I’ve been finding the commentary about the “eat wild” feat kinda surprising. Many people seem to be having a very hard time figuring out how to stay away from processed foods — and some don’t even seem to quite understand what that really means. Ok, yes, we know I’m a little OCD about the “rules” of each challenge (to the point where I’ll email the SW crew to get clarification) but this seems pretty clear cut: stay away from anything that was processed in some way by anyone but you. I can understand that vegans and vegetarians may have to think a little harder about how to substitute for some of the processed soy proteins they might be consuming — but there are options. Anyways, it’s only 12 meals! Make a smoothie and a couple of eggs for breakfast and you’re good to go! Have a salad for lunch! Grill a piece of chicken and sautee some broccoli and voila you’ve got dinner!

I feel like this discussion is representative of a larger issue — people are simply not connected to the foods they eat anymore. The fact that elementary school kids can’t recognize basic fruits and veggies is another example of this. I don’t really eat processed foods, but today I was thinking about the ways in which I’m disconnected from my foods. I buy convenience foods, like washed salad mixes…who is actually washing these? Is someone going through all that lettuce piece by piece the way I do when I wash my salad I buy at the farmer’s market? Doubtful. I buy my chicken breasts already sliced into cutlets. Who’s cutting this chicken? Where did the chicken come from? What did it eat? Was it healthy? Who shelled the nuts I munch on throughout the day? I vaguely remember reading something for my International Human Rights class way back when that people who harvest brazil nuts are basically the equivalent of modern-day slaves. How did that tropical fruit make it to my grocer? How did that frozen spinach get chopped up? There are a trillion things like that that I simply don’t think about on a daily basis.

Having gone paleo is a great first step towards narrowing the gap between what my body was designed to eat and what I actually consume. But, the simple fact is that when you go into a supermarket, visit your local fruit vendor, or even trek to almighty Whole Foods, you never quite know what’s happened to your food before it got there. For some reason that thought really bugs me. So, I’m adding another aspect to my D.I.Y feat. I’m gonna do a little research on some of the common foods I eat every day and see what is the likely way that it made its way to my plate. The next step will be to think about ways in which I can get away from eating the typical industrial foods that we can find at our local stores…is there a way I can get my foods straight from a farmer who can tell me how he raises his cattle? Can I find a way to afford to buy those farmer’s market eggs with yolks that are almost orange with nutrients…not pale yellow? What about my fruits and veggies — could I eat local and seasonal foods exclusively? Is that even realistic?

Of course these are just thoughts, and, fact is that I may not be able to eat the way I ideally want to. But, at the very least, I can start really educating myself on the intricacies of my food chain. Then, I can make a decision on how I want to go from there.