Ingredients

Have you heard about Ingredients, the new Oregon-centric food documentary? Last weekend I saw it at its Portland premier--ok, I am in the movie, but I don't say anything--and walked out of the theater with a warm, fuzzy feeling. This makes sense. What I'm hearing from people who have seen Ingredients is that it's so positive compared to Food, Inc., and the like, and it doesn't get you down. The cinematography is gorgeous and bright, and the vibe is hopeful.

Eventually Ingredients will air on public television. Right now it's making the film festival circuit, so expect to hear more about it.

My husband is normally a dyed-in-the-wool cynic. But he bought a DVD of Ingredients to lend to friends and family, especially our friend who complains about the prices at the King Farmers Market. It's a fair question that our friend raises, "Why does local food cost more? Shouldn't it actually cost less?" Hopefully, after watching Ingredients he'll have a sense of just what you get for your farmers market dollars. Going to the farmers market isn't just shopping for dinner, it's a way to vote for flavor and health. As Carol Boutard of Ayers Creek Farm says in Ingredients (I'll paraphrase): it's not gluttony to expect your food to taste good.