For lunch today I took a TV dinner and a bottle of FUZE brand overpriced fruit drink, and it wasn’t until I was leaning against the counter waiting for the microwave to finish phase I of my lunch that it occured to me that I had paid a small premium for this dinner because it was “organic.” It wasn’t much of a premium-with my Giant Eagle card I think I paid maybe 30 or 50 cents more than I would have for a Stouffer’s or some Hot Pockets. But it was enough to make me aware that it was more – of course it cost more, it was “organic,” which is synonymous with “better,” right? I’m a better person because I buy organic food, where I can just assume that the chickens were treated somewhat properly, the cows were fed something not compeltely insane like, oh, chicken, and the produce saw nary an harsh chemical between the ground and my plastic microwave safe disposable plate. I paid 50 cents more for my TV dinner because that’s how much I care about our planet. You can send me a thank you card if you feel that you should.
But as my chic Ethnic Gourmet chicken chipotle whateverthefuck spun in the microwave, doubt gnawed at my soul. TV dinners are our most revered processed food, coming of age at a time when natural was not an issue and everything space-aged or techno-ed up was considered superior. They were never meant to be considered natural or organic, and it seems silly to think that pre-cooked food can hold its own against the rather harsh freezing/reheating process without some help. So why, when I was at the store last night, did “organic TV dinner” not sound like “organic cheez whiz” or “organic processed cheese food”?
I remembered that I had encountered this idea before and of course buying an organic tv dinner just meant that I purchased a false sense of moral superiority. I had essentially spent 50 cents on a license to be smug towards my fiance, who is less picky about his food and and is perfectly happy with some Van DeKamps “fish” or McDonalds. My diet is so much better than yours, I get to say. Really, it’s just, my diet is slightly more expensive than yours.
So I can’t assume a moral edge by buying from Giant Eagle’s organic section. Color me shocked. I can’t even assume there’s a lack of antibiotics or pesticides in the food anymore. And judging from the puddles of orange grease in my chicken corn spice glop this afternoon, I can no longer conflate organic with healthy if I’m going to be purchasing from the freezer section.
I get paid on Friday. I think it’s time to buy a membership to the food co-op and actually pay attention and think about what I eat. It’s the only way to renew my smug license.
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