Americas Food Industry

After reading chapters 15 and 21 in our Current Issues and Enduring Questions book and viewing Forks Over Knives, I am afraid I do not see this worrisome food issue in America improving in the near future. Obesity is a known epidemic and it is widespread throughout the entire country. According to the documentary film, Forks Over Knives, “We spend $2.2 trillion a year on healthcare: over five times more than the defense budget.” This quote reveals the issue regarding the state of health and by maintaining a healthier diet not only do people benefit, but the government does as well. The current relationship between food and health industries brings an uncertainty that should be seen as a critical concern to the eyes of the public. Too many people

Increasing the options of fast food restaurants in America gave society different choices of where they can choose to go eat. Some restaurants may be cheaper than others, but what society didn’t realize was the cheaper the restaurant the more calories the food contains. The consumers didn’t seem to realize or have a problem with these cheaper companies until some consumers sued the company for getting them fat. This caused children to sue Mcdonald's the company for making the consumers get fat. For this reason, according to the author David Zinczenko it is a problem that people are not informed on how many calories the food they're eating contains. He has the credibility to be trusted by his audience

As seen in the film Fed Up, obesity in the U.S. can be traced back to changes in food production. The novel Gaining Ground by Forrest Pritchard describes an alternative food system option in which family farms and farmer’s markets become once again important components of the U.S. food system. The American food system has evolved

In the article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” David Zinczenko argues that today’s fast food industry is to blame for obesity. Zinczenko says that when he was a child lunch and diner for him was a choice between “McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Kentucky, Fried Chicken, or Pizza Hut,” those are largely the only options for kids today. Lawsuits are being held against these big companies. Even though fast food restaurants are cheap and affordable, it’s very hard to find a healthy food that is cheap as fast food. On the other hand, it’s a person’s choice on whether choosing to eat at a fast food restaurant or buying himself a salad at the supermarket. Instead of getting a burger for three dollars, why not go to the grocery and get whole wheat bread, ham, and

Shannon Brownlee a writer for The Sacramento Bee states that the obesity problem has to do with the meal sizes of the seller. She says that “When they do well economically, we gain weight” (Brownlee, para. 4). Brownlee is trying to say that whenever people buy more and more fast food, the businesses get paid and the consumer gains weight in an unhealthy way. I agree with Brownlee on how businesses give out unhealthy food and do not care about the consumer. When businesses get paid they believe that the consumer wants more so they give what they get and what they give is unhealthy food and what they get is a lot of money. I agree with Shannon Brownlee on how businesses give out unhealthy food and do not care about the consumer. Brownlee is stating

In today’s society a huge issue is that we constantly hear about the food industry in America. We often hear in the news that obesity rates have increased, or that Americans have many diseases that contribute to being obese. “What You Eat is Your Business” by Radley Balko expresses that people are at fault for making such unhealthy food choices. Others argue that the food industry is to blame for being so unhealthy. According to David Zinczenko in “Don’t Blame the Eater” he blames the fast food industry as well as the consumer. Zinczenko asks “shouldn’t we know better than to eat two meals a day in fast food restaurant’s?” (392). So, who is to blame for American’s eating so much unhealthy food? Should it be the consumers’ burden or the fast food companies? On one hand, as consumers we continue to purchase foods that we know are making us overweight. On the other hand, fast food companies continue to offer high in calories foods.

The food industry is devouring us. Big food corporations fixate on profits rather than the quality of their products, and humans have become victim to them. Humans are constantly looking for the most effortless way to obtain their next meal, whether it’d be from a fast food establishment or a frozen precooked dinner. Simultaneously, the big food corporations mass produce low-quality products and manipulate their prices to appeal to consumers. These eating habits yield negative effects to their health, paving a pathway to obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and other diseases. Humans no longer have an eye for the quality of the food they consume. For instance, in Wendell Berry’s “The Pleasures of Eating”, Berry discusses how humans are passive consumers of the food industry; meaning they lack insight regarding where their food is from or how it is produced. Additionally, Michael Pollan writes about the surplus of corn in America and how Americans unknowingly consume immense amounts of it in his article entitled “When a Crop Becomes King”. Furthermore, “If You Pitch It, They Will Eat” by David Barboza is about how the food industry’s propaganda negatively affects today’s youth by advertising unhealthy eating habits tied into their favorite television shows, movies, video games, et cetera. Essentially, humans are ignorant because of their passiveness in purchasing products from the food industry.

In today’s society, technology has played a big role in everyone’s lives and has taken over. Kids today stay inside and play on the computer, watch TV, play video games, or mess with tablets and smartphones. Several people find other, more entertaining things to do than play outside and be active. Some of the times, physical education in schools is the only physical activity students have on a daily basis (“Obesity”). Kids and teenagers would much rather be wrapped up in a social network than going for a job or going to the gym. Back in the day, playing outside was one of the few entertainments. Parents have no discipline and let their children do what they want to their bodies. Technology has caused people to be less active and not as self-controlled causing them to be obese or overweight later in life.

In America today one in three adults are considered to be obese. Over the years the rate of obesity keeps climbing up and up. Some people blame fast-food or the environment Americans live in. After all,someone can purchase a chocolate bar at a bookstore nowadays. But, most people are looking at the incorrect factor to blame. Although the food industry is a huge contribution to obesity in America, people are ultimately responsible for their own health.

The production and consumption of food has had an impact in Americans. According to a "The Washington Post" article, How a national food policy could save millions of American lives, the food industry affects Americans in economic, health and environmental aspects. This problem has not been resolved by the government. Government representatives and officials have spoken about ways to fix it but they have not come to an agreed solution for the damages caused by the food system. Some of the damages are income inequality, obesity, climate change, greenhouse gas emission, diabetes, other chronic diseases, and more. The American government is in conflict. They acknowledge the problems and say they will do something about it, but truly, they

America's children are not getting enough exercise, and the health risks due to obesity are becoming epidemic in nature. Even First Lady Michelle Obama is supporting an initiative to help children become more active and to provide for exercise (at least 30-60 minutes per day) in all schools. Even limited amounts of exercise can have great health benefits. When humans exercise, the brain produces chemicals that help enhance mood, limit cravings for sugars, and contribute to healthier joints, muscles, the heart, and kidneys. In turn, this translates into more productive work time, the ability to sleep better, increase memory, and reduce dependence on medications. Children are so vulnerable to this health risk that if it continues, over 60% of graduating seniors will be clinically obese. Written by a medical journalist, the book is designed for the lay reader but has a number of documented scholarly sources.

As the Author of Obesity in America (Down to Earth) has noted," Our children are being bombarded from every angle with these toxic foods making it virtually impossible for them to eat anything else". Children are being seduced to this food choice, which potentially affects their eating habits in the long term; Not different from adults who are attracted to whatever is fast and recognized to taste good, then it will become a habit to eat it on a daily basis. Unfortunately, people are not having a real set of options, that is being advertised besides that big double meat burger. Food Industries use their obviously increasing consumer rates and Super-Size the product, which adulterates the person eating habits. By making it appear normal to eat an entire buffet, or just simply eating more than they are supposed to. Murray writes " McDonald's has made super-size is a verb", so what does actually makes attractive from the phrase "Super-Size it", if is really up to the consumer choice, why to keep advertising the same unhealthy product over and over, but in actual date in a bigger portion, the consumer keeps choosing the most displayed option, because that is what is being advertised, that is all the consumer knows. The unhealthy environment provided is to keep

Shifts in the “Food Marketplace” have greatly affected our food choices and habits in the last 40-50 years. As one woman stated in the film The Weight of the Nation, “It’s so hard to combat with what the tv is telling you to feed your kids”. Advertising has come to a whole new level in our generation; you can’t turn on the television without seeing an advertisement for fast food or something equally as unhealthy. As another woman put it, “you are taught that you can eat anywhere, anytime of day, and that eating is a glorious thing”. Another shift that has occurred is an economic one. If you go into a poor neighborhood corner store like they did in the film, you would see chips, sugar, sweets, etc. All of these unhealthy foods are cheap, incredibly cheaper than fresh fruits and vegetables. Obesity rates in these poor areas are much higher than in areas with a higher average income. Culturally, our country is changing to one that is always moving; we don’t have time to prepare a meal for the whole family. It’s much quicker to buy unhealthy fast food that you know your family will enjoy than to prepare a healthy meal that they will grudgingly consume. The film mentioned that our bodies were originally built for scarcity. We are wired to react to things that are sweet and contain a lot of fat because when an animal was killed we had to be able to eat as much of it as possible. The signals telling us to stop eating had to be overridden. Now, we consume so much fat and sugar not

Putting our health into the hands of agribusiness and food corporations is one of many reasons our nation’s health is depleting and losing a battle against obesity. Food corporations target the poor, the time constricted, and the uneducated as a way to sell their product. All of these limitations are related to one another in some form or fashion. A high school dropout, making 19,000 dollars a year, who is a mother, has a higher probability of being obese than a woman the same age who is attending college. Convenience started with the introduction of Swanson’s T.V. dinner. Combined with a large advertising budget and a trusted name, processed foods entered the homes of Americans after the Second World War, selling over 13 million within its first year (Ganzel). The convenience of having a meal prepared for your family with minimal clean-up was sweeping the nation and other companies soon followed suit to keep up with consumer demand.

Why was it first produced in the region and under what circumstances?How is contemporary food production in that region an outcome of historical events , conditions, or practices?