people
As society becomes increasingly more hectic and our food systems stray from traditional home cooked meals, consumers mindlessly opt for quick, fast food, not considering how their decision is part of a larger whole and disruptive to the environment. Consumers only think of their immediate need to satisfy their own personal agenda for food. Alternative eats recaptures what our society is losing: traditional cuisines, essential cooking skills, and the comradery built over cooking and sharing a meal. The social role of food today needs re-evaluation. We eat every day, yet mindlessly shovel food in our face, taking good food and good company for granted. We need to return to the days when food was grown in our backyard, when we made thoughtful decisions concerning the ingredients of our food, when food was cooked at home and enjoyed with good company.
profit
Industrial agriculture has financialized food, turning it into an investment/commodity, rather than as a sense of nourishment, or a means to advocate the labor of farmers. When consumers buy from large food conglomerates they vote with their dollars, encouraging the government to continue subsidizing monocrop growers. As consumers we need to better support cultivating a sustainable food system by purchasing organic, fair trade, and locally sourced goods. When buying ethically produced foods, you financially serve your community (local & global), and food is turned into recognition of labor.
planet
The rapidly expanding practices of industrial agriculture and the coinciding development of the food supply chain create negative consequences on the environment. Purchasing seasonal produce strays from the current consumer demands for rice, potatoes and wheat. This choice avoids supporting the monocropping practices of big agriculture that wreak havoc and place stress on the environment. The creative recipes and use of seasonal ingredients in Alternative Eats destroys the lack of diversity that results from the mono-cropping culture perpetuated by our society. Using produce grown in environments and climates abroad, rather than cooking based on the produce available in the local season decreases global food availability and environmental sustainability. Seasonal purchasing leaves a wider variety of food options for communities both local and abroad. The amount of land needed to adequately feed each community reduces because no additional land is used to meet the food demands of external populations. Purchasing seasonal foods also reduces the carbon emissions of transporting goods overseas. The thoughtful decision to cook a seasonal meal with local goods further reflects the obligation consumers have to preserve the planet for future generations.
