I knew as soon as i heard about the documentary Food Inc. that i was going to be reaffirmed in what I already believed. So when it finally arrived at the Belcourt i eagerly headed to see it. I was hoping that the film would be a good source for me to send friends to and visually give them a quick kick in the butt to try and be more aware. The film is just that, it is a well laid out journey through a variety of different lives, businesses and individual stories. All with a pretty clear message, big business is a plague. It does however give a jolt to those of us who may think we choose better brands and make informed decisions on the items we buy. We quickly see that so much of the brands we buy into are all under the same umbrella. The deceit runs deep.

It seems almost criminal the way labels such as cage free, organic, free range, grass fed etc. can all be overcome to meet the legal standards but certainly not fulfilling what i as a consumer think i am supporting. Now i know how specific i have to be when i read a label and that grass fed is not enough but it has to be 100% grass fed. This is all depressing sure, but not at all surprising.

Then there are stories that show us the horror of the conditions animals undergo before (and during) their slaughter. I will admit i was glad they put in some fairly upsetting shots of the brutality of the treatment of animals. I guess people need shock to really make them think. There were some horrifying views of chickens so malformed to make their breasts bigger for the Western requirement that they could not carry their own weight! And cows with holes cut in their sides to manually move the undigestible feed from their stomachs. All stomach turning and incredibly hard to watch.

This is all interjected with great insights and interviews from likeable scientists, social commentators and authors etc. The whole film looked really nice, nothing flashy but good clean story telling.

However the most high impact elements of this film were the sides i personally had spent least time thinking of; the farmers and workers being manipulated by the big corporations. I was horrified listening to the stories of the chicken factory farmers who were 'owned' the corporations and forced into massive debt that essentially shackled them to obeying every command. Then the story of the seed cleaner. This kind looking, simple man who had spent his entire life in the trade of farming takes us through the shocking cold and calculated demise of his business by the corporate giant Montavo. Listening to him try to battle the fat cats and their lawyers as his friends hide away from him in fear of being put out of business also broke my heart. Its callous, shameful and despicable and it should be enough to make us all want to do something about it.

I hope people watch this film. And I hope people do something about it.