French Lessons

Last night I watched an obscure documentary titled Food Beware: The French Organic Movement. Contrary to the expansive-sounding title however, the film essentially chronicled the efforts of one small town (Barjac) to transition into an organic lifestyle. The focus was largely on a private elementary school in which the new organic menu was test-driven by youthful palates. The children also received hands-on education in the garden and even learned songs rife with environmental lyrics. Oh, and it's a Catholic school. Oftentimes those themes don't jive, but in Barjac they coexist perfectly. Anyways, I was truly struck by the progressive education these students were receiving. And especially what the cafeteria was serving; even before the shift. The school employs real chefs in their kitchen to prepare the foods and supervise the eating habits of the children. They already offered a wonderful variety of vegetables, pasta, bread, fruit and yogurt. With the shift to local and organic, the options only improved (no more troublesome pesticides or additives). This easily puts France at least two steps ahead of the U.S. Before the States can even begin to worry about pesticides, they have to get kids to even eat fruits and vegetables. Hell, when I was that age, I had no idea what lentils or radishes were. The point is, America really needs to pick up the pace.

Admittedly though, there are any number of disparaging critiques one could make of this film (i.e. The residents are clearly affluent and their children are privileged; they have access to great agricultural resources; they're French). Still, the main message I got out it was that even in a perfectly picturesque town such Barjac, nestled in the scenic foothills, the horrors of industrialized agriculture still lurk. The film dealt heavily with the detrimental effects of pesticides on farmworkers and their families. An ungodly number of chemicals is sprayed on the vast majority of French crops. The Iowa corn belt isn't the only place that has pesticide issues. Child leukemia has skyrocketed in the region among other various inexplicable ailments. There's no denying that the community is suffering as a result of conventional practices when farmers get nosebleeds while mixing the day's pesticide concoction.

Some might find this documentary a little less than thrilling, but I really thought it had some important insights to offer, and Barjac is wonderfully progressive example for our small communities to follow. The mayor was a charmingly idealistic fellow who wasn't afraid of face-to-face communication with the people. He brought together individuals on both sides of the issues for discussion. Many of their differences melted away once they actual sat and spoke to one another. Certainly heartening to see.

But ultimately I just want people to keep in mind that even the most privileged among us suffer, but that we can make great progress collectively.

Also, the movie is available through Netflix Instant-Watch if you're curious.