I was glad to see a second season of _Rotten_ appear on Netflix since I found the initial run quite good. It’s a documentary series that devotes each episode to a specific topic connected to the less savory aspects of how food is produced. The subjects in this season include avocados, French wine, water, sugar, chocolate, and weed edibles. These topics might seem dull at first glance for a documentary, but the way the show and its individual episodes are constructed really makes you consider commonplace items and just how many of them have troubling histories that consumers typically aren’t aware of. The series investigates these histories and reveals how large companies, or in the case of avocados, Mexican cartels, frequently become involved to extract substantial profits—often at the expense of farmers, communities, and individuals simply trying to earn a living. I thought this was an interesting look into things and served as a good reminder to pay attention to where my food and products originate. However, that observation also brought up a small problem I had with it. Essentially, the series is critical of large corporations and the corruption and political maneuvering that accompanies them. There’s a lot of exposure but not many solutions offered, except in the chocolate episode, which discussed shifting much of the production to local communities in Africa. For me, if some potential solutions were presented, it might have provided a sense of optimism rather than feeling somewhat disheartening. Still, they do a good job of packing a lot of well-researched information into each episode, and the combination of interviews, supplemental footage, and on-screen visuals works effectively to convey their message. Season 2 was engaging again, and I’ll be watching the third if one is produced.

Source on TMDB