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Why should we buy local foods
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Every time human beings pursue new ways to feed themselves, there are some concerns in different areas. The concerns are in terms of causing food shortage for other human beings, destroying the natural environment, and most important is eating unhealthily. Eating ethically refers to the environment conservation, which makes the sustainable loop in cultivation. The industrial food chain is universal across the world, and the pollution from it is uncountable so that the environmental pollution relates everyone’s life qualities. Due to people’s expectation to eat healthy and convenient, the pollution has become such a serious problem around world. Most Americans strive to eat healthy; however, an attempt to feed such a big population causes environmental …show more content…
Because of the wealth allocation around the world, developed countries are capable of purchasing the high quality food without pollution in their own countries. America has a higher purchasing power than most of developing countries that depends on their economy. Since agriculture is the only way to eat healthy and America does not have enough people to work on farms all day, the country will purchase its food from other developing countries. Meanwhile, American purchases food from developing countries is very convenient and affordable for themselves; the country strives to import as much food as it is available to make sure that its citizens stay healthy. In the end, the producing country only leaves with very little to high quality food for their own citizen. Some developing countries heavily rely on exports for the economy to run their countries. Although those producing countries can relieve their financial problems, many of people still confront
“Food as thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating,” is an article written by Mary Maxfield in response or reaction to Michael Pollan’s “Escape from the Western Diet”. Michael Pollan tried to enlighten the readers about what they should eat or not in order to stay healthy by offering and proposing a simple theory: “the elimination of processed foods” (443).
Moreover, this system of mass farming leads to single crop farms, which are ecologically unsafe, and the unnatural treatment of animals (Kingsolver 14). These facts are presented to force the reader to consider their own actions when purchasing their own food because of the huge economic impact that their purchases can have. Kingsolver demonstrates this impact by stating that “every U.S. citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce, we
I am used to living a very busy life style, so I never paid close attention to where my food was originating from. Usually when I look at my food it is more to find out its nutritional value rather than its origins. After reading Kelsey Timmerman’s “Where Am I Eating?”, it has opened my eyes to some of the horrors of the food industry. Regardless of what I have learned, changing my eating habits would be very challenging, and I do not believe it is entirely necessary. Yes, there are many negatives in the global food economy, but it is not totally corrupt as Timmerman suggests. I believe it would be very difficult to change because of the many misleading food labels, the United States has become unfamiliar with how to produce for the entirety
Humans are damaging the planet to live comfortably, we must change the way food is distributed worldwide, support local farmers and switch to a healthier diet in order to stop global warming. The current global has been getting better for us humans over the years, from eating bread and eggs 3 times a day in the XV century, now we can eat better than the kings of those times, however the much of the food in not healthy and the global food system still fails in getting food to every individual in the planet and in addition it contributes to the destruction of our world. Ms. Anna Lappe explains how the food system contributes to around 1/3 of the global warming issue in her essay “The Climate Crisis at the End of Our Fork”, while a group of Plos one explains the issues about the export and import of food growth over the last 50 years in the
In his essay “The American Paradox”, Michael Pollan illustrates his conclusion that Americans who focus on nutrition have a higher probability of decreasing their well-being. Pollan defines the American paradox as “a notably unhealthy population preoccupied with nutrition and the idea of eating healthily.” For most of our human history, our parents and culture have influenced our diet. However, today the idea of what to eat has been based on the opinions of scientists, food markets, and nutritionists. I agree with Pollan’s argument that being preoccupied with what we eat makes us unhealthy, however, we need a balance and a sense of responsibility in what we eat.
Michael Pollan and David Freedman are two reputable authors who have written about different types of food and why they are healthy or why they are damaging to our health. Michael Pollan wrote “Escape from the Western Diet” and David Freedman wrote “How Junk Food Can End Obesity”. Imagine Pollan’s idea of a perfect world. Everything is organic. McDonald’s is serving spinach smoothies and Walmart is supplying consumers with raw milk. The vast majority of food in this world consists of plants grown locally, because almost everyone is a farmer in order to keep up with supply and demand. How much does all this cost? What happened to all the food that is loved just because it tastes good?
Hunter-gatherer societies are healthier and more beneficial towards one’s body than an agricultural based society but due to the large populations around the world there is no possibility society can convert back. The only reasonable action that can be taken to live a healthier life is if the pesticides used to grown fruits and vegetables, the fattening products used on the animals consumed, and no other artificial product or chemical is used on the food consumed.
When we think of our national health we wonder why Americans end up obese, heart disease filled, and diabetic. Michael Pollan’s “ Escape from the Western Diet” suggest that everything we eat has been processed some food to the point where most of could not tell what went into what we ate. Pollan thinks that if America thought more about our “Western diets” of constantly modified foods and begin to shift away from it to a more home grown of mostly plant based diet it could create a more pleasing eating culture. He calls for us to “Eat food, Not too much, Mostly plants.” However, Mary Maxfield’s “Food as Thought: Resisting the Moralization of Eating”, argues differently she has the point of view that people simply eat in the wrong amounts. She recommends for others to “Trust yourself. Trust your body. Meet your needs.” The skewed perception of eating will cause you all kinds of health issues, while not eating at all and going skinny will mean that you will remain healthy rather than be anorexic. Then, as Maxfield points out, “We hear go out and Cram your face with Twinkies!”(Maxfield 446) when all that was said was eating as much as you need.
In the Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan talks about 4 different models that we consume, purchase, and add it to our daily lives. Michael Pollan travels to different locations around the United States, where he mentions his models which are fast food, industrial organic, beyond organic, and hunting. I believe that the 3 important models that we need to feed the population are fast food, industrial organic, and beyond organic. Fast food is one of the most important models in this society because people nowadays, eat fast food everyday and it is hurting us in the long run. We need to stick to beyond organic or industrial organic food because it is good for our well being. Ever since the government and corporations took over on what we eat, we have lost our culture. In the introduction of the Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan states that we have lost our culture:
It is heart breaking to see an obese American on the street,because one instinctively knows that the obese American is not making the best food choices. We are constantly establishing new and innovative ways for improving society in terms of technological advances and transportation, although as stated from Budiansky we are also to be blamed for transportation and environmental consequences. “A single ten-mile round trip by car to the grocery store or the farmer’s market will easily eat up about 14,000 calories of fossil fuel energy.”(8) Growing food locally and consuming food locally will save a trip to the grocery store. Innovative technologies don’t always have to be the case. Agriculture only makes up 2 percent of our nation’s energy usage,which is used for running farm machinery and manufacturing fertilizer. Using these effectively will allow us to avoid processed foods and reduce the obesity rate. Individuals with food allergies are able to ask farmers about how the food was grown or ask chefs at a restaurant what ingredients were used in a specific dish. As most of us we desire social interaction. Going to a local food market, allows us to meet different individuals that may offer favorable advice for selecting food items. Our lifestyles all come down to ourselves,which means choosing foods that are advantageous toward our health. If we are aware of where the food comes from, it is easier to make those choices that will benefit
Our current system of corporate-dominated, industrial-style farming might not resemble the old-fashioned farms of yore, but the modern method of raising food has been a surprisingly long time in the making. That's one of the astonishing revelations found in Christopher D. Cook's "Diet for a Dead Planet: Big Business and the Coming Food Crisis" (2004, 2006, The New Press), which explores in great detail the often unappealing, yet largely unseen, underbelly of today's food production and processing machine. While some of the material will be familiar to those who've read Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma" or Eric Schlosser's "Fast-Food Nation," Cook's work provides many new insights for anyone who's concerned about how and what we eat,
Most Americans do not care enough to take a look at the nutritional values of the food that he or she is consuming. That is why America has the highest percentage of obesity in the world. This is a serious problem because one in every three adults is obese, and one in every six children is obese. There are many factors that go into the regular American diet, but most of those factors are not appealing nor is it healthy. Americans put way too much processed food into their daily diet. Some would say that other countries diets superior the American diet because of nutritional values that it carries. Other countries have proven that an active lifestyle is a huge element in the average weight of the country. There are many things that Americans could change about their diets and lifestyle that would help them to become healthier.
And, because food now comes at a low cost, it has become cheaper in quality and therefore potentially dangerous to the consumer’s health. These problems surrounding the ethics and the procedures of the instantaneous food system are left unchanged due to the obliviousness of the consumers and the dollar signs in the eyes of the government and big business. The problem begins with the mistreatment and exploitation of farmers. Farmers are essentially the backbone of the entire food system. Large-scale family farms account for 10% of all farms, but 75% of overall food production (CSS statistics).
In the United States, the citizens are becoming aware of the importance of health, the well-being of animals, and the environment. An indication of this is from the rise in vegans in the nation (Henriquez). Veganism is healthier for the human body and the environment ("Raw Foodism"). A vegan lifestyle includes a person who does not believe in killing any sentient animal, not consuming any animal products and not using any animal by-products (PETA). The establishment of a vegan diet could be beneficial because it can create a healthier lifestyle, minimize the planet's environmental footprint and lessen animal cruelty.
During this research paper, the point is to analyze a specific food issue: food waste, and how to help reduce it. Most people agree that food waste is getting out of hand, but they are not trying hard enough to prevent it because they do not know well enough what is really happening. “The Ugly Truth about Food Waste in America,” gives many interesting facts about this issue. It says that 40% of the food in the U.S. is uneaten, meaning Americans throw out $165 billion worth of food each year. As food waste decays, it produces methane; a potent greenhouse gas, which causes our planet to overheat. Not only is this gas being released, but tremendous amount of petroleum, and water are being wasted. Over 80% of water is consumed into producing food,