Critical Analysis of the Article The State of the Eco-Union Essay

As a part of the American Marketing Service (AMS), the NOP was founded in 1939 and strives to develop “national standards for organically-produced agricultural products” (“National”). Their mission is to ensure goods with an organic seal are controlled and distributed as uniformly as possible, and they take every complaint with a heavy hand to keep irregularities to a minimum. In 1990, the USDA was instructed to “establish uniform national standards for organic food and farming, fixing the definition of a word that had always meant different things to different people” (Pollan 154). Since then the term organic has been manipulated and distorted by large companies in order to push their products to as big a market as possible, leaving consumers dazed and confused about the actual standards of the foods they were purchasing. Often times, the true meaning of the extravagant or misleading words on the packaging is hard to translate for the average consumer-organic being no different. The seal that dawns certified organic products provides no insight into the qualifications needed in order to receive that stamp nor is the USDA very forthcoming about the actual meaning of the word organic. Any retailer can slap an “organic” label on their product so long as “at least 95% of the farm-grown ingredients are organic and you sell direct to customers in

For example, the film presents the counterproductive result of feeding cows with contained brains of infected cows that spread a deadly disease through the cattle known as ‘the mad cow disease’. This type of intensive farming is characterized by its use of antibiotics and pesticides that cost higher prices for farmers. Some farmers turn into the industrial farming not always by choice but for companies that own or influence those intense farming practices. There is two agribusiness that has a monopoly the market by selling agricultural technologies to farmers such as pesticides, GMO, and fertilizers that often influence the public policy and farming practices. This system is unsustainable and produces cheap food products which cost is not included in the market but people end up paying for due to the externalities on health, social and environmental problems. As the documentary highly at the start, Americans hate the most the inconvenience of things and therefore some people take for granted their food and prefer to consumed processed products that are toxic, other people who live in food deserts do not have much choice to consumed these toxic products but is the system that limits their accessibility to affordable fresh

The first introduction in the film is multiple images of farms, and agriculture of all kinds. Then the author quickly states that farms do not look like they use to. The message, and start of this film is to inform the viewer about the changes in agriculture, and present ideas about where our food actually comes from. The purpose of the film is to introduce to consumers the risk of eating foods that are owned by large corporations. This film addresses issues with large corporations owning all food sources, treatment of animals, and food-borne illnesses.

Have you ever wondered if organic foods are actually better for you? What if organic foods are not actually healthy and are just an immense scam from food companies to take your money away from you? In the documentary, In Organic We Trust, the narrator Kip Pastor attempts to persuade the viewers that although the food system may be flawed, organic foods are actually better to consume. Pastor’s use of pathos and logos in this documentary are extremely credible and well structured, but the ethos Pastor provided in this documentary are not as well structured as the pathos and logos. Pastor doses an excellent job in structuring the film “In Organic We Trust”, in an attempt to send his message across to the viewers. In the documentary in order

Have you ever wondered if organic foods are actually better for you? What if organic foods are not actually healthy and are just an immense scam from food companies to take your money away from you? In the documentary, In Organic We Trust, the narrator Kip Pastor attempts to persuade the viewers that, although the food system may be flawed, organic foods are actually better to consume. Pastor’s use of pathos and logos in this documentary are extremely credible and well structured, but the ethos Pastor provided in this documentary are not as well structured as the pathos and logos. Pastor does an excellent job in structuring the film In Organic We Trust, in an attempt to send his message across to the viewers. In the documentary in order to

Yes, the government owns the word organic and they have the power to decide what the term actually means, for example the ‘organic’ food that is produced in these industrial organic farms are subject to the same repugnant conditions all other conventional farms are subject to. As a father, I can recall making decisions on purchasing the more expensive food item because it was right next to the “bad one” and the “good one” had on the label that it was organically made so I never bothered to read the label. If I would’ve stopped and read the labels, I would’ve discovered that the good decision that I had made for the health of my family was actually just as bad as the food we are trying to stay away from. Even the stores such as Trader Joes and Whole Foods are guilty of having tainted food in their aisles. Growing up with a mother that is conscious of her health, these “healthy” food markets are a shock to find out they are killing us too. In an article by Darla Cameron and Peter Whoriskey, Who is behind organic brands, they say that “Consumers may not know that these 92 organic food brands are owned by some of the nation’s largest food processors.”, the largest food processors are in deep with government that there is not enough regulations to

With the organic industry booming and up until recently showing an annual growth rate of 20% it has been necessary for the federal government to step in and regulate the previously self regulated industry. Initially, regulation of this industry was implemented by private nonprofit organizations and some state governments as a way to put an end to consumer fraud and to ensure the integrity of organic food. This

    Should the thought of catching the virus E. coli make Jimmy jump for joy? No it shouldn’t, which is why we should all pay more attention to our meat industry. Robert Kenner analyzes the food industry, and all of its components. Kenner shows the nation where our food comes from, and how it is produced.

Organic versus non-organic foods are always being debated to whether they are worth the extra cost. This seems to be an easy question, at first, but begs a more in-depth analysis to come to a conclusion. Organic definitions can vary by government, company and even individuals. Many people have their own ideas of what organic means. My personal definition, before this research assignment, was that organic products were grown with no pesticides, chemical additives, or preservatives and grown in a humane way. Meaning that if it said 100% organic, that is what was meant. This however, is not the case when it comes to the government’s definition of organic, according to T. A. Niewold who wrote, “Organic More Healthy; Green Shoots in a

When considering differences between organic and conventional foods often the first thing people comment on is the nutritional value. Organic foods have grown in popularity due to the perception that they are better nutritionally. Barbara Hey (2009), health reporter and author of the article, “A Different Health Debate: Conventional versus Organic Food” and Smith-Spangier, Crystal, et al. (2012), emphasize that the benefits of organic foods and farming are important to society. That organic food can help protect what’s most valuable to people, their health. They suggest that eating a healthy diet rich in vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants is a good investment in preventative care. Jeff Gillman (2008) agrees and states, “ …preventing disease is much more cost effective than treating disease. Organic foods can play a vital role in keeping people healthy” (139).

As time has gone on, there are major controversy over whether the methods used in the agricultural industry are appropriate or not. One issue in particular that the Ag industry faces, is whether conventional or organic produce is superior. A man by the name of Steven Savage has lived most of his life with the pressure to “go organic”, but he’s never been fond of organic farming practices. While growing up, his generation was influenced by the book “Silent Spring”, and he was also very involved in an organization known as the Wilderness Society. He even helped his grandfather grow crops in an organic garden, and was good friends with people on the forefront of the new exercise called organic farming. Even though Steven Savage was affiliated with the organic industry most of his upbringing, he has realized that the use of organic foods creates “self-imposed limitations and is not properly ethical” (Savage). Steven Savage argues that most people don’t purchase conventional grown food because many think organic foods contains better nutrition and are safer, but studies show that there is no difference between organic and inorganic grown crops. He also claims both organic and conventional farming practices use pesticides that are “safe when used according to the label requirements”. Therefore, a safe measure of pesticide residue appears on both conventional and organically grown produce. He also argues that organic food organizations create fear based messages to draw people

Organic or non-organic? That is the question! And the answer to this question happens to be organic. I’d love think that everyone shares my thoughts on this but others aren’t so willing to accept this. The fact is that the majority of the population doesn’t agree with my opinion that going organic leads to a healthier life-style. As it is there is constant debate as to whether chemically processed foods are better than organically grown foods, mind you both sides have their pros and cons, but in the end organic is the obvious choice. Yet despite the apparent win that organic products have over its counterpart, people still don’t fully understand what is wrong with the chemically processed. What is worse yet is that the public typically

“Unquestionably the EU now exerts the most important and effective influence on both British and Irish environmental policy and politics (McGowan, 1999: 175).” The European Union has developed itself into one of the world leaders in relation to environmental standards and its ability to apply legislation to its member states. Both, at present and in the past, challenges and opportunities have been encountered, and will continue to be encountered into the future. Indeed, Europe now directly impacts on food producers and manufacturers through the implementation of various policies such as the Nitrates Directive and issues surrounding Climate Change - both of which are the dealt with in this paper respectively. Through these and other

(Trewavas, 2001, p.409). This evidence shows that the use of the synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides, is beneficial from a food safety point of view, as they decrease the possibility of getting ill from the consumption of this food. Therefore, conventionally grown food is safer than organically grown food, which does not use these chemicals.

Organic labeling provides information to consumers about the origins of a commodity and the conditions under which they are produced. It encourages consumers to make better food choices. Capitalism exploits ethical consumerism which then acts as “a new layer of commodity fetishism” (Gunderson, 2014, p. 109). Capitalism is a political and economic system in a country which is controlled by private owners generally for profit purposes. Consumer choices should lead to a free market, instead it is exploiting consumers. Ethical consumerism has been on the rise lately and consumers demand ethical commodities like organic and locally grown foods. Individual choices can lead the marketplace to a progressive social change. Producers of these commodities influence customer’s purchasing decisions through advertising and not letting them make individual choices. Consumer choice does not seem to have an effect on the type of commodities produced. It is ambiguous that food projects and