Student Innovation

As promised in my last post, the time has arrived for the Food Studies Project to fly. Our destination is to lay the foundations of a Food Studies Institute. In order to get started, we took a leap. It was scary, at first, because gravity is always trying to pull us back to the ground. But falling is part of learning how to fly. We, at the Food Studies Project, believe that we can defy gravity with supporting winds, leading us to great heights.

Original Logo for FSP. Created By Asiago

Since launching the Food Studies Project (FSP) in September 2011, our UT Community has really become excited to see where this project will go.  The FSP’s interdisciplinary approach to the study of food has been well received by students both from the sciences and the arts. Most have agreed that the complexity of food in modern day society warrants a multidisciplinary program that balances the interests and concerns about food.

Orientating ours minds to make our program fly requires focus not only on the technical side (administration, venture capital, faculty), but on the beauty of our project as well. A Food Studies program should focus on the behavioral and social sciences that will compliment a variety of academic fields. In other Food Studies programs across the nation, there seems to be a division between a foodie and foodist. I believe that UT should bring a variety of disciplines to the table for students to get a taste of all the aspects and understandings of food. Let’s mix both love for food and the concerns that accompany it into a program that will discuss and create new ideas. Hopefully, with the right balance, we will find our wings.

Decisions. Decisions?

Until recently, I have placed all of the blame on individuals for being overweight or obese. “Why don’t they just stop stuffing their faces with junk food!?” or, “Why don’t they just go for a run or something?” I have since come to realize that many of our decisions are not entirely our own, but are shaped by many different social, political and economic factors. Here is just one example:

Next time you’re in your local grocery store, try to count how many different areas of the store you have the opportunity to toss a Coke product into your basket. The soda isle is just the tip of the iceberg; there are also the mini-refrigerators at the end of every check-out line, the stands an the end of the isle, displays next to your favorite chips, vending machines at the entrance and there might even be a giant Coke pyramid offering a case of 20 cans at a price so low you’ll be worried that Coca-Cola might be going out of business! Now compare this to the number of places you can pick up some delicious carrots. Rice? Beans? Juice?

Photo Source: www.flickr.com/photos/91212572@N00/123463677

If this strikes you as odd, it shouldn’t. The grocery business is not a friendly one, especially of you’re competing with Wal-Mart. Shelf-space is a finite commodity and consumers are much more likely to purchase Coke than broccoli. Your grocer knows that having more Coke displays will ultimately increase his bottom line, but this is just the beginning of your ‘decision’ to go ahead and purchase that case of glorified sugar-wat…er… High-Fructose-Corn-Syrup-Water.

Seeing that familiar white, cursive writing against that deep-red background conjures up wonderful memories from your childhood. This is not an accident. The advertising industry calls this a ‘love-mark’ meaning that the vast majority of the public identifies with the image of Coca-Cola on a personal level. Advertising agencies spend millions upon millions of dollars to ensure their product’s symbol becomes a love-mark.

Photo Source: wwff.wordpress.com

You’re also more likely to buy that box of ‘childhood memories’ because your taste buds have already been purchased and perverted by Coke. If you’re like me, you had your first taste of Coke shortly after you could walk. Being exposed to such an unnaturally sweet beverage at an early age increases your tolerance for such drinks and decreases your sensitivity to subtler, more natural flavors; when was the last time you thought of carrots as sweet? The caffeine content of soft drinks is also dangerously addictive for children. Soft drink giants have given millions of dollars to public schools for the right to place vending machines in hallways, ensuring that America’s youth will stay hooked.

Enjoy.