Why Does a Salad Cost More Than a Big Mac?

That's a good question, and the answer is simple: Subsidies.  But before I get into that, I must confess that I dined out at restaurants twice this past weekend.  It was Mother's Day weekend, and I guess I felt a little "entitled" to a couple of meals out.  A little beside the point of the title of this post, but still important because at least a portion of the conversation over both meals was about what's wrong with our nation's approach to food and why so many of us are literally addicted to fast food. 

OBESITY CONSPIRACY: The U.S. Government Scandal that's Really Making You Fat

Had to post this...

Posted by Dr. Mercola | May 04 2010 | 44,101 views

Share794

retweet 46

47

A decade ago, an American woman's waist, on average, was close to two inches smaller than. Eighteen year olds are 15 pounds heavier than they were in the 1970s.
One reason is federal subsidies for food production. Take a look at these numbers:

• Meat/Dairy -- 73.8 percent
• Grains -- 13.2 percent
• Sugar/Oil/Starch/Alcohol -- 10.7 percent
• Nuts/Legumes -- 1.9 percent
• Vegetables/Fruits -- 0.4 percent

That’s right – just 1.9 percent for nuts and legumes and 0.4 percent for fruits and vegetables. As a result, a salad often costs you more than a Big Mac.

McNuggets for Social Change

McNugget Backlash: Is Fast Food on the Run from Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution? - DailyFinance

The experiment that TV chef and raconteur Jamie Oliver says "always works" to turn kids off processed food failed in Huntington, W.Va., where the obesity rate is above the national average.

When he showed children how chicken nuggets are made -- grinding up the least desirable parts of a bird, gloppily straining out the bones, and adding flavorings and fillers -- he expected them to refuse to eat them. Instead, after having cried "ewww!" and "gross!" they each asked for a patty, answering his bewilderment with: "We're hungry!"

While the stunt missed the mark on his Food Revolution TV show, it hit home for many kids and parents. One blog post on the topic , in which the author said her kids had watched and decided never to eat a chicken nugget again, was still the most popular post on the site days later.

People Are Talking

Oliver is getting people talking -- and changing habits. An informal poll of my Twitter followers found that about half were put off chicken nuggets for good, and the rest had previously rejected them. A friend who edits a parenting magazine said she had "told dozens of people" how the unappealing ingredients made her "queasy." Another friend decided to forgo her usual annual spring treat of McDonald's (MCD) chicken McNuggets, solely because she and her kids watched Oliver squish raw chicken through a strainer. A long screed from a San Diego writer told how her family was giving up chicken nuggets, too.