Analysis: The Food Industry In America

Throughout this course in its entirety, we’ve discussed and observed many different aspects of today’s food industries. While looking at authors like Michael Pollan, Tracie McMillan, and Joel Salatin and their respective works, we’ve seen the food industry’s process from harvest all the way to its distribution, and the many issues processed foods have caused. After taking this course, if there was one thing I could change about the American food supply would be processed foods in general. I believe our nation, as well as the world, would be entirely better off without processed foods in our diet, and that we should return to the way nature intended us to eat: a world without dozens of chemical processes to aid us in food preparation. I’ve
As technology increased and our society became more advanced, so did our food industry. While processed foods are unhealthy for our consumption, these is one thing that cannot be denied. The food industry has provided our society with an abundance of food in all areas of our country that are readily accessible, and relatively cheap as well. With processed foods completely taken off the market, our nation would be healthier, but at the same time, many would struggle to get by, more so than today. With less food on the market, the demand for food locally would increase dramatically, and so would prices. With that being said, there would be less food for individuals in certain areas to eat, and if there was even enough to support everyone, many would not be able to afford it. This is the sole reason processed foods are beneficial to society. The solution to this problem, however, would be quite simple. Individuals in our country would simply need to lose their interdependence and begin providing food for themselves. They could grow all their produce in gardens on their property, and begin to raise poultry and livestock on their own. More farms would also need to be brought up in areas where there would not be enough food available for all. If everyone who could grow their crops and raise livestock did such that, the loss of processed foods would have a
By eliminating processed foods, Americans would find themselves much healthier, and the Earth itself would be a little healthier as well. Society does, however, thrive with processed foods. They’re cheap, bountiful, and require no prior time commitment to consume. Without them, many could potentially find themselves starving with no access to food. With the food industry being as big as it is, our economy would also take a hit. Despite all this, our country could use a change like this. With obesity, diabetes, and many other conditions once rare to humankind now running rampant in our country, there needs to be a change. I think a necessary change would be to take processed foods out of our diet, but it is a goal I know will not be achieved in our lifetime, as it is something that cannot be achieved overnight, but rather with decades of