We legally don't have the right to know what's in our food

As you probably heard, Dewayne Johnson won a huge case against Monsanto this week. Woo hoo! It is now proven that glyphosate (in the popular weed killer Round Up) led to Dewayne’s terminal cancer, and he will be awarded $289 million. 

This case gives huge precedent for more cases to follow. And, having my food choices validated in the conventional arena feels pretty good. 

But, this is just the tip of the iceberg. Glyphosate is not the only chemical that is abundantly sprayed or added to our American food. And, the truth is, we don’t even have the right to know what’s in our food. 

Let me tell you a short story about our farm. 

A couple months ago, the farmer tried a new USDA certified meat processor. Despite relaying our all-natural approach to food, we discovered two questionable ingredients in the regular bacon – “Honey Powder (Refinery Syrup, Honey)” and “Natural Spice”. What are those exactly? 

Members wanted to know more about what these lab-produced ingredients actually contain. And, rightly so! So, I reached out to the processor. 

After weeks of emails and phone calls back and forth, I finally got a definitive response. It wasn’t good. 

“The supplier isn't required to tell them what is in there. And in turn we aren't required to tell you which you probably already know.”

And there it is. We legally don’t have the right to know. Neither does the farmer. These are the rules of the USDA. 

In our situation, it’s not that bad. The pigs were raised healthfully on a natural diet in the forest. They were processed with care. It got messed up at the very last step with two questionable ingredients in very small amounts in one of our products. My body can likely handle it. 

But, in the situation of a conventional American diet – OMG. Glyphosate and so many other chemicals are found in everything. Everything. And then think of the chemicals in modern American healthcare. A person’s body can’t handle that. That is a BIG deal. 

So, what can we do? 

We continue to diligently read ingredients and source food from small farmers. We support farmers who are willing to go the extra mile to ensure our food is free of any “junk” sprayed on fields, injected into animals, or added to food while it’s being made. We hope to avoid chronic illness like that of Dewayne Johnson. 

And, what can our farmer do? 

Our farmer will obviously not allow the processor to use the regular bacon recipe again. Our farmer has learned to review the recipes used in processing before sending his animals out. 

There is so much more to this issue than I can write in one letter. Why hasn’t glyphosate been banned despite the known carcinogenic properties? What is actually in powdered honey and natural spice? What do synthetic ingredients do to my body?

Please keep reading each week for more about what’s in our food.