Food for Thought - Film Review of KING CORN

I just saw the documentary film, “KING CORN” by Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis. Two college graduates leave the city for rural Iowa to grow an acre of the nation’s most powerful crop.

As Ian and Curt discover, almost everything Americans eat contains corn. High-fructose corn syrup, corn-fed meat, and corn-based processed foods are staples of the modern diet: from beef cattle fodder to soda sweetener.

The American dream of cheap food is realized … but at an insidious cost.

“For the first time in American history, our generation was at risk of having a shorter lifespan than our parents.
...................And it was because of what we ate.” (1)

America’s record harvests are supported by a government subsidy system that promotes corn production beyond all market demand.

“The farm bill emerged originally to support farmers during the Great Depression. But over time, it has turned into a system of subsidies heavily favoring five crops: corn, cotton, rice, soybeans and wheat. Between 1995 and 2003, farmers who grew these commodity crops received an average of $14.5 billion in subsidies each year.” (2)

The farm bill offers little support to farmers who produce our nation's fruits, nuts and vegetables, despite the USDA's nutritional guidelines calling for a diet rich in all three.(2) If our families are getting sick and we support farms with our taxes, is our food really “cheap”?

I think the film contains valid information everyone should know. It was a slow journey. It is only when all the pieces have been put together did I understand the full impact of the Farm Bill on our food chain, on what food we get and how we get it.

Watching the film was like going on a meditative journey with them; unfolding information without judgment. They allow us, the viewers, to draw our own conclusions.

I highly recommend viewing it. For more information about the film, go to www.kingcorn.net.
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1. Curt Ellis, KING CORN, 2007
   
2. Alice Waters, “Farm Bill Should Focus on Healthful Foods,”
   Sacramento Bee, June 10, 2007