Just to pile on. Thank you for this. I love your response and wholeheartedly agree. When I read the article I also thought it was utterly ridiculous for all the reasons you note. However, just to add some other perspective: The educated intellectuals can respond with facts about the ludicrous reporting and idealism–all true, and talk amongst themselves. But how to accept and address the honest longings and romanticism that the public has? It seems legitimate because of all the garbage food that our wealth has given us, obesity in children, etc. People, understandably, long for a sense of connection to their past, and this is why they love Michael Pollan because he enobles the past. How to provide a more balanced accurate historical view ordinary people?

That’s pretty much what I see in pantries when I visit friends who talk a lot about “sustainable” eating. Slow Food chapters seem to organize a lot of dining out events too. They seem utterly clueless about how the vast majority of restaurant food is made. I don’t understand why these people don’t see the contradictions between what they claim and what they do.