Question:
_ Would local farms be
able to yield the same amount of product, meat or produce, to support the
demand that bigger farms and corporations are currently supplying?
Answer:
_Sometimes I like to
sit around on a Sunday night and think about how I could change the world. Not
really, but in all seriousness, if I could, I would start with this predicament.
Through all the research we have done, each article we have read, or every video
we have watched, each comes down to the same issues; people want two things, convenience
and money in their pockets. The issue at hand is ignorance. Instead of taking
the time to research the food that is being put on their tables, people are
buying the cheapest and quickest, or the food with the best label.
It wasn’t until we watched Food Inc. in class that I started to think about what I had in my refrigerator and what was going into my cart at the grocery store. That night I went to Shoprite and SEARCHED for chicken that wasn’t Purdue or Tyson. I’m going to be honest and say that it wasn’t an easy task. Sometimes you just want to go in and get out of the grocery store and asking for assistance is completely out of the question. The best possible solution to this is planning out your trip beforehand. With a detailed list of ORGANIC and FARM FRESH food, you can be in and out of the store in a timely manner.
The research we have done was carefully dissected to answer the big question. Our need for “now, now, now” is hindering our ability to support local farms. Industrial farms, in my opinion, will eventually completely take over the food industry. There won’t be any more room for local farms. Just in my town, less than two miles from my house, are two local produce stands than grow their fruits and vegetables on over 300 acres of land. The children of this family-owned farm attended my high school. I even graduated in the same class as one of the sons. The Lentini’s are well-known, well-respected, and well-supported in our community. With this support, we can keep these local farms alive.
The answer to the big question, “would local farms be able to yield the same amount of product to support the demand that bigger farms and corporations are currently supplying”, is no, unfortunately not. Regardless of the Lentini’s 300 acre farm, or the farmer in the next town over, corporations like Monsanto have genetically modified 90% of the soybeans on farms across The United States. There is no competition until we learn to modify and control our eating habits. Instead of going to McDonald’s and buying a Big Mac, all it takes is a trip to your local farmer’s market or Health Food Store, and you can make your own dinner that comes from a cow that was raised in an open field and fed normal food instead of raised in a slaughterhouse. The decision is in the hands of the people, but the outlook does not look promising.
It wasn’t until we watched Food Inc. in class that I started to think about what I had in my refrigerator and what was going into my cart at the grocery store. That night I went to Shoprite and SEARCHED for chicken that wasn’t Purdue or Tyson. I’m going to be honest and say that it wasn’t an easy task. Sometimes you just want to go in and get out of the grocery store and asking for assistance is completely out of the question. The best possible solution to this is planning out your trip beforehand. With a detailed list of ORGANIC and FARM FRESH food, you can be in and out of the store in a timely manner.
The research we have done was carefully dissected to answer the big question. Our need for “now, now, now” is hindering our ability to support local farms. Industrial farms, in my opinion, will eventually completely take over the food industry. There won’t be any more room for local farms. Just in my town, less than two miles from my house, are two local produce stands than grow their fruits and vegetables on over 300 acres of land. The children of this family-owned farm attended my high school. I even graduated in the same class as one of the sons. The Lentini’s are well-known, well-respected, and well-supported in our community. With this support, we can keep these local farms alive.
The answer to the big question, “would local farms be able to yield the same amount of product to support the demand that bigger farms and corporations are currently supplying”, is no, unfortunately not. Regardless of the Lentini’s 300 acre farm, or the farmer in the next town over, corporations like Monsanto have genetically modified 90% of the soybeans on farms across The United States. There is no competition until we learn to modify and control our eating habits. Instead of going to McDonald’s and buying a Big Mac, all it takes is a trip to your local farmer’s market or Health Food Store, and you can make your own dinner that comes from a cow that was raised in an open field and fed normal food instead of raised in a slaughterhouse. The decision is in the hands of the people, but the outlook does not look promising.