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Actually, in terms of diet, the Kellogg brothers were on the right track about
eating like a chimp. However, unlike chimps, humans can't easily live off of
raw food gathered from their immediate environment. Chimps spend several
hours each day chewing what they gather to obtain the nutrients they need.
Contrary to what many people believe, processed food is a major reason
why modern humans lead long and healthy lives and enjoy leisure time. In an
article in the
Utne Reader
, author Rachel Laudan, author of the topic
In Praise
of Fast Food
, questions what she terms “culinary Luddism.” Industrialized food
has brought about tremendous improvements to human welfare. Techniques
to process, preserve and transport food have reduced malnutrition and given
people time to pursue other activities.
Laudan writes that the “sunlit past of the culinary Luddites never existed.
So their ethos is not based on history but a fairy tale.”
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Food technologies offer
liberation and health. The freezer, a once a disruptive new technology, keeps
food fresh for much longer. Agricultural fertilizers make food more abundant.
Laudan describes the often overlooked beneits of processed food. “[C]ulinary
modernism had proved what was wanted: food that was processed, preserv-
able, industrial, novel, and fast, the food of the elite at a price everyone could
afford. Where modern food became available, people grew taller and stronger
and lived longer.”
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3D printed and fried scallops
Preserving techniques such as pickling, curing, canning and vacuum
packaging create processed food that's nutritious and can be transported and
stored. Processed food brings food to people who live far away from its source.
Processed food is less prone to rot. It can travel further from its origins. It
brings regular people delicacies once reserved for aristocrats.
