My weekend could only be described as putting out fires lit in uneducated consumers...
I spent the weekend visiting my South Dakotan friend Natalie Sturdevant at the New Jersey ocean-front home she is staying for the summer while serving as a nanny for a wealthy family to earn money for college. It was almost a culture shock to see how different their life was compared to my own. What amazed me the most was their choices of food: coffee beans shipped directly from Hawaii, fruit ordered online from a local producer, and organic EVERYTHING! Organic fruit, meat, cereal, and more. I realized that this is the hip and trendy appeal for people to consume products they might not otherwise eat. I reminded the family that conventional products were just as safe as organic products, and farmers and ranchers have been providing safe and wholesome foods to feed the world for generations.
On the train from New Jersey to Washington D.C., I met a man in his mid-fifties. I told him I grew up on a cattle ranch in South Dakota. His eyes got big and he said, "You live on a real cattle farm?" I almost wanted to laugh as this middle-aged business man curiously looked at me just like the first graders do at the Ag in the Classroom workshops I do back home in South Dakota. I patiently explained to him my experiences of growing up on cattle farm...pasture to plate. It was a very humbling experience.
Just when I thought I had changed another consumer's view point on agriculture, a new challenge presented itself to me when I arrived to my dorm at George Washington University.
When I arrived home from the beach to begin another week of work at the USDA, I looked in the freezer and to my dismay...my roommate had bought Boca Burgers, aka veggie burgers! I have a beef with the lack of beef in my freezer. She asked me if I was upset, and when I asked her why...she said, "Boca Burgers are cute and cheap. Don't you think they are trendy?"
I guess there is no denying it, vegetarianism has certainly become a trend as giant organizations such as HSUS, PETA, Farm Sanctuary, and Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine endorse celebrities to make it seem like the cool thing to do...
According to a recent poll of retailers and grocers, vegetarian options have grown by nearly 33% in the past five years and the number is increasing. On the East coast, I am living side-by-side with individuals that have absolutely no clue where their food comes from. Although it is frustrating, I couldn't think of a better place to submerge myself. Afterall, it is my mission to connect the consumer to the producer by sharing the beef production story, and this is a real fine place to start!
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