be eating less meat and more vegetables.  Another target of the experts is processed foods.  The agro-industrial complex will fight these recommendations throughout the public comments period.  The last time around, the admonition to eat less meat was changed to "eat more lean meat".   The corn/soybean/feedlot system has led to an unprecedented rise in obesity in America.  The addition of high fructose corn syrup to almost every processed food makes it harder for the poor to access nutritious foods.  The produce industry has a great opportunity to make the case for more consumption of fruits and vegetables.  The huge subsidies granted to the corn and soybean growers could be diverted to support a 5 or 7 a day program to encourage more consumption of whole foods.  Veg and fruit producers should be encouraging consumers to make their voices heard as the Agriculture Dept. acts on the recommendations and comments.