USDA

Anyone can see this is wrong, right?

Submitted by Michael on Sun, 11/07/2010 - 08:03

Anyone who gives thought to food politics knows that it is supremely fugged up.

* We subsidize corn to the point that no bushel grown in the US would make a profit if not for Uncle Sam's contribution.

* Through the subsidies, we urge our fellow citizens to eat processed food at the expense of fresh. 

* Even nuttier, we never intended that outcome, but the chance of changing it is all but nil, because the situation is locked in by lobbyists.

Subsidizing the good stuff

Submitted by Michael on Thu, 08/26/2010 - 12:22

In "The End of Overeating," Dr. David Kessler sketches this very useful, very accurate image: When customers step up to the McDonald's counter and pull out their $4.50 (or whatever), it's as though Uncle Sam is standing next to them, pulling out his wallet and paying another dollar (or whatever), because of the ways the federal government subsidizes corn.

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