A Week's Worth of Groceries

[Requiem]

Here's an interesting photo-essay documenting what a week's worth of groceries looks like around the globe.

It inadvertently also becomes a statement on health, land-fill use, and wealth.

S.

[Kyobanim]

I guess those Germans are thirsty.

[NurseTim]

Our diet looks like crap, as well as briton's and the more developed countries except Canada, Australia, and Japan.

Originally Posted by NurseTim

Our diet looks like crap, as well as briton's and the more developed countries except Canada, Australia, and Japan.

How does one family's diet become "our" diet It sure a hell doesn't even remotely resemble mine.

[MR2]

I thought S.A.D. was for Seasonal Affective Disorder - i.e. the Wintertime blues?

[GratefulCitizen]

Originally Posted by DocIllinois

I suspect that NurseTim is referring to the Western pattern diet, which includes high intakes of refined sugars, red meat, and high fat foods.

These arbitrary categories don't provide much useful information.
Refined sugars generally don't have much variance, but there are tremendous differences among different sources of "red meat" and among "high fat foods".

Just generic words useful for marketing gimmicks.

[echoes]

My humble little two cents...It depends on who or whom you are cooking for. Period. Could take samples from the German and Japan kitchens, as well as U.S.

To myself this article has an agenda, and it does not paint Americans very favorably.
Which in turn, irritates the Hell out me as a cook b/c believe it or not, most American families/ Companies I have prepared menus and food for want good healthy and flavorful options includng...red meat and butter and all things n between.

Just sayin...Enough of the America bashing!


Holly

[JHD]

I am a big believer in balance in all things. I am glad to say, my kitchen looks more like Canada's. We like butter, I like real cream, but we are also big on fresh fruits, veggies, and lean protein. Pizza no more than once a month, if that often.

[Team Sergeant]

That's not an American family, there's no beer in that picture!

Wow talk about processed and fast food lovers! A bias food photo if you ask me. But it might explain why 85% of Americans are fat....... I'm surprised by looking at that "American family" photo the parents are as slim as they are....

[GratefulCitizen]

Originally Posted by DocIllinois

The marketing of what? A higher intake of, for example, lean meat, polyunsaturated and monosaturated fats, fruits and vegetables?

I'll buy into that.

Was looking at the generalization of red meat and high fat food.

The nature of a given source of red meat is dependent upon what the animal ate, toxins exposure, processing, preservatives, storage time, cooking time/temperature, etc.
"Fat" is a term which refers to collection of many different types of molecules.

For animal sources fat is dependent on what the animal ate and toxin exposure (toxins accumulate in fat).
Fat is greatly affected by processing, preservatives, storage time, and cooking time/temperature.

There are the ratios of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids to consider.
Persistent myths scare people away from saturated fats.

Human breast milk is loaded with saturated fat.
Must be a reason.

Argentinians seem to fare well with plenty of red meat.
The French enjoy good health despite saturated fat.


American food suffers from the natural consequences of economics.
It is a competitive, price-driven industry where the greatest profit margins are found in cheap production and maximum shelf life.

Source foods are produced with an emphasis of quantity rather than quality.
The drive for long shelf life results in food-like products which are preserved with strange chemicals and harsh cooking while being made palatable by added sugar or artificial sweeteners.

There are limits to the human body's ability to tolerate toxic insults.

[Richard]

Menzel and D’Aluisio’s book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats (Material World Books, Ten Speed Press, 2005)—is another around-the-world exploration of average daily life, this time focusing on food in 24 countries. The authors detail each family’s weekly food purchases and the total cost, and use thought-provoking interviews. The centerpiece of each chapter is a portrait of the entire family surrounded by a week’s worth of groceries. The couple won the coveted James Beard Best Book Award in 2006 for Hungry Planet, and in 2005 received Book of the Year for the volume from the Harry Chapin World Hunger Media Foundation.

http://www.menzelphoto.com/bio.php

Might be interesting to read the entire book, revisit the families, and compare 'then' (the 2005 photo-essays pictured) and 'now' (2013) to see what, if any, changes have taken place in the diets of those same families.

Richard

[Sdiver]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

That's not an American family, there's no beer in that picture!

Wow talk about processed and fast food lovers! A bias food photo if you ask me. But it might explain why 85% of Americans are fat....... I'm surprised by looking at that "American family" photo the parents are as slim as they are....

There is beer in that "American Family's" picture. Just to the left of the brown cabinet, under the 12 pack of coke and capri sun, you can see a 12 pack of Budweiser.

I agree about all the "fast" and processed foods in that picture. Not to big on the fruits and veggies. All I can see is some grapes and a couple of tomatoes.

The only thing that I am glad/happy to see in that "American Family" picture, is the package of BACON displayed front and center.

[x SF med]

Originally Posted by WCH

How does one family's diet become "our" diet It sure a hell doesn't even remotely resemble mine.

Not even close to ours... don't those people eat any veggies and lean protiens?

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by Sdiver

There is beer in that "American Family's" picture. Just to the left of the brown cabinet, under the 12 pack of coke and capri sun, you can see a 12 pack of Budweiser.

I agree about all the "fast" and processed foods in that picture. Not to big on the fruits and veggies. All I can see is some grapes and a couple of tomatoes.

The only thing that I am glad/happy to see in that "American Family" picture, is the package of BACON displayed front and center.

Everyone that is a real American has to have BACON!!!

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by Richard

Menzel and D’Aluisio’s book Hungry Planet: What the World Eats (Material World Books, Ten Speed Press, 2005)—is another around-the-world exploration of average daily life, this time focusing on food in 24 countries. http://www.menzelphoto.com/bio.php
[/COLOR]

The American family we're so critical of is featured in this book. At the time of the photo they lived in NC and both parents were breadwinners. They admitted to having weight problems, especially their boys who were "picky" eaters when younger.

There were two other American families featured in the book, both with slightly better eating habits. Prepackaged foods seem to dominate all three family's grocery carts.

The book may have had an agenda, but I think Americans have honestly earned their high cholesterol, obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, etc.

Most of America's health problems are related to lifestyle choices and a lot of those choices are made in the grocery store.

Do we all eat like the family in the photo? I don't know a single family who does and apparently no one here does, either. Which is good! When I go to the grocery store, I shop the perimeter where the bakery, dairy, and fresh produce are located. Rarely do I venture into the aisles, which take up 80% of the store and have nothing but packaged foods, convenience items, junk foods, frozen dinners and every other kind of nonsense that Americans put into their bodies.

But lets face it: grocery stores only stock what people are buying. And boy, are they buying all that crap in the aisles.

Susan