Babyfood and the American “Industrial Palate”
While scientists, academics, and activists often differ over the causes and consequences of obesity, nearly all can agree that people benefit greatly from a diet rich in a wide variety of fruits and vegetables—ideally minimally processed so as to retain their nutritional benefits as well as integrity of flavors and textures. Yet Americans, with an overabundant array and quantity of food available, don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables, and what produce they do consume tends to be top-heavy with fried potatoes. Instead, Americans are consuming fat and sugar: the highest percentage of solid fats and added sugars in the world, some 37 percent of daily calories consumed (compared to the world average of 20 percent), largely in the form of…
