As I enter this adorable little café in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco, I look around to see if there are any signs indicating that the coffee beans are organic. “Is the coffee organic here?” I ask the barista. “Yes, organic and fair trade.”
“Great. I’ll have a double soy latte and a blackberry muffin.”
It is only after I take a few bites of the delicious muffin do I realize that I haven’t asked where they source their pastries. Oh well, at least the coffee is ethically produced.
Herein lies the typical internal dilemma of the ethical consumer.
It seems that questions of local, organic and fair trade have become common place in forward thinking cities such as San Francisco and New York, yet much of the discussion about ethical consumption has yet to be brought forward to the mainstream foodie network, not to mention the less obvious aspects of food production. What about the treatment of the farm workers? Or the dishwasher at the back of the restaurant – does he receive a living wage? How about a day of rest?
As I acclimate myself back into the real world, outside the idealistic and optimistic walls of the Hazon Food Conference, I find myself inquiring much more about how my food is produced and, as a result, severely limiting where I can dine while simultaneously having a clear conscience. Becoming a consumer has become much more difficult and complicated since taking on the burden of only eating food that is ethically produced. More time, effort and awareness go into each meal and yet more respect and delight come from it as well.
I became a vegetarian almost a year ago after attending my first Hazon Food Conference, after delving into a Beit Midrash session on the ethical production of meat. It seemed pretty straightforward not to buy into an industry that so violently disrespects the land, animals and workers. Yet, as I dig myself deeper into the rabbit hole, I realize that with a heightened food awareness come even more questions.
Despite my ongoing confusion, a few of my ethical consumption mantras have been “organic, local, and fair wages.” Chances are, if you are buying your food from a farmers market, the answers to those questions will be straightforward. As for restaurants? While I have admittedly not demanded to know the wages of every employee in a restaurant, I do try to stick to small, local and at least partially organic establishments.
As we move into the sweetness of the New Year, I ask you to try and include some ethical consumption practices in your daily lives. Whether it is buying more produce from your local farmer’s market, or refusing to dine at a restaurant that openly treats their employees poorly, or promoting organic meals at your synagogue, whatever you choose to do this year makes a huge difference in the world. Now that’s something to celebrate.
Anabelle Harari is a recent graduate of Mount Holyoke College and writes about food as an agent of change on her local food blog. She attended the Hazon Food Conference in August as a member of Pursue’s food justice cohort. Anabelle is currently volunteering with an Israeli social justice organization in Nepal, and you can connect with her on Twitter @thelocalbelle.
{ 2 trackbacks }
{ 0 comments… add one now }