Do people have the right to know what’s in their food?
As a consumer, have you ever wondered about how your food is produced, processed, brought to the market, sold, or criteria that influence your purchasing decision? Typically, researchers decided what people ought to know about a topic or product and then proceed to measure their knowledge or the lack of knowledge to identify where education and marketing efforts should be targeted. As a result, this approach risk the public from essentially wanting to know about their food which could help growers, processors, and retailers better meet the needs of consumers. In the United States, there is a food policy concerning how food is produced, processed, distributed, and purchased carried out by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Yes, people have the right to know what is in their food however; people must take a personal interest in learning how their food is produced, processed, distributed, and prepared.
Production means growing plants we harvest or raising the animals we use for food. The production of food has seen major breakthroughs in food preservation since the 19th century. For example, Soldiers in the Military were living off salt-preserved meats. These poorly preserved foods provided minimal nutritional value and frequent outbreaks of diseases such as scurvy due to lack of vitamin C. Nicholas Appert, a French chemist, observed that food heated in sealed containers was preserved as along as
“Should We Care About Genetically Modified Foods?” by John N. Shaw appeared in Food Safety News issue of February 1, 2010, as a feature under the health section on the controversy between the pros and cons of genetically modified foods (Also known as GMO, genetically modified organisms). The main idea of this article is to inform people of the benefits of GMOs . The author, John Shaw received his Bachelor of Science degree in Finance with a minor in Marketing from the University of Arkansas in 2007, where he was a “leadership scholar.” In addition to his studies, he has worked as a research assistant with Food Law LL.M. Director Susan Schneider, interned with Wal-Mart Government and Corporate Affairs division, the Arkansas Attorney General Public Protection Division, and with United States Senator Blanche Lincoln. John has a passion for Food Law, sports, and outdoors. In the article, he states, “ I submit that I am no scientist; merely an interested student.” According to the article, he is passionate and has done sufficient research about the topic to support his argument.
In "Eat Food: Food Defined" Michael Polan argues, What do you really have for dinner. When you go to the supermarket and read the ingredient's you will see alot of words you dont know. Instead of throwing it in the grocery cart anyways, why don't you ask your parent what it actually is. Your mom or dad will look at you crazy and tell you they don't know. Think of why you dont know what is in the food you eat,"If it is FDA approved it good right?" its in the supermarket its safe . Try to stay away from the crazy words that are under the word INGREDIENT, mostly towards the middle. Just dont go to the supermarket for so long alot of people get caught in a trap of buying alot. If you go to a farm and ask to buy some "corn syrup they will most
He probes them to learn the what, where, and how of dinner – knowing what is going into the body, knowing where that food came from, and knowing how that food was made. By first knowing what is being consumed, people can make better informed decisions about their purchases. Nutrition, or lack thereof, is a key component in the battle against obesity. Food giants are hoping to hide the often unnecessary filler present in their products by use of dodgy claims and socially engineered advertisements. In general, most consumers probably couldn’t say where their food came from. This usually boils down to the fact that shoppers typically don’t think about it. Breaking this reliance on mass-grown foods is the second part of Pollan’s proposition. The third and equally important element is how the food is produced. More specifically, Pollan is concerned whether or not the food has been produced in a sustainable manner. Preserving the biodiversity of food, maintaining fertile land for future generations, and ensuring consumers receive food that does not compromise health are all factors of sustainability. Without informed consumers, what, where, and how will continue to be unanswered questions. Whether it is for nutritional or ethical choices, a particular food’s history is something that needs to once again become common
From the beginning, the United States Constitution has guaranteed the American people civil liberties. These liberties have given citizens rights to speak, believe, and act freely. The Constitution grants citizens the courage to express their mind about something they believe is immoral or unjust. The question is, how far are citizens willing to extend the meanings of these liberties? Some people believe that American citizens take advantage of their civil liberties, harming those around them. On the contrary, many other people feel that civil liberties are necessary tools to fight for their Constitutional rights.
Most people will agree we have the right to know what exactly is in our food. Most of the
In order to change the way the United States food system is operating at the moment, a change needs to be made in the education that people are receiving about the way their food is produced, manufactured, distributed and consumed. The U.S. food system has become increasingly reliant on mass production factories and multinational retail corporations while local farms and family owned food markets diminish. Economies of scale and opportunity costs represent barriers to change of the current food system because of the many different paths available, each creating different outcomes for consumers, sellers, large corporations and small farms, determining their profit, prices, capital and value. Educating the American people about the benefits of local food production and the downsides of large scale food production, such as nutritional value, disease and safety concerns, and economic advantages, will help to move our food system from “point A” to “point B”.
Colombia has endured vicious conflicts throughout its country for the past 36 years. It is considered to be the one of the most violent places in the world, with a murder rate of eight times greater than the United States. Colombia’s army troops, consisting of the 12th Brigade, rebels, guerillas and paramilitaries, have not made the horrendous war any better. Washington has singled out the 12th Brigade for it’s severe brutality towards civilians to the point of U.S aid suspension. The Colombian people constantly live in fear, not only from criminals, but their own troops as well. In the article, “Columbian Army to Push Human Rights” armed forces commander General Fernando Tapias says, “Civilians should find, in a soldier, a defender of
There are varied arguments that favor or are against compulsory labeling of genetically engineered food products. Those who argue for the labeling of such products argue that consumers have a right to know what is contained in their food, particularly food products for which there have been health and environmental concerns (Caswell 26). Compulsory labeling will permit consumers to identify and avoid those food products that may cause them problems. On the contrary, those who argue against mandatory labeling point out that
In today’s America, it is a constant debate: Do we have true equal rights? The obvious answer to most people is no, and we probably never will. Though some people seem to live in ignorant bliss, thinking that everything is going well and everyone is being treated fairly, they are wrong. The theme of not having adequate human rights is commonly shown through the unjustness in documents one, three, and five.
The debate over genetically modified foods continues to haunt producers and consumers alike. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are foods that have been modified through bioengineering to possess certain characteristics. These plants have been modified in the laboratory to enhance traits such as increased resistance to herbicides or increased nutritional content (Whitman, 2000). The debate continues to grow as to whether these genetically altered foodstuffs are the answer to hunger in the coming years, or whether we are simply children playing with something that we do not have the capacity to understand. One of the biggest debates in the GMO issue is whether producers need to use labeling of
In the documentary Food Inc. The message is that the food industry does not want us to know about what we are eating. . This problem may be true however it is driven by the consumer’s continual interest in buying cheaper and cheaper products. The farmers way of life has been revolutionized. Modern farmers think faster, cheaper, bigger. It’s really not until when consumers demand
Rights are not absolute simply because they can come into conflict. The Constitution enumerates the rights of individuals, but it doesn't say a lot of about the limits on those rights. Most of the explicit and detailed reasoning on how the rights of individuals are limited has come from Supreme Court decisions over the years. That process is still going on, as more and more odd examples where lines need to be drawn come to the Court's attention. The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution includes five freedoms: religious exercise, speech, press, peaceable assembly and petitioning the government for redress of grievances. These freedoms are not absolute because doing so might threaten the public interest.
nowadays, people do not know what they are eating. The majority of most Americans would not be able to pronounce the names of the ingredients listed on the package of the last snack food they consumed. Consumers “ignore certain critical questions about the quality and the cost of what they are sold: How fresh is it? How clean or pure is it, how free of dangerous chemicals? … When the food has been manufactured or “processed” or “precooked,” how has that affected its quality or price or nutritional value?” (Berry, 24) It is of utmost importance that we understand what the food that lines the grocery store shelves is actually
Throughout the years, there has been an incredible amount of speculation as to what ingredients are being put into the food we consume. The same food manufactured by major food corporations that can only be approved by the FDA. There are many techniques that these food corporations can use in order to gain consumer loyalty, but the main focus is the way their advertising works. Along with these advertisements, comes a target market as well. The food industry is constantly in speculation because there are always new foods that corporations want approved to sell. Some of these businesses are part of the fast food industry and others are international food companies that sell their products around the world. As adults and parents, we need to
Education is a elemental human right and essential for all other human rights. It is a powerful tool by which socially and economically marginalized children and adults can lift themselves out of poverty. It also consists of the right to freedom of education. Freedom of education is the right given to human beings to have access to the education of their preference without any constrictions. Right to education is a human right recognized by the United Nations. It includes the entire compulsion to eliminate inequity at all levels of the educational system.