8 Unexpected Consequences
Laura’s career in nutrition policy and mine in food production were
at the opposite ends of the modern food system. One evening, we tried
to identify a single program, task force, or individual that linked our
two worlds together through USDA. She thought that the mission
statement of USDA might do it, but it did not. The best we could
come up with was the role played by the USDA secretary himself. Not
surprisingly, what little I knew about nutrition policy was contained in
USDA’s Food Guide Pyramid.
Laura, on the other hand, had a bird’s-eye view of the growing divide
between nutrition and food production. Her small staff of mostly
nutritionists had the Herculean task of preparing and promoting dietary
guidance for American consumers, as required by law. Coming up with
guidelines supported by science was the easy part. Navigating them
through political landmines was quite another, especially if they hinted
at reducing consumption of certain foods.
Aside from the politics, dietary guidelines needed to appeal to con-
sumers, while also conveying the importance of variety and moderation.
It was Laura’s office that had researched and pilot-tested formats before
settling on a food pyramid as the most effective way to reach consum-
ers. Final layout and supporting text had been cleared internally within
USDA. But on the eve of the food pyramid’s release, a new secretary
of agriculture yielded to the meat and dairy industry, which feared that
demand for their products could decline. A last-minute decision to
withhold release of the food pyramid made headline news.
Though Laura had returned to academia before the rollout, the sec-
retary’s decision did not surprise her. This was just the latest step in
delegitimizing a nutrition policy that actually focused on health. The
food pyramid message of moderation and variety was already outgunned
by a well-funded modern food system bent on producing and selling
more. Muted phrases like “use sparingly,” “avoid too much sugar,” or “eat
a variety of foods” were already muzzled messages. Absent were candid
calls to eat fewer foods high in fats, sugars, and salt.
The secretary’s equivocating quickly became fodder for major news-
papers. A year-long protracted David-versus-Goliath debate ensued—a
small band of nutritionists adhering to science versus food producers
with the political muscle to lean heavily on USDA. In the end, after