In her new movie, “The Future of Food,” Deborah Koons Garcia delivers a poetic, learned, inspired film about the challenges of farming in the 21st century.  “Future” explores the dilemma of the modern American farmer, who is caught between Big Agriculture’s technology and GMO products on the one side, and the ongoing consolidation of food retail on the other.  Her film reveals the sci-fi technology that makes food production resemble something out of a monster movie and profiles people fighting for a simpler, healthier understanding of our connection to the food that sustains our lives.

“The Future of Food” begins where farming begins: with the first seeds, of the first crops, at the beginning of civilization as we know it.  Garcia draws connections between our world’s gradual mechanization and the rise of technological farming.  Pointing out the relationship between the military industries that grew out of WWII and post-war innovations in agricultural products, Garcia sets the stage for a disquieting exploration of the marriage of industry and farming in the 1950’s.

“It did increase yields, but at great expense,” says Garcia about the good intentions of “The Green Revolution” that promised to change post-war America into the breadbasket of the world.  “Future” points out the decreased diversity of crops and the use of toxic pesticides and herbicides as shortcomings of this new, mechanized way of growing food.  The resulting pollution of soil and water, ominous warnings of the unforeseen side-effects of science and technology down on the farm.

If there is an antagonist in Garcia’s dramatic documentary, it would have to be Monsanto.  Introducing the corporate giant as the company that launched the Roundup line of products in the 1970’s, the company looms large in the rest of the film and personifies the intersection of Big Agriculture, Big Business and Big Science.  With an engrossing account of the legal gymnastics that gave rise to gene patenting, Garcia brings us up to date with our current state of affairs and her film becomes what she originally hoped it could be: “The kind of film I wanted to make was one that explained to people how the system was working.  I wanted to give people a deep understanding, not just propaganda.”

With stock footage, archive photography and intimate interviews, Garcia spins the tale of the development of modern GMO technology.  She traces the development of genetically-modified food from the first patented organism, to the race by insecticide companies, like Monsanto, to patent agricultural seeds in order to own the marketplace: “There has always been people trying to control the food supply,” says Garcia, “There has always been a relationship between power and food.”

The genetic engineering process behind GMO products is illustrated with simple terms and illuminating computer graphics.  When Andrew Tembrell - of the Center for Food Safety - explains the “cell invasion” technique for the genetic enhancement of a given plant, “Future” begins to resemble a “Frankenstein” film.  The horror-movie analogy becomes all too appropriate when Ignacio Chapela - Microbial Ecologist, U.C. Berkeley - describes the introduction of GM foods into the retail marketplace saying, “I think this is the largest biological experiment humanity has ever entered into.”

From the Ansilomar Conference in 1975, when the ethics debate over GM foods first hit the radar, to the introduction of the Flavor-Saver tomato and the tragic release of StarLink corn products, “Future” tracks the science of GM food from the lab to the store shelf.  However, “The Future of Food” is not a science documentary.  It is ultimately a film about people.

“The Future of Food” finds its heart in profiles of family farmers like Percy Schmeiser, who fought Monsanto, despite bankrupting court costs, for the right to farm his land with his own seed, despite conflicts over patent law legislation.  “Future” also introduces us to a spunky Oregonian who championed Measure 27 in her home state to force food companies to label their GM products.  Garcia also interviews an array of consumer advocates, researchers and agricultural experts.  These are brave individuals, dedicated to creating safeguards on this unregulated industry and tireless activists, informing a public that has been purposely kept in the dark about the experiment taking place on the shelves of their local grocer.

“The Future of Food” is a dizzying fact-fest and a scary movie that will find you curling your toes waiting for the next shock to flash on the screen.  It is a devastatingly thorough documentary that will surely be the benchmark film on the subject for years to come.  It is also a moving drama, full of compelling characters and haunting stories.  Garcia’s images of people, land, sky and water evoke the simple beauty of a way of life that connects humanity to the bounty of the earth in a way that is in danger of being forgotten.

Deborah Koons Garcia and “The Future of Food” are currently touring the world, spreading the message that inspired her to become a filmmaker:  “The great thing about it is that it’s not an issue of Left or Right…it’s a human issue that brings people together.  Vote with your fork!  The real power does lie with the consumer.”

Find out more about Ms. Garcia and her film at www.futureoffood.com A new, 2-disc “The Future of Food” DVD set is available at the website.

- Joe Nolan