What's Really In Our Food

So I recently discovered a show from the BBC called "What's Really In Our Food." After watching the intro and a few minutes of the show, the first thing that screamed out at me was how much this show couldn't/wouldn't be produced in the US. It's no secret that I'm a closet optimist. I hold most things in contempt, while waiting for better results. The reason I bring this up, is I have a memory that crosses back to my political "protest" days. I protested the Gulf War, and even went to Crawford Texas to do so. Again, I felt it was a moral obligation to do so. The BBC was showing protests around the world ... the US media ... alarmingly silent. My point being, American media have their pockets filled by companies that a show like this would anger. Not only do the American media fall into this money pit, but so do the politicians:

American Farm Bureau Federation
One of Capitol Hill's most vocal lobby groups, it is also one of the nation's largest crop and livestock insurance companies. Its county-level meetings have been a prime forum for airing fears about the climate bill.
Lobby spending: $2,634,661
Lobbyists: 37
Campaign contributions: $26,000

National Cattlemen's Beef Association
The group that brought you "Beef: It's What's For Dinner" represents the likes of the American Hereford Association, Purina, Dow Chemical, McDonald's, and Wal-Mart.
Lobby spending: $198,257
Lobbyists: 15
Campaign contributions: $225,047

National Pork Producers Council
Members include billion-dollar corporations like Cargill, Bayer, and Pfizer. Top priorities this year include a demand for a $250 million swine subsidy.
Lobby spending: $863,137
Lobbyists: 26
Campaign contributions: $202,134

National Milk Producers Federation
Has some 40,000 members, from local co-ops to titans like Kraft Foods; vows to "ensure that agricultural enterprises are shielded from any adverse impacts" of climate legislation.
Lobby spending: $460,000
Lobbyists: 17
Campaign contributions: $88,000

(taken from Mother Jones for the last election cycle.)

If you get a chance, find "What's Really in Our Food." Download it, watch it and question why shows like this don't get produced in the US to be shown on major cable or non cable entities.

"The Food business is far and away the most important business in the world. Everything else is a luxury. Food is what you need to sustain life every day. Food is fuel. You can't run a tractor without fuel, and you can't run a human being without it either. Food is the absolute beginning."
Dwayne Andreas, former chairman, Archer Daniels Midland