50 pages • 1 hour read
Michael PollanThe Omnivore's Dilemma
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2006A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Part II, Chapters 11-14Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 11 Summary: “The Animals: Practicing Complexity”
Salatin compares the work he does as a farmer to that of a conductor leading an orchestra. Cattle are moved onto a field to eat grass where they leave behind cow patties. The chickens eat mostly grass and bugs found in pasture and patties, and their diet is also supplemented with grain. As the chickens move across a field, they reintroduce nitrogen to the soil. They must be rotated regularly, however, as they can burn a field with too much nitrogen. Their fertilization keeps the grass healthy, making it ready for cattle again in a few days.
Salatin’s approach is a stark contrast to the industrialized farms that dominate American food culture. Pollan finds it difficult to characterize the processes on Salatin’s farm, because they are more complex than the linear and rational approaches of industrialized farms. By simplifying systems through monoculture to promote the greatest output, industrialization practices efficiency. Salatin’s comprehensive approach reinforces the idea of a farm as an organism in which all parts work independently to serve the whole. Although his processes are more complex, Salatin argues that they are no less efficient. He models his farming practices after the processes found in nature. One example of this is how Salatin uses cow patties produced in winter to ferment corn for hogs to root out, aerating compost in the process. Pollan’s research revealed that Salatin’s approach is extremely efficient, if not more so than the industrial farms he had visited in the past. Salatin produces more food per acre than industrial farms, and the array was far more diverse. He also utilizes the energy and outputs of his animal and crops to serve in a symbiotic cycle that sustains itself.
Chapter 12 Summary: “Slaughter: In a Glass Abattoir”
The chapter opens with Pollan’s experience butchering chickens with Salatin. Just as he does with other aspects of his farm, Salatin promotes transparency while slaughtering. All of Salatin’s chickens are killed and processed on site, and the farmer sees the act as an ethical statement about his “worldview” (227). Salatin’s methods for slaughtering differ from those most recommended by the USDA. In fact, he has battled against USDA oversight and regulations throughout his career. Despite his unconventional methods, his chickens test consistently lower than their supermarket counterparts in bacteria and disease. He attributes this success to the way he farms, butchering in the open air, and delivering his food quickly and consistently within the surrounding area only.
Pollan dreaded the experience of killing chickens. He volunteered to work with one of Salatin’s interns who would be initiated into the butchering, believing it best to dive right in. Pollan found it difficult to watch as the chickens were killed. However, the work left little time for sentiment and contemplation. Once the chicken was dead, Pollan and the other workers sliced the chickens open and sent them through the scalder. Then the chickens were plucked, gutted, and floated in ice water. The innards were sent to the compost, along with fresh woodchips. Over time, Pollan developed a rhythm and became less squeamish about the entire process.
Customers select the chickens they want from the ice tank. These birds are more expensive than supermarket versions, and Salatin refuses to ship them. Instead, customers pay for locality and ethicality.
Chapter 13 Summary: “The Market: ‘Greetings from the Non-Barcode People’”
Compared to the great distances food travels to reach American supermarkets, Salatin’s operation seems small. All the food the Salatin farm sells is sold at the farm, at local farmer’s markets, or via short-distance delivery to local restaurants. Pollan contemplates whether this is solely due to a desire to preserve the environment. Salatin, however, views it as the natural order of things. The best way to know the quality of one’s food and the ethics of its background is by developing personal relationships with growers. Customers are drawn to Salatin’s farm for many reasons, including a desire to support locality and affirmation of the type of care the animals received while living on Salatin’s land.
When Pollan questioned the ability of Salatin’s business to withstand the undercut prices of American supermarkets, Salatin replied that those cheaper prices come with hidden costs. Salatin’s food does not come with the heavy repercussions, such as water pollutants and antibiotic resistance, that accompany industrialized products. Salatin represents an extremist view of government regulations, believing that the government should allow farms to run as they see fit. He believes that customers should have the right to “opt out” of industrialized agriculture (248). Salatin pointed to a neighboring farmer who had attempted to create a better animal processing plant but was stopped by the USDA for not being industrial enough.
Salatin’s brother showed Pollan around while driving a delivery truck, distributing chickens to local restaurants. The driver suggested that consumers and restaurants needed to abandon the notion that they should be able to get every type of food at any time of year and, instead, embrace seasonality. He cites Wendell Berry, an American activist (See: Key Figures), who argues that the industrialized food system that emphasizes year-round availability does significant damage to local communities and farms.
Chapter 14 Summary: “The Meal: Grass-Fed"
Chapter 14 centers on another meal. This time, Pollan prepared and cooked a meal that paid tribute to the chicken. He decided to cook for friends to keep the meal local and, as much as possible, bought local ingredients. With eggs, corn, and chicken from Salatin’s farm, Pollan prepared roast chicken, sweet corn, and chocolate soufflés. Although this meal was like many he had made in his lifetime, it was strikingly different because of the quality of ingredients.
Research suggests that food like that from Salatin’s farm, raised on pasture with ample space and a happy life, yields higher nutritional value than its industrialized counterparts. This type of food has more vitamin content, fewer chances of disease, and less fat. Pollan suggests that humans are hard-wired for this kind of eating. Modern humans are not that far from their hunter-gatherer ancestors, and the food on Salatin’s farm is more closely aligned with the foods hunter-gatherers would have eaten. Pasture-raised food often has higher rates of omega-3s, which have been proven to be highly beneficial to humans. In one study, pregnant women who took omega-3 supplements gave birth to children with higher IQs and fewer behavioral issues. The interplay between omega-3 and omega-6 is also extremely important, and new research suggests that the issues with red meat (such as its association with cardiovascular disease) may have more to do with what the animal was fed than anything else.
Pollan then focuses on the part of the meal that is most concerning to the human palate: the taste. He suggests that Salatin’s chicken was of the highest quality, and those eating the meal could only mutter “murmurs of satisfaction” (271).
Chapters 11-14 Analysis
In direct contrast to “The Cost of Convenience” is the abundance of benefits from pasture-raised animals. Pollan praises this type of food for its high vitamin content and leaner meat. The journalist criticizes those who point to problems without offering solutions, and this section reveals the crux of his solution. Through the lens of Salatin’s farm, Pollan presents a new approach to agriculture. He emphasizes the interplay between animals and pasture and claims that this type of agriculture is more beneficial for farmers, animals, and consumers. The positive effects are numerous. Farmers receive fair wages for the work they have done. Animals live happier lives in greater harmony with nature. Consumers are offered ethical and sustainable products that connect them to the history of the food on their plates.
Salatin’s approach realigns “Food as Connection to Nature.” When new customers approach Salatin’s farm, they often ask why they should pay higher prices for his products. Salatin remarks that his food comes without the unseen and costly price tag of industrialized products. He also points out that they are paying for quality: his food is healthier, more ethical, and more sustainable. Because Salatin refuses to ship his products, consumers must visit his farm to buy meat and vegetables. There, they see the conditions of the animals that translates to the food they are consuming. They are reunited with the reality of what they are eating. For Pollan, this is an important component for the path forward. Industrialized agriculture separates consumers from nature; the food they buy in the grocery store is a poor representation of where it comes from. In many cases, it is so disconnected from its origins that it is unrecognizable.
In Chapter 14, Pollan ends Part II by speaking about the “pleasures of the table” (272). Pollan recognizes that his argument is flawed if it does not include the very thing that draws consumers to bags of salty processed chips and boxes of cereal filled with refined sugars: taste. Many people will be most convinced by knowing that the food they are eating is not only more healthful, but more enjoyable as well. Pollan argues that the pleasure of eating is only enhanced by reconnecting with nature. By understanding more about the food on the table and engaging in a sense of satisfaction with the quality and conditions of its production, humans are better able to enjoy their meals.
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