Play, Lecture at UNI to Examine 'The American Way of Eating'

Press release from the University of Northern Iowa:

Why do working Americans eat the way we do? This is the question award-winning journalist Tracie McMillan will address at the Reaching for Higher Ground (RHG) keynote lecture at 7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 14, in Lang Hall Auditorium on the University of Northern Iowa campus. McMillan will discuss the realities of America's food industry and her experiences working undercover in the food industry.

"Our food choices, formerly a source of sustenance, self-expression and family bonding, are now more often based on factors like convenience, time, cost and shelf life," said Deirdre Heistad, director of the Liberal Arts Core. "For many Americans, both young and old, the microwave has replaced the stove, and the fast-food restaurant has replaced the home kitchen altogether.

"Tracie McMillan's visit will provide the UNI community an opportunity to reflect upon the changing nature of food in our society, the necessity of repairing our connection to this basic human need and how doing so can contribute to our overall well-being."

McMillan is the author of the best-selling book "The American Way of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table." Her writing has been featured in The Washington Post and The New York Times. As part of the RHG series, her lecture follows this year's theme, "Food Matters," which aims to explore the social and economic impacts of food.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Heistad at 319-273-2633 or d.heistad@uni.edu.

"The American Way of Eating" will also be examined in a play presented by Theatre UNI.

The show will be performed at 7 p.m., Oct. 10 to 12 and Oct. 16 to 19, and at 2 p.m., Oct. 13 and 20, in the Bertha Martin Theatre on the University of Northern Iowa campus. The play is being presented in conjunction with UNI's Reaching For Higher Ground project.

Adapted from The New York Times best-selling book, "The American Way of Eating" details how journalist Tracie McMillan delved into the heart of America's food production industries in order to get a firsthand account of how our food is harvested, sold and prepared. 

McMillan went undercover picking garlic in the fields of California, working as a produce stocker for Wal-Mart, the largest seller of groceries in the U.S., and working in the kitchen of the biggest restaurant chain in America. This story offers a vivid picture of the people who actually feed us and of the toll that task takes on them.

"The American Way of Eating" is the first offering of Theatre UNI's 2013-14 season, "Deadly Sins." 

Tickets are $10 for adults and free for UNI students with their student ID. Tickets can be purchased from the Strayer-Wood Theatre lobby box office between noon and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The box office opens one hour before curtain time.

For more information, contact Eric Lange, artistic director for Theatre UNI, at 319-273-6833 or eric.lange@uni.edu, call the Strayer-Wood Theatre box office at 319-273-6381or visit www.uni.edu/theatre/swt.