Not really surprised or shocked. What the lower middle class and poor want/need is food that is fast, cheap, and convenient. We've made it such that healthy food is really a crazy amount of luxury. If it's healthy, it either cheap but in such a raw form a lot of people won't know what to do with it so that they'd enjoy it or it's just out of the budget. Why venture out for that bundle of veggies you don't like/don't know how to cook so that you like them, when you can just get fed cheaper on shit you know you'll eat?
Think about it. Back in the day having food chock full of fat and sugar was a thing of luxury and people craved it because it was delicious (duh) and a sign of status. Business found a way to profit on that so much until it's not a symbol of wealth like it used to be, but it's still hella addicting and we (collectively) keeping making it so that it's more addicting and cheaper to make than all the labor put into less processed food.
Not really surprised or shocked. What the lower middle class and poor want/need is food that is fast, cheap, and convenient. We've made it such that healthy food is really a crazy amount of luxury. If it's healthy, it either cheap but in such a raw form a lot of people won't know what to do with it so that they'd enjoy it or it's just out of the budget. Why venture out for that bundle of veggies you don't like/don't know how to cook so that you like them, when you can just get fed cheaper on shit you know you'll eat?
Think about it. Back in the day having food chock full of fat and sugar was a thing of luxury and people craved it because it was delicious (duh) and a sign of status. Business found a way to profit on that so much until it's not a symbol of wealth like it used to be, but it's still hella addicting and we (collectively) keeping making it so that it's more addicting and cheaper to make than all the labor put into less processed food.