MIT researchers think America's obesity epidemic can be reversed via ‘foodsheds’

Wow, what a massively convenient conclusion. Food activist hobbyhorse #1 can be solved by food activist hobbyhorse #2. There is enough wishful thinking here to power 1000 Twitter IPOs.

The health problem with food that travels a long way is the processing that is done to it, not the traveling it did. I predict that a large move towards more regional distribution of food will also result in more regional processing, and the processing will create unhealthy food.

Why does processing produce unhealthy food? The reason is that the food industry has discovered that the right balance of sugar, fat and salt triggers emotional reactions that cause people to crave and consume. If you're a food manufacturer who wants to increase sales, this is a good thing. For more on this read The End of Overeating.

Americans will really do anything to lose weight, except nutrition and exercise.

"lower the price and caloric content of food by lowering distances food must travel, from the farm to the dinner table"

So the farther food travels, the more calories it acquires. Interesting, didn't know that. Does it also work if I pick up a banana and jog around the block? Could save me a lot of money.

What also surprises me that people seem to prefer long-traveled food to short-traveled food, even though the long-distance food is supposedly more expensive.

The best way to reverse the obesity epidemic is via an old invention called the bicycle.

Its the carbs making us fat... read Taubes' "Good Calories, Bad Calories". The medical/nutrition profession really have egg on their face and can't yet admit their error.

The only way to solve the problem is to figure out a good way to allow humans to be healty while they eat crap.