Essay Sample about Food Chains

According to the book  “The Omnivore's Dilemma”  there are four different food chains: Industrial, Industrial Organic, Local Sustainable, and Hunter Gatherer. All of these food chains have their pros and cons. I will be going into the pros and cons about the Industrial Organic and Local Sustainable. Both of these food chains have similar processes for some food, but in no way are they the same.

Industrial Organic is one of the four food chains; all the materials that are grown from it are Organic. Organically grown food means no harmful chemicals are used in the growing process, as said on page 133,  “The organic food in stores like Whole Foods is organic because it is grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides.” In order for farms to make this food, they become large and industrial, this is why it is called the Industrial organic food chain. Since these farms don’t use chemicals, less pollution occurs, on page 140 it states, “No chemicals means no toxic runoff into rivers and oceans.” With less pollution we can mass produce the food and pay less of an enviormental price. Industrial Organic food is accessable to many people considering organic foods are almost always sold in supermarkets.

Body2: Organic, this word means no chemicals are used to grow the food, but what about process it? Organic food can still contain chemicals and synthetic materials, it just isn’t grown with it. Page 134, “The government rules about organic food allow companies to make organic hhigh-fructose corn syrup” Corn syrup is a prossed material, most prossed foods and or additives aren’t good for you. Most organic food has the same shipping, washing, packaging,and processing technic as the  the Industrial food chain, and so it uses alot of fossil fuels. Machines are used to gather, transport, process, and package the food, this uses alot of energy, fossil fuels. Why is using a lot of fossil fuels bad? Well this bring me to the last con of the Industrial Organic food chain; it pollutes the earth, but just less than some of the other food chains. Fossil fuels are used as gasoline, when burned it releases gasses into the atmosphere and this can cause acid rain, as shown on page 45 in the digram. Also, the animals are treated and kept in tight areas, these tight areas with manure everywhere can cause bacteria outbreaks, as stated on page 134 Animals treated very similar to the ones in industrial food chain “Likewise, organic beef is is often raised in “organic feedlots”  The Industrial food chain may seem like it is good, but in reality itn’t as “healthy” as we view it to be.

Local Sustainable is a food chain mostly made up of small family farms. The farmers normally will feed their livestock off of fresh grass and materials off of their property, doing this saves them time and money. Using materials from one animal to feed another also helps with waste management, on page 195, “Buried clear to their butts in composting cow manure, the pigerators were a bobbing sea of wriggling hams and corkscrew tails. If pigs can be happy, these were the happiest pigs I’d ever seen.” The pigs are happy with themselves, unlike animals on “Organic” farms, these animals are happy and eating well. With the Local Sustainable food chain, you know who made and grew your food as well as how its treated , on page  212 it states, “The Salatins believe having a direct relationship with their customers is very important.” Having a direct relationship with the people who are giving you your food can also help you to understand the work and effort that has been put into growing it. The Local Sustainable food chain is good for small communities, with less of an envoirmental price than the Industrial food chains.

Although the Local Sustainable food chain seems like a good thing, it does have its downsides. One of the downsides includes the fact that it can only produce so much food, and most of it is seasonal. As said on page 220,  “The natural seasons for red meat are fall and winter. The natural seasons for chicken are the spring and summer. If local food chains are going to succeed, customers will have to get used to eating that way again.” This is but one of the issues that comes from the Local sustainable food chain. 

Mr.Joel sells his food at a price he thinks the food should be, the issue with this is even though that food took more effort to grow and make, not all people are can afford it. On Page 214 Jeol starts talking about why his food is sold more expensive than the food you would find in a super market, he said, “Society is not bearing the cost of water pollution, of antibiotic resistance,  of food-borne illnesses,  of crop subsides , of subsized oil and water-all the hidden costs to the enviorment” By saying this he is evading the point. Joel goes on a rant about “hidden costs” but what about the actual costs? Food is naturally expensive, because it is a necessity, his prices are too high; he isn’t the only one who sells his food at a high price, many farms do that as well. We understand that they need to pay for the farm and need the money, but normal everyday people simple can’t afford to buy food as expensive as family farm prices go. Prices can be even higher when other factors are involved, wich brings me to my third reason as to why Local Sustaiable isn’t all that great, transportation. A small family farm can only ship something so far because of the price to ship it and the materials that keep it as fresh as possible, this is why it’s local. Transportation is difficult for these farms and the further the destination is, the more it will cost for both the buyer and seller. Local isn’t all that great when you start to think about its downsides.