Welcome to Consumed!

Pull up a chair...

Welcome, welcome!! We are so excited to introduce you to Consumed, an idea that has been bubbling away in our brains like so much sourdough starter for the past several months.

We decided to start this newsletter because the question of what to eat has never been more confusing than it is today. 

At the grocery store, there are endless choices for everything from milk to eggs to snack bars, each with its own marketing messages carefully calibrated to win space in your shopping cart. On your social media feeds, influencers peddle a steady flow of products they #love and you #need. Bombastic headlines report on the newest dietary research studies, most of which seem to kind of contradict the last dietary research study? It is, frankly, a very chaotic time to be an eater in the United States!! 

This is where Consumed comes in. 

Using in-depth research, data, and decades of journalistic experience, we strip away the noise to help you make confident, informed decisions about what and how you eat. We also share broader insights and analysis when it comes to what’s happening in the food industry, from whether you should be freaking out about bird flu to why a green salad at your favorite date night spot suddenly costs $22. 

Consumed comes to you from Jane Black and Liz Dunn, both veteran food journalists with decades of experience writing for publications like the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, Businessweek, and many more. It is, in some ways, a sequel to Pressure Cooker, a podcast we started about feeding kids and how complicated it is. But it’s not just feeding kids that’s complicated. It’s a struggle for all of us.

These days, we’re all expected to be our own food inspectors, reading the fine print on labels to find out whether that  “healthy” whole grain bread is also loaded with added sugars. Or choosing whether to pay up for the fancy milk. Or understanding enough about tax law to decide whom to tip, and how much. It’s no wonder that three good meals a day can feel like a full time job. 

We’re both endlessly fascinated by all things related to food. But we also believe that you, reader, shouldn’t have to be like us in order to make choices you can feel good about.

And, if we do say so, we’re pretty good at boiling down its complexities and coming up with realistic solutions. And no, the most expensive option isn’t always the best!

We’re working to make Consumed is a trusted resource and community for people who care about food, personal well-being, and planetary health, but don’t have endless mental energy to devote to making food decisions. Is that you? If so, join us!