I found this article from the New York Times extremely... heartening? Michael Pollan addresses an extensive letter to the next president, whosoe'er it may be: "you will need not simply to address food prices but to make the reform of the entire food system one of the highest priorities of your administration: unless you do, you will not be able to make significant progress on the health care crisis, energy independence or climate change. Unlike food, these are issues you did campaign on — but as you try to address them you will quickly discover that the way we currently grow, process and eat food in America goes to the heart of all three problems and will have to change if we hope to solve them. Let me explain."

If you've got a good half hour it's worth a read, I think. There may not be anything radically new here to any of you, but following on from my own frustration about the apparent futility of doing anything oneself/as a consumer (e.g. buying organic, going vegan, growing veges) I found it interesting to see the kinds of changes people are suggesting might work on a large (massive) scale. Pollan seems relatively pragmatic, too, about the kinds of changes that might actually be possible - which is why I'm heartened, because the process would be a whole lot easier in New Zealand. Almost makes me want to get into politics.