Might Republicans Join Sustainable Food Fight to Woo Graduate Voters?
Wanting healthy food that isn't polluted, is sustainable for a changing world, and isn't going to harm our children should be a bipartisan political issue. So an opinion piece in the WSJ about "Whole Foods Republicans" may indicate a paradigm shift, or at least the first preparations for a paradigm shift which could bring many more people into the sustainable food movement from both parties.
The piece by Michael Petrilli suggests the Republican party needs "to cultivate "Whole Foods Republicans"—independent-minded voters who embrace a progressive lifestyle but not progressive politics," noting that this may become a serious strategy following the shrinking of the white working class. Tim Ford at Stanford Review finds that this strategy, as a Whole Food Republican himself, could work, explaining that making the party more socially inclusive and deal with environmental issues more seriously could be good politics.
As parties increasingly fight over an increasing number of college educated voters, they might find themselves courting voters likely to be more in favor of sustainable practices, and a Whole Foods philosophy. Let's hope Republicans realize the power of fighting for a sustainable food system that doesn't depend on an unlimited amount of oil, and is in favor of produce grown in America. Hopefully Democrats will then scale up their rhetoric and increasingly call for a true sustainable food system.
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