Independent Film Festival Boston 2009

This lunch has been brought to you by. . . .

The unspoken mantra of consumer culture may as well be “Bigger, better, faster, more!” The American business sector never stops innovating when it comes to meeting customer demand––but just how many “innovators” have gotten to our food before we do?

Fruits, vegetables, and livestock still carry connotations of a farmer waking up with the rooster’s crow to raise fresh, organic life in the fresh, organic air. The pastoral image masks an intensely mechanized, capitalistic system that is as hell-bent on efficiency, revenue, and competitive advantage as any other industry. The nation’s largest food production and distribution companies have amassed enough influence over the years to control every single stage in the lifespan of our purportedly wholesome ingredients––and their wallets may be too big for our stomachs.

Director Robert Kenner connects with Fast Food Nation author Eric Schlosser and a host of experts––farmers, professors, corporate leaders, politicians, and advocates––to trace just some of the innumerable effects of commercial food production. He casts a wide net, examining everything from chemical applications to the treatment of animals; from sanitation practices to workers’ rights; from disease epidemics to legal battles. At the core of the study is a call to viewers to demand the details of what they put in their mouths. Needless to say, FOOD, INC. will give you plenty of food for thought.

- Sandra L. Frey