I would like to see the "All Things Food" forum have a sticky about the importance of knowing where our food comes from. Especially now that we are parents, it is our duty to protect our children from the monopoly of the food industry and we need to not be a slave to their malpractice.
A company by the name of Monsanto who genetically mutated soybeans by use of RoundUp (an
Herbicide). The company now has a patent on the mutation and aggressively prosecutes farmers who are thought of (not even proven of) saving seeds. Many farmers have been put completely out of business and bankrupt because of the company.
The outbreaks of E. Coli in beef thought to have been started by force feeding corn to cows are innumerable (one case is a fatal one in a 2 year old boy who ate two hamburgers, and died a horrible death 12 days later). Cows digestive systems have evolved to subsist on grass, not corn. The poor treatment of the animals prior, during, and after they have been slaughtered is aiding in the contamination.
To "prevent" the contamination of E. Coli, I bet you didn't know that the largest distributor of beef is now using a "filler" made with ammonia to cleanse the meat. While extensive testing still hasn't proved whether serious long term affects have been caused by ingesting ammonia in beef, it's still pretty scary that you probably didn't even know a common household cleaner is in your cheeseburger.
Since the US has found countless numbers of ways to use corn, the rise in cultivating the crop has put a significant number of foreign corn farmers out of business. Companies like IBP have marketed for jobs in Mexico, transported workers from the country and into the US to illegally work in their meat packing plants. The line of work is one of the most dangerous, unsanitary fields to work in, but IBP knows that these people need jobs, and won't complain, let alone report it. When immigration cracks down on the immigrants, they are deported. Meanwhile, IBP has pretty much gotten away with it.
Here is a clip of some videos/articles many of us on BG urge you watch further for some great information:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/12/monsantos-gmo-corn-linked_n_420365.html
http://www.localharvest.org/csa/
http://youtu.be/5eKYyD14d_0
http://www.natural-health-information-centre.com/avoiding-food-toxins.html?gclid=CJXZlfGgjqkCFUmNpAodJy6vjQ
http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/05/02/the-family-that-eats-together-stays-healthy-together/?iref=allsearch
Please feel free to give input, suggestions, provide links with great food information, tips of how to buy organically while on a budget, food stories, personal experiences with toxic and non-toxic foods etc.