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The Human Desire of Control Michael Pollan uses the potato to address the idea of control, in particular, whether we have control over nature or it has control over us. Potatoes were first found in South America growing in the Andes. The ancestors of the Incas lived in that area and were the first known humans to cultivate these potatoes for human consumption (Pollan 131). When settlers came to the New World they marveled at these new crops that grew from spuds and shipped them back to Europe. Potatoes became the crop of choice for peasant farmers, particularly in Ireland, because they contained most of the necessary nutrition required for healthy living and they grew well in nutrient-poor soils. The farmers growing these
The appeal to monoculture is its simplicity. Only growing one crop means the growing conditions, maintenance, and harvesting will always be the same, so the process can be standardized. In terms of potatoes, Pollan looks at monoculture through the lens of farmers growing potatoes for McDonalds (Pollan 143). McDonalds requires a specific type of potato that will yield a large size for their French fries, and they need that potato to constantly meet their customers’ demand for French fries. A farmer seeking to be a supplier for them would not have the time and energy to cultivate other crops, making monoculture a lucrative option for him or her. This makes monoculture a product of the economical world around us. As Pollan states, the practice of monoculture goes against the way nature works. As seen in the 1800s, relying on a single crop makes that crop vulnerable to disease, insects, competing plants, etc. One farmer he interviews says that “the bugs are always going to be smarter than we are,” which begs the larger question Pollan is attempting to answer: are we in control of nature or is nature in control of us (Pollan 144)? The Irish’s attempt to control the potato was met with a severe response from nature. This explains the creation and use of
Polyculture is associated with, but not exclusively limited to, the movement in organic farming (Pollan 144). The main drawback is the work required to maintain the different species being grown. Each plant requires its own growing conditions, so maintenance becomes labor intensive. However, this method of farming greatly increases the biodiversity of the fields which reduces susceptibility to disease and pests, and creates genetically diverse species. Polyculture is very different from monoculture in more ways than simply growing more than one crop. Monoculture is the attempt to control a crop to maximize yield. Polyculture is the acknowledgement of nature’s control and the attempt to grow successful crops through changing the process of growing plants based on the ecological system around them. The people who grew early potatoes on the Andes grew a wide variety of different potato species so that not all of them were likely to susceptible to the same disease (Pollan 131). Pollan’s discussion of these methods leans heavily toward the idea that even though monoculture is simpler and more profitable, it is an inferior method to polyculture that is mainly still in use to feed the capitalistic machine of the global food
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
In “What’s Eating America”, Michael Pollan starts off his article by providing his audience with a background on the history of corn and its production. Additionally, he goes through both the sinister and positive sides in the history of corn, all while building a connection with his audience through his utilization of ‘we’ pronouns and by having direct conversations with his readers inside parentheticals. He continues to develop this connection throughout the text in order to slowly inch the reader towards his argument, which he presents in the final paragraph of the piece as a climax to the slow buildup of facts that previously followed the main argument. In addition, he surprises his readers by drawing grisly connections between corn and Zyklon B, amongst other images, creating a visual in the minds of his readers of corn as a malicious entity. He does this in order to to bolster his argument against the industrialization of food production, placing it in a gory, gruesome frame,
I believe that at the time of the flood the water table of his land
...iple types of plants in them) rather than monoculture as found in the Old World.
1. Compare the “natural system” on Joel Salatin’s Polyface Farm to the “industrial system” employed by much of the rest of corporate agriculture. Why does Pollan find one system more “efficient” than the other.
I once played this game where you had to pick a card and it would have a category on it. You would read the word out loud then go around and have to say a type that matched the category and keep going around till someone can’t think of a type. Once the word was apple, it was the shortest round for once the types Gala, Red Delicious, McIntosh and Granny Smith were all named we couldn’t think of anymore! Which is a point Cary Fowler, an agriculture expert, makes. In a TED talk Fowler gave a speech titled, One Seed at a Time, Protecting the Future of Food, discussing how we have lost almost all of the diversity in crops. Going from having thousands of diversity in crops to now only knowing a few hundred or less. With that and future climate changes things could take a turn for the worse with our lack of diversity in our agriculture. Fowler is able to make a strong argument using ethos, logos and pathos throughout his talk that is one persuasion at a time.
Potatoes have become a staple to the diet of humans.They have become so popular since they come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and tastes. They are also cheap and easy to grow, and they taste delicious! Potatoes have changed the course of history in several ways. Who knew that potatoes, just a starchy vegetable, could have helped shape the world in so many ways. First, the Irish Potato Famine killed a million people and caused another million to move out of Ireland. Second, soldiers in the United States army were able to eat potatoes throughout the war. Third, they prevented a famine from occurring in England after there was not a sufficient amount of crops going to sustain the country's cries for food. Many people wonder if potatoes have
Schlosser sets off chapter 5: “Why the Fries Taste Good,” in Aberdeen, Idaho at the J. R. Simplot Plant where he introduces John Richard Simplot, “America’s great potato baron,” (Schlosser 111). Simplot dropped out of school at 15, left home, and found work on a potato farm in Declo, Idaho making 30 cents an hour. Simplot bought and turned profit on some interest-bearing scrip from some school teachers and used the money to at 600 hogs at $1 a head. He feed the hogs horse meat from wild horses he shot himself, later selling them for $12.50 a head. At age 16 Simplot leased 160 acres to begin growing Russet Burbank Potatoes. In the 1920s the potato industry was just picking up as Idaho was discovered to have the ideal soil and conditions for successfully growing potatoes (Schlosser 112). Soon Simplot was the “largest shipper of potatoes in the West, operating 33 warehouses in Oregon and Idaho,” (Schlosser 113). During World War II Simplot sold dehydrated potatoes and onions to the U.S. Army. By the time he was 36 he “was growing his own potatoes, fe...
Domesticated potatoes were once all belong to one botanical species, Solanum tuberosum; it included thousands of varieties that had diversity in size, shape, color and other characteristics. The potato was first domesticated in the South America Andes, then the Puritans who took Mayflower arrived the land and the First Nations taught them about potatoes. Then the sailors went back to Europe and people started to plant potatoes in Spain, England, France, and many other countries in Europe. Later, potatoes were spread into Africa by the colonists. The crop was once believe to be poisonous by the local farmers who refused to plant them. However, the colonists persuaded the farmers and introduced potatoes as a low-price and high-production crop in substitute of wheat and rice.
Throughout The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan, the author argues that the coevolution of plants and humans is seen within the relationship of humans manipulating plants to fulfill their desires. Pollan touches on four main examples where coevolution can be easily seen throughout history and the present. The apple satisfies sweetness, the tulip beauty, marijuana intoxication, and the potato control. As we are benefitting from evolving the plants for our own interest, the plants themselves are benefitting as well. The environmental message of the book surpasses that of coevolution and dives into the technology of genetic engineering
All humans strive for a healthy and happy lifestyle; what one does not comprehend is, that by regular consumption of potatoes one prevents him or herself from achieveing said ambition. Potatoes are a negative influence on ones body; furthermore, one should significantly decline he or she's intake of potatoes. Due to the fact, that potatoes notably increase one's odds of developing a metabolic syndrome. In the same matter, through consumption of anti-nutrients, potatoes also substancially effect one's internal functions. In final analisys, because potatoes do not only negatively effect one's physical state, but one's mental condition as well.
Genetically modified food’s, or GMOs, goal is to feed the world's malnourished and undernourished population. Exploring the positive side to GMOs paints a wondrous picture for our planet’s future, although careful steps must be taken to ensure that destruction of our ecosystems do not occur. When GMOs were first introduced into the consumer market they claimed that they would help eliminate the world’s food crisis by providing plants that produced more and were resistant to elemental impacts like droughts and bacterial contaminants, however, production isn’t the only cause for the world’s food crisis. Which is a cause for concern because the population on the earth is growing and our land and ways of agriculture will not be enough to feed everyone sufficiently. No simple solutions can be found or applied when there are so many lives involved. Those who are hungry and those who are over fed, alike, have to consider the consequences of Genetically Modified Organisms. Food should not be treated like a commodity it is a human necessity on the most basic of levels. When egos, hidden agendas, and personal gains are folded into people's food sources no one wins. As in many things of life, there is no true right way or wrong way to handle either of the arguments and so many factors are involved that a ‘simple’ solution is simply not an option.
As the global population continues to rise, the amount of food needed to feed the people will increase as well. Two types of agriculture systems have been the backbone for crop production for decades if not centuries: conventional and organic agriculture— both methods could not be any more different. Conventional agriculture, a method that uses synthetic chemical pesticides, technologies or additives, and practices that are unsustainable is the leading producer for our food. On the other side of spectrum, organic agriculture generally, performed in a much smaller scale, does not use synthetic chemicals and utilize methods that are environmentally sound. Most conventional
The source shows the reliability of biodiversity and soil quality that organic farming agriculture exploits, specifically when it has a tight grip of the economy and community that has directly affected livestock, farmers, people, and the global environment as a whole. Organic farms are sometimes difficult to maintain as the land can quite possibly lose its potential of being free from pesticides. As articulated in the source, the piece of land must also need precise qualifications which takes time and patience. This is one amongst many disadvantages a progressive movement such as organic farming must work on. The purpose is meant to enhance a genetically modified agriculture into an innately modified agriculture for a nutritious
Agriculture is one of the most ancient forms of art and science that ties human development and well-being to natural resources and ecosystems. (Fritz J. Häni, 2007) Sustainable Agriculture is the production of food, fibre, plant and animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities and animal welfare. (Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics, 2015) Sustainable agriculture is an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site – specific application that over the long term will: