Let’s call it the Department of Food

December 20th, 2008 at 06:04am Jennie Pollock

That’s what Nicholas Kristof says about the Department of Agriculture. He says in the New York Times that we need to address food eaters, not businesses:

A Department of Agriculture made sense 100 years ago when 35 percent of Americans engaged in farming. But today, fewer than 2 percent are farmers. In contrast, 100 percent of Americans eat.

Renaming the department would signal that Mr. Obama seeks to move away from a bankrupt structure of factory farming that squanders energy, exacerbates climate change and makes Americans unhealthy — all while costing taxpayers billions of dollars.

P.S. Some greenies are not thrilled with Obama’s choice on Ag Secretary, Tom Vilsack (for his support of ethanol and big agribusiness), and Interior Secretary, Ken Salazar (because of a seemingly mixed record). But they’re both seen as centrist.

Entry Filed under: Green politics, Eat locally