Local Food Movement Do you buy locally grown food over conventionally grown food? Howard Lafranchi’s study results state that “only 7% of people buy locally grown food regularly.” ("Fresh...”). Locally grown food is food that was grown within 100 miles of where it is being sold. Many people believe locally grown food is better than conventionally grown food because local food is healthier than conventionally grown food. The profit made from locally grown food goes back close to home, and it is better for the environment. One important reason why many people believe locally grown food is better than conventionally grown food is, locally grown food is healthier. Mike hamm studies showed “If someone goes to a farmers market and buys a carrot there is going to be at least 50% more nutrients than if it was conventionally grown.” (“Breaking Ground”) If those carrots have 50% less nutrients, then people will not be getting all the nutrients they need to be healthy. One important reason why locally grown carrots would have more nutrients is that conventional food has to be picked 1-3 weeks before it is packaged and shipped. When fresh food is picked before it is ripe people miss out on a lot of nutrients. …show more content…
Sarah Deweerdt stated that “Locally grown food only travel 100 miles at most to be delivered to where it will be sold. Conventionally grown food normally travels from around 1500 miles all the way up to 3500 miles.” ("Fresh...”) The more food travels the bigger carbon footprint it leaves. Also the longer food travels the more of the chance of the food getting contaminated. When food gets contaminated it causes people to get sick and even die. Locally grown food also use very little to no packaging when almost everything conveniently grown is packed. If food uses less packaging there will be less waste and
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
First, the local sustainable food chain is healthy for people. In the book The Omnivore’s Dilemma as people stand around to buy chicken from Polyface, Pollan records some of the customers’ quotes. In the book it says, “ You’re not going to find fresher chickens anywhere. (Pollan, 184). ” This quote shows
Reason 1: the locally grown produce’s nutritional value is overall better than unfamiliar produce shipped from foreign countries
Although local food may be considered “healthier” it does not solve all of our food problems due to lack in quantity, economic depression, and time. People need to remember all of these factors when thinking of todays thriving country.
We should eat local because it is healthier for us. For example, according to Onegreenplant.org it says that “When produce doesn’t travel across the country, or sometimes the world, its freshness means higher nutrient levels. Once produce is packaged its optimal nutritional level decreases, specifically some vitamins such as C, E, A and some B. There are other factors that come into play, such as exposure to artificial lights and air, and temperature changes.” Since the local foods don’t need to be preserved they keep their nutritional value and we get more nutrients from the local food than we would get from food that comes from California or Mexico. Another example is from sustainabletable.org when it says that “Meat from animals raised sustainably on
The mouthwatering taste of locally grown food can be exceedingly mesmerizing due to the fact that it was grown a day before it was in the market. (Maiser) The demand for locally grown foods also allows the farmers to produce higher quality vegetables and fruit of quality and value. Others benefits of growing and eating food locally is the nutritional values that come with the food, the food does not have preservatives or growth hormones, it is grown and created to what it was supposed to be not genetically engineered to be delicious. Logically having more farms brings in more revenue for the farmers and the community. Even the taste of freshly grown food is better than the taste of factory-style grown meat and produce, is it better to eat meat that has been gr...
Much of the food is thrown into landfills, where it rots, which has very negative effects on the environment. According to John Oliver, the food left to rot in the landfills releases methane, an extremely powerful greenhouse gas (Oliver, 2015). Methane is a greenhouse gas, meaning it destroys the ozone layer and contributes to the warming of the earth. By refraining from throwing out so much food, or at least redirecting it to people who need it, food waste would be reduced, and so would its harm on the environment. Not only does the rotting food release greenhouse gases, the resources wasted to deal with the unwanted food are huge. According to Kevin Hall, Juen Guo, Michael Dore, and Carson Chow, “Food waste contributes to excess consumption of freshwater and fossil fuels which, along with methane and CO2 emissions from decomposing food, impacts global climate change” (Hall, Guo, Dore, & Chow, 2009, p. 1). America is essentially using resources like water and fossil fuels, that we could be directing towards a better cause, to dispose of perfectly good food that will then release harmful gases of methane and carbon dioxide. Food waste matters because it is a complete waste of valuable resources and food that is needed by many, while also contributing to the growing problem of climate
American society has grown so accustomed to receiving their food right away and in large quantities. Only in the past few decades has factory farming come into existence that has made consuming food a non guilt-free action. What originally was a hamburger with slaughtered cow meat is now slaughtered cow meat that’s filled with harmful chemicals. Not only that, the corn that that cow was fed with is also filled with chemicals to make them grow at a faster rate to get that hamburger on a dinner plate as quickly as possible. Bryan Walsh, a staff writer for Time Magazine specializing in environmental issues discusses in his article “America’s Food Crisis” how our food is not only bad for us but dangerous as well. The word dangerous could apply to many different things though. Our food is dangerous to the consumer, the workers and farmers, the animals and the environment. Walsh gives examples of each of these in his article that leads back to the main point of how dangerous the food we are consuming every day really is. He goes into detail on each of them but focuses his information on the consumer.
quality. This will cut the shipping of food, causing carbon emissions to decrease as well as food
Woese, K., Lange, D., Boess, C., & Werner Bogl, K. (1999). A comparison of organically and conventionally grown foods-results of a review of the relevant literature. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, 74(3), 281-293. Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.er.lib.k-state.edu/doi/10.1002/(SICI)1097-0010(199707)74:3<281::AID-JSFA794>3.0.CO;2-Z/pdf
Trends of moving toward supporting local food producers have increased over the years. People are looking for quality over quantity. “With the explosion of interest in local food, consumers now have more choices of products, labels, and ways to shop, so, many people are left wondering where to start” (Table, 2009). Buying locally supports sustainable food system, beyond just methods of food production and helps to increase food from farm to plate. Supporting locally drastically helps with the reduction of emissions and the negative effect that food traveling has on our environment.
Organic food is generally not much healthier than regular fruits and such nutrition wise with a few exceptions. “Higher vitamin C concentrations were found in organic leafy vegetables, such as spinach, lettuce, and chard versus the same conventionally produced vegetables in 21 of 36 (58%) studies”( Foreman). Also mentioned is that organic and nonorganic milk is not much different as “In general, milk has the same protein, vitamin, trace mineral content, and lipids from both organically and conventionally reared cows.”( Foreman).Despite the exception, it has been stated that the exception does not have strong enough evidence that can let a statement such as “eating organic food is more beneficial than eating conventionally grown food” stand on its own and be taken seriously. Another unfortunate circumstance on organic food is the price. On average, anything organic is priced higher than non-organic food, and according to Digestive Specialists Inc., it “…costs anywhere from 20 to 100 percent more than regular produce” (Digestive Specialists). The higher price leaves any financially struggling person or family less likely to invest in organic food when there is always a cheaper option available, even if the cheaper product isn’t beneficial to their health. The reason for this, mentioned by Health Research Funding,“…Organic farmers do not use artificial fertilizers, they tend to produce smaller quantities. Their method of farming is also more labor-intensive with weed pulling and crop rotation. And then there is the issue of supply and demand – as the demand for organic produce increases, so does the price” (Health Research Funding). The quality of organic fruits, while being mostly free of pesticides and chemicals, can also have a lot less time to deteriorate compared to non-organic foods. To summarize the issue, Mayo Clinic states that, “Because organic fruits and vegetables aren 't
Natural foods are described as whole foods that are grown in gardens, and are unprocessed and unrefined. The downside of natural foods is that they have a shorter shelf life then processed foods. These foods are authentically flavorful, have vibrant colors, and rich textures. "Moreover, they are full of the micronutrient vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytochemicals, and fiber. Typically, they require longer preparation times. In contrast, they receive very little media advertising, and are not well funded with government...
The increased food trade has impacted the spread of diseases since pathogens can stay on the surfaces of foods, which re then consumed by people. Further, animal matter can get in the food, or around the area where they are stored, further spreading diseases. Also, the pesticides and water the food is grown in can have negative impact on health and spread diseases, especially if the water is dirty. To reduce disease, certain national and international laws need to be placed on how food is grown and produced, stored, and shipped. Having certain regulations in place to promote health can enhance health.
Have you ever considered what is in the food you are feeding your children? Most foods that are bought at the neighborhood grocery stores are considered global foods which are packed with additives and chemicals making them far less nutritious than local produce from the community farmer‘s market. After much research, I have concluded that it is better to buy produce which is grown locally rather than produce which is sourced globally (from other countries). I think this is important because most people, like myself, buy global foods and do not realize how much better local foods are for the local economy, the global environment, and our personal nutrition. Nutrition is vital to the healthy of everyone especially children, so with the purchase of local fresh produce, it can ease the worry in parents of what children as well as ourselves are ingesting.