Morgan Spurlock kicked off the opening night of the IFBC conference yesterday, chatting for about an hour about why eating locally grown food matters and how we can get folks to care.
He’s a funny guy, and he talked briefly about creating a Supersize Me sequel called Supersize Me 2: Obesity Boogaloo. (“I still may do it,” he said.) What struck me most were his thoughts on the future of food blogging.
In his opinion, food bloggers need to get away from the computer and get out into the streets. We should be educating people, working with the local media to teach people where their food comes from and how to cook it properly. Bloggers could lead field trips to local farms, he said. Or organize a visit to a local restaurant, where the chef could talk about eating sustainably.
“That’s what you all need to be focused on,” he told the crowd. “How can my words drive action?”
He briefly mentioned that food bloggers need to be a lot more transparent. He said it at the end of his talk and he didn’t have time to elaborate, but I’m assuming he meant in regard to whether we’ve received free meals or if we’ve been paid to endorse products. I heartily agree.
I admit that while I’m passionate about eating less processed food and enjoying the natural taste of a product (as opposed to something laden with corn syrup), I haven’t spent enough time in Mexico yet to understand exactly how to educate people here. Regarding transparency: The only free meal I’ve received in writing this blog was at El Bajío, as part of the Aromas y Sabores tour. The entire tour was free for all the invited journalists/photographers. But that doesn’t excuse it — I should’ve left an extra-large tip or at least mentioned in the post that the meal was free.
I’m curious about your thoughts. If you blog about food, do you see yourself taking a more activist turn? Do you think you’re being transparent enough? Do you accept free meals when you’re writing, and do you expect it?