In Robert McKee's brilliant book, "Story," he describes the desire for story:
"The world now consumes films, novels, theater, and television in such quantities and with such ravenous hunger that the story art's have become humanity's prime source of inspiration, as it seeks to order chaos and gain insight to life. Our appetite for story is a reflection of the profound human need to grasp the patterns of living, not merely as an intellectual exercise, but within a very personal, emotional experience."
John Mackey, the founder of Whole Foods, tells good stories. He got his start in 1978. He was 25 years old, and was a college dropout...three different times. He had an idea to begin a health-food-store-restaurant, and borrowed $45,000 from friends and family to begin his innovative concept.
He's been successful. Over the past five years, Whole Foods stock (WFMI) has increased by 539%...and recently Wal-Mart announced their own push into organic foods.
The growth of Whole Foods has been imbued with the power of story. As one walks around the perimeter of the store, you will see the many story examples of the organic suppliers and farmers who have partnered with Whole Foods over the years.
The story of Rosie the organic, free-range chicken is one such story example. Displayed on a bed of ice, at more than twice the cost of a regular non-organic bird, Rosie's life story is told in an accompanying brochure. Spending her life in a custom ranch house in California's wine country, exercising in an airy, sunlit building on an earthen floor, Rosie has been raised on a diet of golden corn...without the benefit of antibiotics or growth hormones.
The reality of Rosie's life is not the same as presented in this wistful tale. As UC-Berkeley journalism professor, Michael Pollan, describes in his new book, "The Omnivore's Dilemma,"...Rosie's concept of "free-range" is most likely to be different than the image shared by many consumers.
Rosie was raised in a barracks the size of a football field, along with 20,000 or so of her fellow chickens. For the first five weeks of here life, Rosie is not "free-range"...her movement is restricted to within her compound. At 5 weeks, two smaller doors are opened at either ends of the building...that allow egress to the outside. If Rosie and her feathery friends choose to venture outside, they would find 15-foot strips of grass on either side of the building...where they could cavort and cluck, and do the other things that chickens do.
In real-life, Rosie never dares to go outside, nor do any of her friends. Outside is a completely foreign concept to her...besides all of her food and water is inside anyway. Her masters are equally fearful of the outside and glad that Rosie shares their mindset. Without antibiotics, Rosie is very susceptible to disease, as well as all pathogens that the outside would expose her to. As Michael Pollan describes it, the last weeks of Rosie's life is not so much "free-range" as it is "vacation option."
At 7 weeks, Rosie is "processed."
The End!