Cookbook Industry's Economic Forecast Strong

This article from Kim Severson of the New York Times will hopefully blow your mind and excite you too.

Severson touches on many points that I myself have discussed in casual conversation from time to time - the quality of mass-produced food products; the almost 21 million people in our nation with diabetes and the junk food many of them are eating; lack of subsidies for organic farmers, government subsidies for cheaply-grown commodities and the agricultural industry's reliance on oil and petroleum to harvest and transport massive amounts of grains, sugars and animal products (once known as 'meat') - and all the very complex mutual relationships that exist among those bureaucracies, etc.

Those are all very broad, complicated and multi-faceted issues, but there are, in my opinion, some bottom lines I'd like to discuss:
1.) It's hard to trust in the nutritional value of anything you buy in a grocery store.
2.) Anything that's pre-made and pre-packaged is going to cost more and likely hold less nutritional value than a meal made 'from scratch'...so why would you pay more money for something that's processed, might alter your genetic code, contains unnatural substances like preservatives, and really only tastes decent because it has more sodium in it than a cow's salt block?

Well, one answer is that people in our society buy and eat these processed foods because they're convenient and we've either been programmed or programmed ourselves to identify them as "tasting good."

(Funny side story here: I always use that nasty, calorie-free spray butter. I was eating dinner at a friend's recently, and inquired as to what was done to the rolls to make them taste so good. The answer: "I put real butter on them."
Well holy cow.)

Points are these:
1.) While fast food is kind of fast, cooking your own meals and preparing your own food really doesn't take any more time than a 10 minute wait in the drive-thru. The end result is much healthier and satisfying too.
2.) Consuming real food with as few false ingredients or contaminants - i.e. locally or regionally grown vegetables, meat from local butchers that actually looks and smells like meat, locally harvested organic butter, milk, and cheese, beans, unprocessed rices, etc. - all of these things are healthier, and while some organically grown products may cost more, it can be argued that their sale helps local economies, and their consumption will save you from a heinous doctor bill, sooner or later.

So why doesn't everyone jump on the organically grown bandwagon?
As Severson points out, the cost of food is rising, and the dollar menus may remain appealing to Americans as their pockets get tighter, along with their pants.

I would argue, however, that along with my previous point that cooking at home really isn't that time-consuming, buying real food products to cook at home really isn't that expensive.

Ingredients for red beans and rice won't run more than $15, will yield enough tasty grub for a good number of people, and the dish is filling and pretty basic.

How to make red beans and rice? Well, here's where the cookbook industry comes in.
There are thousands of cookbooks with hundreds of recipes in them. If people do start seeking the value of real nutrition and real foods, and putting forth the effort to cook at home and save their health, then the cookbook industry will be a great resource for millions.

Shameless plug: Cookbook Marketplace is a great place to start one's cookbook collection.
It's my theory that while you might spend $20 on a cookbook, you'll save on grocery and health-related bills in the long run. Plus, you'll enjoy tastier food.