Super star Pollan attracts massive Maine crowd

Around 6:45 pm this evening, Adam and I arrived for Michael Pollan's much-anticipated talk at the Bates College Chapel. More than half the chapel was already full, making us extremely grateful we got there when we did for the 7:30 lecture.

We grabbed seats and then watched as a steady stream of students, professors, farmers, foodies, activists, bibliophiles and ethical eaters poured into the space. As the pews filled, people were invited to sit on the stage and those with a seat were urged to squish closer together.

Soon the wide center aisle was jammed with a combination of standing and sitting spectators. By 7 pm there was no where to squeeze another person.

That's when Thomas Wenzel, chair of the school's environmental studies program, approached the microphone.

"We've never had to do this at an Otis lecture," Professor Wenzel told the crowd, before informing the hundreds of people in the aisle that they would need to leave. The building was wildly beyond its capacity, he said, and the talk couldn't begin until the aisles were clear. To compensate, the college would replay a videotape of the speech at numerous times and places. Clearly a poor substitute for the real deal.

As the crowd got up to exit the building, Professor Wenzel returned to make another announcement. Michael Pollan had graciously offered to give a reprise of his lecture tomorrow morning at 9 am. Those who show up then won't be disappointed.

His speech was just as full of big picture insights and intriguing details as his books. Pollan (who you can barely see on the distant stage in this photo) reiterated many themes from "In Defense of Food," including how our focus on nutrients rather than foods has led to the current epidemics of type 2 diabetes, obesity and heart disease. He mentioned the FDA's repeal in 1973 of the food Imitation Rule (which allowed fake foods to be marketed and sold to the public) and the 1977 firestorm created when the nation's first dietary guidelines advised: "eat less red meat." Under pressure from industrial agriculture and the cattlemen's lobby, it was reworded to read: "choose meats that will reduce your saturated fat intake."

He concluded by pointing out that there is no ideal human diet when it comes to good health. But there is one way not to eat: the Western processed food diet.

Asked whether or not either Presidential candidate had read his "Farmer in Chief" open letter in the New York Times, Pollan pointed us to this interview with Senator Barack Obama done by Time columnist Joe Klein, where Obama references the letter in response to a question about energy policy. And who knows? Maybe those of us jammed into the chapel tonight were listening to this country's future Secretary of Agriculture. I can't think of a more perfect candidate for the job.

Eat your food

A leading investigative journalist of the culinary variety, Michael Pollan returns with characteristic charm and candor in his latest book "In Defense of Food." After stirring the foodie pot with his influential "Omnivore's Dilemma," Pollan comes back to answer the central question that drives his four meal quest. "What should we have for dinner?"

The answer comes emblazoned on the cover. Meaning you don't have to buy the book to gain the benefit of his Zen-like advice: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

Even though that's everything you need to know right there, I highly recommend buying the book or checking it out from your local library. Whether carnivore, omnivore or herbivore, you're sure to find this book fascinating. Especially if you've already read "Omnivores."

At it's heart, this concise manifesto explores the politics of food. Pollan paints a bleak picture of how relaxed labeling laws, adulterated food and the psuedo-science of nutritionism (Low Fat! Now with added antioxidants!) have proven to be a leech on public health.

His strategies for eating well in a world of industrial food are both practical and adventurous. Some of it even seems counterintuitive at first, such as his advice to avoid foods that come with health claims. Follow his advice and you'll find yourself firmly in the ranks of the ethical eaters, which I wrote about in this week's edition of Switch Magazine.

Should you be near Portland, ME on Wednesday, June 18 and want to join a discussion about the book, head over to Rabelais from 6-7:30.