We are what we eat

Over the past couple of decades, the American diet has changed in some significant ways. We eat less red meat per person than we did in 1980, according to recent census surveys. But we also eat a lot more sugar and — cue ominous music — high-fructose corn syrup. We eat a lot more chicken but fewer eggs. Less ice cream but more cheese. Way more strawberries and pineapples and way fewer grapefruit. And two of our signature agricultural products here in the Inland Northwest — apples and potatoes — showed a drop in per-person consumption, though they remain among the most-eaten fruits and vegetables in the country. Here are the changes in how much American diets have changed, based on the latest per-capita consumption statistics from the census. The graphic on the left details these statistics. Click the thumbnail to view it at full size. To download a high-resolution PDF copy, click on the “document” tab above.