perspectives for the perceptive

In the modern wellness narrative, there is no greater villain than the ultra-processed food (UPF). It’s the boogeyman on our plates, blamed for a host of health issues and seen as a moral failing of our food system. The solution, we are told, is simple: avoid them at all costs.

While the health concerns associated with a diet high in these foods are valid, I believe this narrative is dangerously simplistic. It allows us to point to an easy villain, which can absolve us of our own personal responsibility and, more importantly, distracts us from the complex economic and logistical realities that led to the rise of these products in the first place.

1. The Economics of Necessity: Scale and Stability

Imagine the challenge: to provide consistent, safe, and affordable calories to over 330 million people across a continent. In a perfect world, our food supply would be entirely composed of fresh, organic, minimally processed ingredients, available everywhere and priced so that anyone could afford them. This is a logistical and economic fantasy.

The reality is that fresh, whole foods are expensive to grow, difficult to transport, and have an incredibly short shelf life. This inherent fragility makes them a luxury for many. Ultra-processed foods were engineered to solve these exact problems. Through processing, they achieve two things that are critical for a national food supply:

• Shelf Stability: This drastically reduces spoilage and waste, allowing for long-distance distribution and storage.
• Economies of Scale: The ingredients and processes used are designed for massive-scale production, allowing companies to drive the price point down and make basic caloric intake affordable for millions.¹

Critics of UPFs often forget to address this crucial point. It’s easy to advocate for an all-organic diet from a position of economic security, but that argument ignores the real-world trade-offs faced by a family on a tight budget.

2. The Boogeyman and the Burden of Choice: A Shared Responsibility

The “boogeyman” portrayal of the food industry is, in many ways, rightfully earned. The relentless pursuit of cost-cutting can lead to practices that diminish the nutritional value of a food item, such as replacing real ingredients with artificial flavors that add no nutritional benefit but still hit the desired flavor profile. These practices rightly put the industry on the hot seat.

At the same time, we must acknowledge the consumer’s role in this dynamic. In an age of unprecedented abundance of low-cost food, personal agency and education are paramount. However, educating oneself on nutrition takes time and effort. It is often easier to be placated by a simple narrative—whether it’s a marketing slogan on a box or a social media influencer’s advice—and let someone else do the thinking for us.

This creates a shared responsibility for the current state of the American diet. No one is forcing anyone to consume these foods in excess. Many would argue that the foods themselves aren’t the primary evil, but that the harm comes from consuming them in large, repetitive quantities. The convenience of UPFs makes this overconsumption easy, but it does not make it inevitable.

Conclusion: Beyond the Villain

This is not a defense of a diet built on ultra-processed foods. The goal is to add a necessary layer of economic and social context to a one-sided conversation. Ultra-processed foods are a technological solution to the economic problem of feeding a nation; they are a product of a system that has prioritized affordability and accessibility.

The real conversation shouldn’t be about simply eliminating these products. It should be about addressing the deeper systemic issues. What are the economic conditions that make UPFs the most viable choice for so many? How can we improve nutritional education to empower people to take ownership of their choices? And how can we foster innovation that makes healthier, minimally processed foods just as affordable and accessible?

Blaming the boogeyman is easy. Understanding the complex system that created it—and our own role within it—is much harder, but it’s the only path toward a genuinely healthier future.