Ethical Eating

A sermon delivered at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation (Blacksburg, VA), October 5, 2008, by the Reverend Christine Brownlie.

By now, many of you have heard or read that Ethical Eating is the study action issue that was approved by the delegates to our annual General Assembly as our focus for the next four years. In case you’re curious, the other option had to do with nuclear proliferation — certainly an issue that concerns many people. Why did the delegates choose Ethical Eating? As one person commented, “This is something I can really do something about!”

That makes sense to me — not that we should ignore complex and difficult issues like nuclear proliferation. But I think in this time of endless complexity and uncertainty, there is great appeal in an issue in which we can have an impact by our own decisions and actions. We’re aware of some of the issues concerning food production, distribution, nutrition, and food safety. We know that these issues affect every one of us, every day. What we may not realize, is that even these issues are wrapped in layers of complexities, and that even changes that seem to be “good” and “right” have unintended consequences for ourselves, for the huge numbers of people who make their livelihoods in the various sectors of the food industry, and for the Earth.

Let’s just start with the words “Ethical Eating.” In a recent issue of UU World, the magazine published by the UUA, a letter to the editor expressed concern that these words “might provoke someone who struggles with eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia to become even more determined not to eat and thus reinforce a dangerous behavior.”

The words “Ethical Eating “ make me uncomfortable, because I hear some possibility of judgment or the sense of a hierarchy of “purity.” If I enjoy a Wendy’s burger at lunch and you’re munching on a salad of organic greens and nuts, are you a “better” person than I am? If you buy your apples at WalMart because that’s where you can afford to shop and I buy mine at the Blacksburg Farmer’s Market because I try to buy local, will I refuse to eat the apple pie you brought for our community lunch?

I’d suggest that we begin this four-year conversation with the agreement that to respect each person’s right and need to make choices that work for them. I might be willing to listen to your concerns about the problems of beef production in America or the link between child slavery and chocolate, but you need to know that my decisions about what I eat belong to me, just as yours belong to you. I like the way Sid Baumel, the editor of the Web site <eatkind.net> puts it, “Ethical eating, like ethical living, is not about absolutes. It's about doing the best you're willing and able to do — and nurturing a will to keep doing better.”

Food and the ethics of food have been issues for human societies since ancient times. In the oldest books of the Jewish scriptures, we find commands that those who grow food must make provisions for the poor. I’m not sure that those of us who have more than enough to eat can really comprehend the power of the stories of Jesus feeding the multitudes with one little loaf and a couple of dried fish. Islam demands that the well-to-do provide alms and food for the hungry, as does every other faith tradition.

Since 1987, delegates to General Assembly have approved a number of statements about hunger, responsible consumption of all kinds of resources including food, environmental concerns, and other related issues. These were attempts to raise the consciousness of people in our congregation and to encourage mindful change. But now we have agreed to take on a substantive issue over a number of years. Here, straight from the UUA Web site, is a rationale for this decision.

Background and Reasons for Study:

This Congregational Study Action Issue is inspired by the work of the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee with Equal Exchange and the involvement of our congregations with both human rights and environmental protection issues.

The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee and Equal Exchange work together so that small farmers can receive a fair price for coffee, tea, and cocoa. The Unitarian Universalist Service Committee supports economic justice and safe and sustainable agriculture.

Hunger is both a community problem and an international problem that can be approached in a variety of ways. There is a need for political advocacy in support of government programs that try to feed the hungry.

There is a need also for involvement with service programs that deliver food to individuals and families — for example, Meals on Wheels programs.

Significance to Unitarian Universalism:

Unitarian Universalists have a vision of environmental justice. One of our principles acknowledges “the interdependent web.” Others affirm the importance of human rights. Together, our principles form one holistic statement that helps to define liberal religion.

The UUA site offers suggestions for study.

• There are different religious teachings concerning the production, distribution, and use of food. Why is food so important in religion?

• There are environmental concerns and concerns about animal rights and human rights. What moral guidelines, if any, should govern food production?

• Some people have too much food and some have too little. How should congregations address issues like poverty and hunger, nutrition education, and health promotion?

• What guidelines, if any, govern the purchase and use of food and beverages in your congregation? Do you pause for a blessing when you serve food?

• Support sustainable agriculture and farmers' markets. Encourage organic community gardening.

• Volunteer in support of community food pantries, Meals on Wheels programs, and similar projects that address the problem of hunger.

• Become an advocate for social and economic justice. Support labor unions, farmers' cooperatives, “fair trade” associations, and other organizations that help the farmers and other workers who produce and distribute food in the global market.

Do you recall the reason the GA delegate gave for choosing Ethical Eating over Nuclear Containment? Because we can do something about it.

Indeed we can. Some of the things that we can do are obvious even if they are not easy for all of us. Again, food choices are not just a matter of nutrition, health, or economics. Food also says something about our family of origin, our lifestyle preferences, the habits and ways of self-care that we’ve developed, and how we like to spend our time. This means that changing our food habits can take time and patience. Giving up the nightly bowl of ice cream before bed might seem like an obvious way to get stared on a healthier diet, but if this is something we’ve done since childhood it could be easier and wiser to begin with something less ingrained in our daily routine

My desire to consume a more ethical diet has led to some changes in my behaviors. This year, I grew a variety of vegetables and put flowers on the back burner. I tried to make the most of the garden. What I didn’t eat, I put away in the freezer. I not only froze beets, I froze the beet greens too. I started making yogurt to avoid the plastic containers. I eat less meat and try to buy organic meats and eggs despite the higher cost. I buy milk that is produced by a local dairy. I am trying to be more mindful about snacking and to catch myself when I’m tempted to eat because I’m stressed out or bored. Instead, I take a walk, play with my cats, knit, or work on a project.

The food needs of the community got my attention as well. I contributed to a couple of canned-food drives. With the support of our food bank volunteers, I worked with our local interfaith food bank to make it easier for working parents to get food by being open one weeknight a week.

There’s nothing very startling on my list. And I consider it just a warm-up, a little exercise in becoming more mindful about what I eat and the choices that are available to me. A worthwhile beginning, but I know that there is more that I can do to address this issue of Ethical Eating.

We need to study the politics and the economics of food so that new solutions to old problems like hunger can be addressed in ways that really help. I was surprised to learn that the food banks that I’m supporting might not be the best way to help people who struggle with hunger.

I’ve always thought of the local food bank as a necessary institution, because every community has to find a way to assist those who cannot meet their need for affordable food. I’ve worked in food banks and for meals on wheels programs that provide food to the homebound. Like many of you, I contribute to food drives for food banks. But I have to confess that in all the years I’ve been a supporter of food banks, I’ve never looked seriously at the causes of hunger and food insecurity in the communities in which I’ve lived. I guess that I’ve just accepted the old biblical claim that the poor will always be with us, and have simply tried to make things a little easier for those who need help.

I continue to believe that this help is important and necessary. But after reading Closing the Food Gap, Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty by food policy activist and journalist Michael Winne, I now know that it is a band-aid approach to the issue. Winne tells us that providing free food is not enough. We must also take a hard look at the underlying issues of hunger and poverty in our community and state. He decries the two-tiered food distribution in our country. He says that there is one for the well-to-do middle class that gives access to better and more costly food through posh grocery stores, organic food markets like Wild Oats and Whole Foods, and high-priced Farmers’ Markets. He says that we need to be innovative and work in partnership with people living in low income communities to develop solutions so that the food gap between the haves and have nots grows smaller.

Winne believes that food banks should become advocates for changes in our national and local food policies. He offers an example of an effective program of advocacy by a food bank in Oregon. The Board of this food bank developed an advocacy committee that took on some hard issues such as the minimum wage. They encouraged low-income clients to take advantage of the Earned Income Tax Credit. The food bank has taken a strong position in support of expanding the Food Stamp program and other state welfare legislation that directly affect low-income working families.

Winne laments that the organic food movement and the anti-hunger movement have not joined forces to help develop innovative programs that would make organic foods and local produce more readily available to low-income families through government food programs. He’s not talking about the small farmers who developed and fostered the organic food movement through the 1970s and 80s, but the big producers like Cascadian Farms, which is owned by food giant General Mills. He also points out that the production methods and the employment practices of large-scale organic producers are sometimes no better than those of standard factory farms. We like to think that the chickens that produce our “cage-free hormone-free” eggs have happy lives in wide open spaces, or that the beef cattle we eat have enjoyed life in green pastures. But it ain’t necessarily so!

It’s clear to me that this new study action issue has a very broad scope — even if we limit our discussions to the needs of people in United States. Looking at this issue on a global scale is mind-boggling! I’m glad that we have four years to look at this issue. We’ll be having an intensive focus on food this month, and after that we’ll have an occasional conversation on food issues. With the rising cost of oil and gasoline, the production costs for farmers and the food distribution sector are also rising. Solutions are not going to be quick and easy to put into place, but the need is only growing.

What can we do to help? Where might we start to make helpful changes in our own lives? How can we, as a religious community committed to justice, make a difference in a way that supports the dignity and worth of those who need food assistance? What steps can we take to help create better policies at the local, state, and national level? These are the questions that I come away with. I hope that you will bring your own questions and observations to the AfterWord discussion that will be held in Elarth Hall after the ending of the service. Food justice is something that affects all of us, and I believe that we can make a difference for the better.

May it be so.