I have a new piece in New York Magazine this week about the USDA’s war on pizza — and why it’s a smart move.
Pizza, of course, is a tough food to take on. After burgers and fries, it is our most beloved food. Worse, it’s a potentially easy win for right-wing culture warriors, who are intent on portraying the Obama Administration as leaders in a progressive plot to take away our right to fast food.
But, as the 2010 Dietary Guidelines point out, pizza is the number-one source of calories for children and adolescents and the number-two source of saturated fat and solid fats for all Americans. To my mind, it’s time for a little nanny-statism to save us from ourselves.
As I write in the piece:
The problem has been that for 30 years, until the new guidelines were issued last Monday, the government has refused to brand specific foods—especially foods with powerful lobbies behind them—as the public-health enemies they can be. Instead, it translated its concerns into positive-eating messages. Eat less meat to help lower saturated-fat intake became “Eat more lean meats,” a politically correct statement that has proved utterly unpersuasive as dietary advice.
This timidity also left the field wide open to food marketers, who had no qualms about telling us how they think we should get our calories…According to Yale’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, the fast-food industry spent $4.2 billion pitching offerings like Domino’s Wisconsin 6 Cheese pizza, a beast layered with mozzarella, Cheddar, provolone, Parmesan, feta, and Asiago—none, so far as anyone can tell, from Wisconsin—and Burger King’s 2,500-calorie pizza burger, formerly on sale at its Times Square Whopper Bar. Preschoolers see three commercials for fast food each day; teens see five. So much for the idea that it’s un-American for anyone to tell you what to eat.
Whether Americans will listen any more carefully to this set of guidelines than they have in the past is anyone’s guess. But I think the USDA has taken an important step.
What do you think? Will it help?
I am a Brooklyn-based food writer who covers food politics, trends and sustainability issues. My work appears in the Washington Post, (where I was a staff writer), the New York Times, Slate, New York magazine and other publications. On this site, you will find my blog and links to my written work and my Washington Post column, Smarter Food.
3 Comments
This is especially interesting considering Michael Moss’ recent Times article detailing how the USDA has been working with Dominoes through its puppet company, Dairy Management, to increase the amount of cheese American’s consume.
I am glad to see the Dietary Guidelines becoming a little more pointed in their discussions of what to eat and not to eat, but most of the specific foods NOT to eat were buried in the full report rather than summarized in the “quick and dirty” tips, where instead we got a list of “substances” to avoid.
As much as I wish this weren’t true, I think it’s improbable that the government’s dietary advice will change more than a few people’s daily eating habits (of those who are not relying on institutional meals dictated by the guidelines). In the end, for most people it still comes down to what’s cheap, what’s convenient, and what tastes good. I think NYC’s anti-sugary beverage campaign is a great way to help people use powerful mental imagery to overcome what their tastebuds tell them tastes good. When I see one of those commercials, the last thing I want is a soda. Maybe we need one for pizza and other fatty foods, too–an elective tool that people could use to help themselves overcome their cravings.
These are a very good points. But there is some hope on the horizon. The Dietary Guidelines are actually written for policy makers, not for consumers. In the next few months, the USDA will release more consumer friendly tips. In the past, it’s been the pyramid, a communication method that has become all but useless — perhaps intentionally. My guess is that they are going to use the “plate,” where they visually show you that half your plate should be fruits and vegetables and 1/4 should be starch etc. There also may be some pointed, quick-and-dirty what to eat/what not to eat. But we’ll have to wait and see.
I think if we treated pizza the right way – as a special, treat food instead of everyday meals – we wouldn’t have to go this far to demonize what actually can be a fairly healthy food. I make homemade pizza with whole wheat and/or spelt crust, a fresh tomato sauce, and roughly a half pound of mozzarella for a family of four. It’s enough for 2-3 small pizzas and fills us up. When I see the really massive Dominos/Pizza Hut versions, I just gag. A bit more Lombardi’s and a lot less Papa John’s would probably restore pizza to the rightful place it enjoyed (and still does in Italy) as a wonderful, moderate food.