Reflection Paper:

Comparing The Toll of America’s Obesity and The True Cost of Food

Jessica Plasencia
Summer 2020
POLS 333
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The overarching theme of several involved flaws in America stem from an imbalance

between efficiency, i.e. having a high yield of a product for a low cost (Wise 2010, pg. 3), and

population benefit. Due to lack of political intervention and abundance of capitalist greed,

efficiency is overvalued to the point of harming the livelihood of the people. Low-income,

minority groups tend to be the demographic most impacted by this imbalance. Whether it be the

food supply or the food itself, it seems those at the mercy of the government’s choices have long-

lasting, cyclic consequences that affect generations to come.

In Timothy Wise’s piece, The True Cost of Food, he examines the contrasting lives

between those buying food cheaply and those producing food that is undervalued. Lack of

regulation of market prices, i.e. creating a price floor, leads to so much competition that the price

of food drops below production value. The low prices benefit consumers but negatively affect

farmers, especially those with small farms (Wise 2010, pg. 1). If farmers cannot support

themselves, how can they continue to feed the mouths of the nation? A good example of lack of

regulation going array are the Wisconsin milk strikes of 1933. Due to financial hardships

stemming from the Great Depression, farmers who sold milk for cheese production were not

making a large enough income to make ends meet. For nearly one-year farmers protested and

demanded increased payment for their milk. Dairy farmers physically blocked milk delivery

trucks and forcibly dumped milk containers into the street if the driver attempted to make a

delivery (Wikipedia 2020, par. 5-6). Although it is unclear whether the strikes helped speed up

progress towards an increased income for dairy farmers, it is clear that government intervention

must take place to ensure dietary staples are priced in such a way that producers and most

consumers may equally benefit to prevent further protesting and damage. The idea of a market
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untampered by the government seems ideal. Theoretically, the market will rise and fall as

scarcity and abundance fluctuate over time. However, in a nation with grocery stores filled with

fruits, vegetables, and other commodities all year long it is simply not possible. Due to the yield

of industrial agriculture, their goods are sold more cheaply than small farm grown commodities

(Wise 2010, pg. 3). However, the cheap price of these commodities come with an unnoticed

lasting effect. Things that are not part of the consumer price is pollution runoff, lost diversity of

seed varieties, and local farmer financial losses due to inability to compete (Wise 2010, pg. 3).

Unfortunately, the main driving factor in the marketplace currently is price, and America has

always blindly pursued cheapness.

Like the value of food being greatly underpriced for its damaging effects to the

environment and communities worldwide, the price of processed food is greatly underpriced for

its catastrophic health implications. A fast food analyst by the name John C. Maxwell Jr. calls

the 1970s “the decade of the fast food business” (Leepson 1978, par. 1) giving reason to believe

fast foods low prices and high energy density to be a leading culprit in obesity rates doubling

from 1970 to 2000 (Ludwig and Rogoff 2018, pg. 1). While obesity affects people from all walks

of life, it disproportionately affects low-income, minority groups. David S. Ludwig, author of

The Toll of America’s Obesity, explains that the obesity epidemic is so bad that life expectancy

in 2015 decreased for the first time in a decade (Ludwig and Rogoff 2018, pg. 2). Obesity is

associated with several life-threatening diagnosis including type 2 diabetes, a diagnosis that costs

America $317 billion annually in direct and indirect costs. With increasing health bills comes

decreased disposable money. Greatly impacting ability to purchase healthful dietary options and

needed medication or treatment (Ludwig and Rogoff 2018, pg. 2). This creates a deadly cycle of

poverty, poor diet habits, and obesity. However, the fast food industry produced a $200 billion
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revenue in the United States in 2015 (Sena 2020, par. 4). Again, population health and livelihood

take a backseat to corporate greed.

Rather than encourage self-intervention, i.e. market prices sorting itself for producers or

individuals improving their own health status, the government could create initiatives to support

long-term beneficial change for the population majority. America is the land of the free meaning

that individuals should equally have the right to affordable, healthy food and job security. Some

initiatives mentioned by Wise include creating restrictions on importing goods that grow well

domestically, and pricing imported goods to consider indirect costs that harm communities (Wise

2010, pg. 3). Other initiatives presented by Ludwig addressing obesity include banning fast food

advertising for children, limiting the number of fast food restaurants that can open per capita, and

funding substantial research that goes beyond the “eat less, move more” simplistic answer of

now (Ludwig and Rogoff 2018, pg. 4). These initiatives unfortunately do not result in a “quick

buck” and are more involved than the silver-bullet mentality that Americans love. They build

wholesome habits for health and demand empathy from the government to progressively increase

work productivity and benefit the economy over time.

Wise and Ludwig present two seemingly different topics, both resulting from the same

political issue. Those in power value fast money over well-being. Cheap prices of fast food

causing serious health problems, leading to more medical expenses, leading to less disposable

income to pay for the more beneficial small-farm commodities, ultimately leading in more

purchasing of cheap, nutrient poor food. The two pieces come together to prove it is all just one

detrimental cycle. The current system is unsustainable, and intervention must take place soon.

However, this is all a matter of Americas readiness to put in the work to create meaningful

change for those around them.

 Bibliography

Leepson, Marc. “Fast Food: U.S. Growth Industry.” In Editorial Research Reports1978, vol. II,
905-24. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 1978.
http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre19781208800.
Ludwig, David S., and Rogoff, Kenneth S. 2018. “The Toll of Americas Obesity”. The New York
Times (August 9, 2018).
Matt Sena, “Fast Food Industry Analysis 2020 - Cost & Trends,” Franchise Help (2020).
Wikipedia contributors, "1933 Wisconsin milk strike," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1933_Wisconsin_milk_strike&oldid=9627185
31 (accessed August 6, 2020).