Letter to the Next President

“Resolarizing the American Farm” would take massive subsidies and major regulatory changes. He doesn't quite say so, but the regulatory changes include bans on using antibiotics in livestock and restrictive (however necessary) environmental rules that the food industry (and the energy and fertilizer industries) will resist with all its lobbying might. The subsidies and other encouragements he proposes might help industry swallow the changes, but it won't be easy.

“Reregionalizing the Food System” would cut down on fuel use and transportation costs and would encourage the consumption of in-season, locally grown foods. Pollan calls for encouraging this effort largely through a set of government incentives.

Finally, “Rebuilding America's Food Culture” is mostly bully-pulpit stuff. Ultimately, consumers will be the ones who determine whether we shift away from a wasteful, unhealthy, and environmentally destructive industrial food system. Among Pollan's suggestions: “[T]ear out five prime south-facing acres of the White House lawn and plant in their place an organic fruit and vegetable garden.”