Allegra Gordon
4 August 2007
Final Analysis Paper
Health Consciousness in Lakeview
The focus of my research in Lakeview was youth and their thoughts on healthy
eating in their community. Out of eleven interviews, the majority of my interviewees
were young adults age 15-25, but I also interviewed three adults over 30 who shared with
me their opinions about health and food availability in the community. Questions focused
mainly on what interviewees thought about the food available in the community, whether
talking about restaurants or the grocery stores, and also personal views of health. Given
these topics, some main themes emerged: the quality of produce, the lack of variety in
restaurants, and the isolation of Lakeview and how that relates to food availability and
consumption.
Concerning general health consciousness, there was a conflict between whether
those interviewed thought the people of Lakeview were concerned about their health or
not. The interesting component of this discrepancy was that both groups cited the
restaurants as playing a significant role in the diets of the community. One interviewee
said,
It’s a lot easier to be health-conscious with food in Lakeview just because of the
lack of like fast food restaurants and stuff like that. So you kinda have to utilize
your grocery store and stuff like that. So it’s easier to be healthier, so I think
people are.
Like this interviewee, some people believed that by not having the ease and temptation of
fast food chains, people resort instead to the grocery store where healthier options can be
found.
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Others, however, see the restaurants in Lakeview as being just as unhealthy as fast
food chains, and think the community in general isn’t concerned with health because of
the types of restaurants in town. “Yeah I think [health] is influenced by what’s available
here because, mainly we’ve got Burger Queen and Subway and we’ve got a lot of like
fattening foods.” Following this train of thought, when asked if they thought people in
Lakeview were concerned with their health, many respondents simply laughed and shook
their heads before continuing to discuss their personal habits.
In discussion of personal habits and how people feel about the food system, other
themes emerged including youth participation in sports teams and activities, the local
aspect of restaurants, and the isolation of Lakeview. Many youth are busy and active for
with, for example, 4-H and the swim team. Many youth involved in sports teams
throughout high school participate because is it something to do in a small town where
there are few other options. The dedication of these youth is evident in the time
consuming and costly travel to play rival teams.
The majority of youth presumably do not participate in sports for the health
aspect, but many are aware of the benefits. One student said,
I’m pretty active…I try to stick to just one soda a day if I can. And, I just try to
eat, for the most part healthy. And if I eat something unhealthy I try to do some
physical activity that day. Just to kinda, I do physical activity every day, so, it’s
not that hard.
Comments such as this and “I play sports and stuff so not I’m out of shape,” were often
heard from youth.
No matter what kind of restaurant they ate at, everyone expressed an appreciation
for the restaurants in town being locally owned. The majority of youth liked local
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restaurants because knowing the owners personally created a friendly atmosphere. One
young person said,
I appreciate the food systems because I, for the most part the restaurants, I know
the owners and stuff and I it’s fun to go, and, cause you know everyone pretty
much, so. You know kinda where your food is coming from and if you have a
question about food they’ll answer it, and they’re always nice.
Many people in the community also like to support local community members and keep
their money in Lakeview. “I am more inclined to buy [local food], especially in a small
community like ours I really like to support smaller, local economists.”
A common favorite for local meat is the Lakeview Meat Lockers. “I love the
Meat Locker, I love those guys.” Everyone I spoke to really endorsed the Meat Lockers
and bought meat, cheese, wine, vegetables, and beer from them as often as once a week.
“It’s really nice to have a meat locker here because you know that if you want good, fresh
meat…it’s supporting the local economy.” “The Meat Lockers. That’s like our…small
town kind of butcher shop and I think that’s really cute. And I think you can get local
meat there which I think that’s a good thing.” Interviewees interpreted the Meat Lockers
as serving two functions that citizens of Lakeview appreciate: selling local food and
being run by local owners.
The Meat Lockers are also a place to buy a variety of meats, which is rare because
of how isolated Lakeview is. “We don’t have a lot of things available being so secluded
from everything else, but…one thing we can get is meat.” A lack of variety in restaurants
was a problem for many people, and those who did the grocery shopping for their
families also noted the low quality and high prices of produce in Lakeview due to its
isolation.
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In the survey given to high school students in the summer of 2006, 10.9% said
poor quality produce was their least favorite thing about the local food system. Many
others in the community share this judgment. Some have learned to accept Lakeview’s
isolation and either tolerate what produce is available or have small family gardens that
can provide fresh fruits and vegetables throughout the summer. Many people, especially
families, travel to nearby cities like Klamath Falls to do most of their grocery shopping.
The issue of isolation is at the center of many people’s complaints about the food
system. Because Lakeview is dropping off of the distribution map, the produce they do
receive tends to be high priced and low quality. As one girl explained to me, “Sometimes
the quality isn’t as good as it could be; like you buy…some fruit and it’ll go bad really
suddenly, or some of it is really bad already…because…it takes forever for it to get
here.” There is a clear desire for fresher options in the grocery stores, but the timely
delivery of those fresh products does not appear to be a realistic possibility. Interviewees
acknowledge the difficulty of delivering to such a secluded destination and pay high
prices for what is available.
High food prices were also cited as problematic. 12.7% of the high school
students surveyed stated expensive food as their least favorite thing about the local food
system.
Price is a lot more expensive here I think; which if you’re willing to pay the price
you can get it, but there are still a lot of organic foods that somewhere in Bend or
Portland you would have, but you don’t have here.
The lack of organic foods was mentioned by more than one person. However, Stewarts, a
local food market, has tried stocking organic produce in the past, only to replace it with
items that were in higher demand because the organic produce just did not sell.
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What is difficult to deduce is whether there is any demand for things like organic
food in Lakeview. Do people really want that kind of variety in the grocery stores? From
what I’ve been told, they do. The problem of explaining why new items do not sell then
begs several questions. Has the community has simply resigned itself to the food system
it has? Is the community stuck with what they can count on being available? Is the variety
the community seeks in cheap food or in more expensive healthier options? One
interviewee explained the rotating sequence of events to me like this:
I think it’s their own fault. I honestly think it’s the citizens who live here. What
happens is a lot of people go out of town to buy their groceries. Therefore, if we
have specialty items here, people will still go out of town and get them at a
cheaper price and so they sit on the shelf here, and they don’t sell, and then
they’re like ‘Well we’re not going to carry this’ because it doesn’t sell. So, I
really don’t know if it can change. And, I would like to see things change as a
bigger variety, you know, as far as having a better produce selection and
everything like that, but I understand why we don’t. I think a lot of things we
bring [them] on ourselves, and businesses close here because we’re going out of
town to get things cheaper. It’s just a vicious cycle.
The community is aware that this “vicious cycle” is a problem restricting growth
in Lakeview. Families often go to Klamath Falls to do their bulk shopping at Walmart
because there is more variety at a lower price. People will not stop going elsewhere until
something new is offered in Lakeview, and Lakeview will not have anything new to offer
until there is a strong demand. Whatever does come to Lakeview will continue to be
costly because of the community’s geographic isolation.
While shopping in Klamath for things not available in Lakeview, a common
occurrence is for shoppers to also buy things that are available in Lakeview simply
because of the convenience of getting everything at the same time in one place. After a
day of shopping, it is also common to go out to eat before returning to Lakeview. All of
these things reduce demand in the Lakeview food system.
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Often, eating out in Klamath involves going to Taco Bell or KFC. These choices
are clearly motivated by the lack of diversity in Lakeview restaurants, not for health
reasons. Occasionally people will make the long trip to just eat at a specific restaurant.
“We travel to Klamath to go to Applebee’s. And we go to Alturas to go to Black Bear.”
Another respondent told me it was rare, but “the only time we [specifically go to eat] is if
we’re going to The Aspen Ridge Resort which is on the way to Klamath…sometimes
we’re just like, ‘Let’s just drive here to go to eat here,’ but not too often.”
Many people go out to Lakeview’s Pizza Villa, the Mexican restaurant, or
sandwich shops; and they enjoy going out regularly. In at least three interviews people
spoke of a desire for an Italian restaurant, or at least something with pasta as an option
and associated this desire with their appreciation of the local Chinese restaurant. “I wish
we had an Italian place here. I wish we had a pasta place…we got Chinese so that’s
good.” This indicates that while ethnic restaurants are valued they are lumped together
because only a few of Lakeview’s restaurants do not feature meat and potatoes.
There is a high consumption of meat in Lakeview, and as a big beef producer, so
that can be expected. “We’re a meat and potatoes town. People like their steak! Don’t
take it away from them!” This aspect of the Lakeview diet is not readily linked to concern
with health. Making healthy decisions to be physically active or buy healthy food at the
grocery store remain important personal choices. Thus variety in available grocery
options is something that can potentially affect the entire community.
Lakeview residents achieve variety in their diets through home cooking. Variety
in this context has several meanings. It can mean having a different kind of meat every
night or alternating between pasta and meat and vegetables. The later is what one
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respondent really strived for, although he found it difficult to achieve while living with
his parents.
We tend to be fairly healthy; we try not to have too much of one thing, like
there’ll be times where, when my dad cooks it’s just mainly all carbs or
something like that and not a variety. But when it’s my mom or me cooking, we
try to have at least a fruit and if not a fruit, a vegetable, but we’re still trying to hit
those basic food groups.
Not everyone in Lakeview is as concerned with hitting all of the food groups, but they do
try to “vary it out.” In any scenario, cooking at home is limited by what is available at the
grocery store.
Others expressed a desire for more fast food restaurants, though the issue of
bringing in more franchises is a debated subject within the community. As an adult
respondent observed, “I think people really balked at the idea of having a Subway here in
town, but you know it’s busy all the time, and it does really well.” The community might
“balk” at bringing in more franchises because the entire community is so supportive of
local restaurants, but as the above interviewee suggests, it could be profitable and
popular. Among those who would like to see fast food chains some expressed doubt
about whether or not they would actually come to the area. Others did not want to see
franchises specifically, but saw them as inevitable in the future.
It is hard to say where the food system and health Lakeview is headed. Many
changes have been resisted with the because of disagreement within the community. But
surely not everyone can be pleased. Should someone take the initial step to get what they
want—be it fast food chains or organic produce—at least a portion of the community
would receive such changes well.