For the last year or so, I feel like I’ve been on sort of a journey with regards to food. Reading about food. Thinking about food. Trying different kinds of food. Determining what my personal philosophy might be with regards to what I eat. It’s a constantly evolving process, and since I adore food, it’s a fun one, too.

A lot of people spend a lot of time thinking about what they eat – counting calories, fat grams, carbs, whatever. That’s not my thing. My thoughts are focused more on where the food I eat comes from, and my current food philosophy is that the more natural the food is, the more “whole,” the better.

One of the books I’ve read recently was Fast Food Nation. I strongly urge anyone who hasn’t already read it to do so immediately. It’s a terrific book, one I think everyone should read. It’s not one of those books that lectures you about how meat is bad, and how you should become a vegan. Meat isn’t bad, but fast food certainly is. And, the factory farms and industrial slaughterhouses are horrendous.

Wanna know why?

Let’s start with this: there’s a very good chance the burger you’re eating is covered in shit. Literally. The meat and animal products that come from these places are injected with all kinds of antibiotics and hormones. By the time it reaches your plate, the food is so heavily processed that it can hardly even be considered food anymore. The animals are packed into tiny spaces where they can’t even lay down. The workers at the meatpacking plants (as well as the fast food chains) are extremely low paid, and in the case of the meatpacking workers, subjected to physical injury and extremely unsafe working conditions. Giant corporate farms are pushing the small farmers (who are producing healthier, more sustainable animal products) out of business, and polluting the communities around them. There are about a hundred reasons why we should avoid any products that comes from these places.

This afternoon, I watched The Meatrix, an animated short that presents all of this information in a hilarious way. Check it out here. Also be sure to watch The Meatrix II and The Meatrix II 1/2. (By the way, The Meatrix was animated by Mike Judge, and won at South by Southwest in 2005.) I also recommend the Eat Well Guide, a guide to finding healthy, humane, sustainable food in your area. I found a few farms in the Oklahoma City metro area, as well as a list of local stores that sell these kinds of products.

I haven’t been perfect in my food choices – although I have become a vegetarian in the last year and given up nearly all fast food, I’m not very good about making sure my eggs and cheese come from good places. And I need to make more of an effort to get out of Wal-Mart and into the farmer’s markets.

I’m not saying everyone needs to become vegetarian, but it would be nice if more people would at least give some thought to where their food comes from.