Plant the Plate

A great new infographic from the Union of Concerned Scientists does an awesome job of showing the discrepancy between the typical American diet and the one recommended by the USDA. It also shows how subsidies to producers of the Big Five commodity crops (wheat, corn, soy, rice, and cotton) prevent U.S. farmers from planting the fruits and vegetables we need to be healthy. To make the essential transition to plant what's actually recommended for Americans, it would take $90 million, less than 2% of what's currently spent (more than $5 billion) on subsidies for the Big 5 commodity crops. Given that the outcome would be job creation for local food systems, better health for Americans, less reliance on foreign exports, and more local eating, I think it's a really worthwhile investment.



Image and information courtesy of Union of Concerned Scientists. More information and full sized image available here