It sounds mundane, but in order to be cost effective and receive the most nutrients from easily transportable and conveniently stored school snacks (i.e. granola bars), I have been purchasing the same products since September. These food products include, Quaker Chewy Chocolate Bars, Fruit-to-go strips, Nutrigrain Bars and President’s Choice/Compliments Applesauce—the former being less packed with nutrition, and all the products containing significant amounts of sugar. However, they have been my snack staples this year, and kept me going at even the most crucial times. When our SJS group decided to focus on food security, and food sovereignty, I thought it would be appropriate to look a little more critically at these sources of energy. I decided I would do this by making phone calls to the companies that produce my favourite snacks.
All the companies provide explicitly either on the product, or the product packaging a number or website that they can be reached at. This started off as a good sign.
(a) I initially called Quaker, the maker of the chewy chocolate granola bar. I had a brief chat with a man who bluntly told me that all the ingredients were products of Canada; but could not reveal the source of any of the food items because it qualified as ‘proprietary information’. All that Quaker would tell me is that all their granola bars were manufactured in Peterborough, ON. Thus, to make it into my hand, a Quaker Chewy Bar must travel approximately 3436.5 kilometers. Transportation costs (and consequences) are rarely factored proportionally in the price of food, as seen here in a single Quaker Chewy Bar.
(b) On the other hand, Fruit-to-go is produced on a smaller scale, and confirmed over the phone that a majority of the products used by Sunrype are locally grown and manufactured in the Okanagan.
(c) In addition, Nutrigrain explained—after I read out the barcode—that the box I had in my hand was originally produced from Canadian sources, but was manufactured within the United States.
(d) Most surprising however, was my chat with the applesauce company, Compliments, a division of the Sobey’s brand name. The woman on the phone asked me for my name, and contact information. This made me hesitant, but I went along with it, and eventually she admitted that the apples used within the applesauce were from Canada.
All the representatives were kind over the phone; and willing to provide me with most of the information I inquired about in relation to their product. All four of the spokespersons I chatted with were knowledgeable, and provided me with their locations—all across Canada—when I asked it of them. However, it still seems bizarre to me that I need to pick up my phone to fully understand the origins of the food I consume. What I learned from this exercise is that my relationship to food is partially controlled by others, and that I do not at this point, have complete food security of the food I consume.
Try looking a little closer at the food you eat regularly. Do you know what the ingredients listed are? Do you know where this food came from? Do you know anyone along the production line? I have learned that taking the time to figure out what is in my food, where it was produced, and who contributed to its manufacturing is a small, but effective action that gradually peels away at the techniques employed by massive food conglomerates to conceal the reality behind our food. Once you start, and begin talking, trust me, it becomes a ripple effect—a few friends have told me that they, and some of their families are now taking a closer look at their snack foods. If we as a society demonstrate that we care, companies will have to listen, and really, it can all start with your granola bar.
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