Let Them Eat Yodels

April 18th is the last best chance for Congress to reform the Farm Bill for at least a year. For a compelling and beautifully written case for why we, the health-conscious readers of Spoonfull, should care check out this article by Michael Pollan, author of "Omnivore's Dilemma."

The bottom line: By subsidizing the over-production of a handful of crops (those that happen to be the raw inputs to nutritionally worthless processed foods) and discouraging the local growers of virtually everything else, the Farm Bill results in a world where ring-dings are cheaper than produce.

We get the worst of this bargain every day--either in the check-out line at Whole Foods or in line at the drive-thru (when we're too broke to 'buy local'). Now Congress is trying to pass a Farm Bill which gives the junkfood coalition another sweet deal, but Bush, who is actually on the right side of this issue, has threatened to veto the bill absent substantial changes. It will be interesting to see what happens.