Mark Bittman On Food Culture Now

Superstar food thinker Mark Bittman on “vegan till 6” and our food culture now. On Point Live!

Food writer, food thinker Mark Bittman is one of the big voices relentlessly pushing, cajoling, inviting, instructing to change the way America eats.  For our health, for the big world.

He’s done it himself.  Vegan ‘til six is his new mantra.  Basically, eat plants all day, enjoy what you like in the evening.  Your heart and health will thank you, he says.  And so will an environment not asked to carry the groaning load of the way we eat now.

He’s funny.  He’s smart.  He’s a good cook.  He’s thinking about your plate and the planet.

This hour, On Point:  On Point Live with Mark Bittman.
- Tom Ashbrook

Mark Bittman, American food journalist and author. Columnist for the New York Times and lead food writer for the New York Times Magazine. He wrote the “Minimalist” column for the Times for more than 13 years. His new book is "VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 To Lose Weight And Restore Your Health… For Good"

Also, the great bluegrass group Della Mae joined us for On Point Live. Their new album is "This World Oft Can Be."

The Washington Post: Weeknight Vegetarian: Going vegan, for the day, with Mark Bittman — "What may come across as gimmicky, with the acronym and the time stamp and all, becomes less so once you read or listen. For one thing, that 6 o’clock reference is just a device to mark off part of the day from the rest, to give eaters structure without asking them to obsess. Want cream with your morning coffee? Going out to lunch one day and don’t want to seek out a vegan entree? Want to eat bacon at breakfast and a vegetarian dinner? Don’t sweat the details. 'The point is to eat less meat and other animal products,' he says when we’re back in my Dupont Circle kitchen. 'VB6 is a way to do that, but it’s certainly not the only way.'"

The New York Times (Mark Bittman): Welfare for the Wealthy — "The critically important Farm Bill is impenetrably arcane, yet as it worms its way through Congress, Americans who care about justice, health or the environment can parse enough of it to become outraged. The legislation costs around $100 billion annually, determining policies on matters that are strikingly diverse. Because it affects foreign trade and aid, agricultural and nutritional research, and much more, it has global implications."