Food, Inc. (DVD, 2009)

I give this DVD 4 hooves up!.... It's a MUST see if you have any concern for your well being.

As I was watching this thought provoking DVD, deep within my soul I felt saddened and ashamed for knowing that I have contributed to a living hell for so many animals that are factory farmed for my consumption. During the movie, I had an earth shattering revelation that I was a hypocrite... I fight for animals rights and environmental causes, yet I was blindly heading to the market for my families pre-packaged, guilt-free steaks & chicken, and processed foods.

I adore all animals, and I respect their lives. I respect Mother Earth. Yet I ate meat 3-5 times a week, and had no problem serving food from a box. All my life I have been a "flexitarian", but this DVD has changed my life and my diet. Actually, it threw me over the edge. I will no longer eat meat washed in ammonia, chickens washed in chlorine, and will no longer eat from a box. How dare these huge corporations think that we are their guinea pigs... willfully feeding cows 28 million pounds of antibiotics a year that end up in our bodies, feeding these animals genetically modified corn instead of grass (or hey), serving the American public "downed cow", diseased and sick chickens, who live their entire lives in knee deep feces. Welcome to their science experiment. They do not know the short or long term effect that their practices are having on the American people consuming their products, and what's worse is finding out that they don't care. All the information in this DVD should have been available to us consumers years ago. These corporations should have an open door policy and yet they hide and deceive what they are doing with the food products we are sticking in our face. I am now convinced, more than ever, that these corporations are the leading cause of most of our illnesses, and our food addictions. This DVD is your wake up call people. Ask yourself, who is in charge of your life?

Know wonder these Corporation's had "no comment" for this documentary and did not want us to see the ugly truth behind their practices... no one in their right mind would think, "Um Beef... Sounds delicious!" I am so thankful that the "veil" of truth has been removed and now I can actually understand why Americans should eat organic, farm raised, free range, grass fed animals, and buy locally grown fruits and vegetables. I really get it now!

This DVD will make you sit and wonder; How could all this be true?, How could "they" allow this to go on?, Where are the food police?, and Does any one respect LIFE anymore? Is it all about the money for these corporate giants?... the answer to that one is easy to answer after viewing this wonderfully made DVD. Thank you Michael Pollan for helping me remove my blinders.

I purchased this because it was spoken well of on a site I frequent. It is a thought provoking eye opener. One viewer said her children will no longer eat food from the 'fast food' stores. She's not sure she likes that, since it was so convenient for her to feed them that way. I, personally, once lived on a turkey farm. The way the birds were raised bothered me much; the farm's owners cared not a whit about the injured and dead birds that had to be removed daily. Another acquaintance, who once worked in the industry, said that it is actually worse than shown in the film. I'm doing my best to see that friends and family see the documentary; they in turn will spread the word. I think that more examples of persons hurt by bucking the food-source system would enhance the film. One of the more upsetting aspects is the refusal of the food industry in general to be willing to respond to what the film reveals; it's kind of like taking the 5th amendment. For anyone who has no clue of how the food chain works in the U.S.A., this will be a shocking revalation. Anyone watching this film will have to make a decision after, hopefully, pondering it: pooh-pooh it and continue 'life' as usual, or seriously change eating habits and have an honestly pleasant and healthy life. Recommended absolutely--you need the knowledge regardless of whether you act upon it.

This documentary is a well rounded, in-depth introduction to the horrors behind why a hamburger costs less than a bag of carrots. If you want to learn more about the patenting of food and Monsanto, then watch The Future of Food. Corn is taking over the fields? Watch King Corn. Is fast food bad for me? Watch Supersize Me. This doc touches on all those bases and then some. Few people would let cameras in to see the conditions the animals are kept in, but one woman showed her chicken (?) coop. We also see "tame" footage of slaughterhouses (compared to the stuff you might see on a PETA website). We hear about the dangers of E. Coli in the food supply - it's not a matter of "if" but "when". You can probably google E. Coli outbreaks and there's something in the news about it somewhere. We see a bit on illegal immigration. This is not a souped up liberal documentary, I promise. It's not a party causing this offensive treatment of our food supply, the whole system is messed up. High five to that organic farmer, Joel something. Well shot documentary. The graphics and pie charts were Grade A. If you're not familiar with where your McD's comes from, I would think this film is a must watch.

CAST: Michael Pollan, Eric Schlosser

I teach nutrition and bought this DVD to show to my class because I want them to know where some of these products we purchase to eat come from. This documentary does the job! I liked the contrasting elements between corporate foods and farmer organic, and those ranchers and farmers cought somewhere in between just tryting to surivive the pressures economically. It truly identifies the Price of food disparity in America. The historical elements on how industrialization contributes to the food industry is good too. The end trailers are great. There is a segment on promotion of Child Nutrition Act which I thought was good too and some deleted scenes. One other focus in the film is on who owns the rights to crop seeds and how this has effected american farmers and the quality of foods, GMO. I now think that I will also show this film to my Social Research class.

If you've seen Fast Food Nation and Supersize Me, you'll have an idea what to expect. It's definitely not sensationalized but realistic, honest and factual which some people find boring because they can't hold their concentration with a documentary (see some reviews here). The annimal cruelty pictured is mild compared to what really goes on, but you'll think about it when you buy meat for sure. They didn't go into huge details about all the chemicals and toxins that go into foods, but the viewer gets the point. (Or not, see another review here, where they "had to shut it off, because it was to much to handle", and gave it a poor review rating, since it wasn't a family movie. Seriously?).
There are about 3 extremely large slaughter houses that dictate everything. People are afraid to speak out, and an example of their power is the lawsuit against Oprah a few years ago, for saying she wasn't going to eat any hamburgers anymore. Years and a million dollars later she won, but who else can afford that? An organic farmer explains that 80% of E-coli bacteria can be eliminated by feeding cattle grass, but instead the beef mass producers rather wash the meat in amonia.
The documentary gets more political towards the end when it concentrates on the seed company Monsanto which has the monopoly on soybean seeds. There is a close connection between them and the government which is why they can do anything they want. Of course it's all about money. The two disturbing facts are that the soybeans are treated with Roundup and are 'Roundup-ready' which means you can spray them with Roundup and it will kill everything but the bean. The beans along with the Roundup end up in the majority of our food supply. Yumm! The second problem with this company is that farmers who buy their seeds will not be allowed to 'save' any for next year's planting, but must buy new ones every year. This company employs 75 spies that roam the country to find farmers that violate their rules. They threaten them with lawsuits so that they pay the large fines. I personally know a farmer who had to write them a check on the spot for $100,000, "or else". Just like that, easy money, eh?
I actually knew most of these issues before watching this, but didn't realize how powerful these food companies really are. It is very concerning to say the least. The message from the movie is that even though you think you're powerless, you're not. Your decision what to eat and buy makes the big food companies with their cancer-causing, obesity-promoting, toxic ingredients either richer or not. What you do matters.