Food Inc Discussion Questions

Food Inc. is an American documentary film directed and produced by Robert Kenner and released on September 7, 2008, to bring awareness to Americans about the food that they consume daily. The film accomplishes this goal by using facts and interviews who appeal to ethos logos and pathos

In the prestigious documentary film, Food Inc., produced by Robert Kenner and founded upon an Eric Schlosser’s book, Fast Food Nation, Mr. Kenner has an intriguing impact on the American consumers of many food products and industries. Throughout the film, viewers and everyday consumers of these various products, visualize what takes place behind the scenes in food factories, contrary to what they may see through forms of advertisement. The documentary generates an image of an “Agrarian America” in a naturalistic way to convey the message of what food production truly consists of. The film uses ethos, pathos, and logos as rhetorical devices to enhance the horrendousness of food production to its audience in multiple ways. Food Inc. provides not only a visual effect on the audience's emotion to portray its message, but uses a variety of commentary scenes from several experts and members within the food industry.

‘Food Inc’, is an informative, albeit slightly biased, documentary that attempts to expose the commercialisation and monopolisation of the greater food industry. The film attempts to show the unintended consequences resulting from this, and for the most part this technique is very effective; however there is an overreliance on pathos in lieu of facts and statistics at times.

Food Inc is a documentary film created by director Robert Kenner with the purpose of exposing the real facts and hidden secrets of the

The movie/documentary Food, Inc. came out in 2008, directed and starred by Robert Kenner. Kenners’ goal for this movie was to show the people of America the food they are eating and how there food is being processed, feed, treated, and killed. Kenner uses a very serious and

Have you ever been in a rush, low on cash, and looking for something to eat so you didn’t really have a choice but to grab a burger with fries at your local fast food place? Have you ever paused or stopped to think about where the burger really came from, or the process that went in to be made? The Food Inc documentary investigates and exposes the American industrial production of meat, grains, and vegetables. Robert Kenner the producer of the film makes allegations in this film and he explores how food industries are deliberately hiding how and where it is our food is coming from. He emphasizes that we should find out where our food comes from and why is it that the food industry does not want us to know. Food Inc. does not only uses compelling images, such as hundreds of baby chickens being raised in spaces where they do not see an inch of sunlight, it also includes the speeches and stories of farmers, families, government officials, and victims of the food industry. The four current problems facing today’s food industry are the reformed usage of the false advertisement within the labeling of products , mistreatment of farmed animals, and the harmful chemical in our meats. The documentary Food Inc uses very persuasive tactics that demonstrates strong elements of pathos, ethos, and logos make an effective appeal, while uncovering the dark side of the food industry.

By showing evidence through personal accounts and video the audience gets the feeling that everything the documentary says should be taken as facts. The doctors and nutritionists talk about how unhealthy the school lunches are as the viewer sees the lunches, this allows the people watching the film to realize that this is fact and lunches kids are eating are extremely unhealthy.

The farmers then give their products to the manufacturers, who represent the bottleneck of the food system (21). “The ten largest companies control half of the world’s seed supply. …Ten firms control 90% of the nearly $38.6 billion pesticide markets (111-112).” Monsanto, being one of the ten companies that controls the world’s seed supply, is a company that has patents on all of its seeds and products. It produces genetically modified crops that are resistant to its own pesticides and herbicides, so that when a pesticide or herbicide is sprayed and it destroys all plants, the Monsanto seed survives because of its resistance. The reason that Monsanto is able to stay in business is because of the economic benefit it poses for the farmers. They are able to produce their crops at a much higher yield because they are losing less of their crops to pests. This higher yield results in lower costs for the consumers as well (Planes). As discussed

Although many films aim to persuade an audience, many aren’t able to achieve it. The documentaries persuade people to live and maintain healthier life-styles by proposing counter-rhetoric to the fast-food and food production that is demonstrated in the American food industry. Food Inc. is a very convincing documentary; even more so than Supersize Me. It goes more into depth on the situation of food and it shows all sides to the issue. The film exposes footage of dying cattle barely being able to walk, and the fact of barely having room to walk.

If any parts of the farm are not following their guidelines, then Monsanto will sue the farmer. This has resulted in many farmers fighting until they are out of money like Moe Parr, a farmer from the segment known as From Seed to Supermarket. These large companies will not stop until their opponents run out of money, and this evokes fear from the audience. Fear is felt because it is now becoming more apparent that no matter how many people fight, the monopolizing companies will win because no one else has the funds to oppose them, and their businesses will continue to run unchallenged. The most appalling part of this entire industry is the chemicals necessary to keep it running.

The film Food Inc., like many other films of its category is not so much of an informative documentary, rather more of a slanderous exposé which blows the lid off of the food industry and its operations. To say that the film is neutral and tends towards more of an educative approach would be a misinterpretation to say the least. Throughout the entire movie it is always evident that the movie aims not solely to educate its audience about the truth of their food, but to convert the misinformed and inspire a rebellion against food industry practices. The movie does this through a tactful approach of bombarding its audience with gruesome clips, facts and testimonial story lines. The film asserts it claim through a thrilling critique of the horrific meat production process which is most prevalent in the U.S food industry and its impact on humans and the environment, while extoling alternative practices which seem to be more sustainable and humane, yet are underutilized. The film goes on to highlight the different players in the food politics arena, emphasizing the role that government agencies play. Also the film divulges the reality that is the monopolization of the food industry by big multinational corporations such as Monsanto Company, Tyson Food, Perdue Farms, Smithfield Foods, etc.

The Fast Food Nation Novel and the Food Inc. stress/focus on two different things. The Fast Food Nation Novel stress more on operating fast food industries. While, the Food Inc. documentary talks more about the secret that food industries hide from its consumers. For instance, the novel tells more on the history of famous fast food restaurants such as McDonald, Carl’s Junior, and Domino Pizza. Besides that, the novel also mentioned about the process of processing the food that used in fast food industries like patties and French fries. For the documentary, it more mentioned on the bad contents in the food that most producers try to hide away from consumers to make their products more attractive.

In the documentary, Food Inc., we get an inside look at the secrets and horrors of the food industry. The director, Robert Kenner, argues that most Americans have no idea where their food comes from or what happens to it before they put it in their bodies. To him, this is a major issue and a great danger to society as a whole. One of the conclusions of this documentary is that we should not blindly trust the food companies, and we should ultimately be more concerned with what we are eating and feeding to our children. Through his investigations, he hopes to lift the veil from the hidden world of food.

It also contained gruesome footages of the animals being slaughtered, which makes one think twice about the food that they’re consuming. The movie also revealed how even though various foods may contain labels saying it’s healthier or it has less fat it isn’t healthier. Those products are even unhealthier because although it may have less fat, it can contain double the sugar than the original one does. The movie, “Cooked”, was also very effective. This movie showed how cooking shapes our world.

It doesn’t help that Monsanto also has power in politics, one of the Monsanto chiefs for food safety, Michael Taylor was actually appointed by Barrack Obama himself. Barrack Obama also appointed his Supreme Court judge: Elena Kagan, who happens to be the chief defender of Monsanto and GMO’s. Whether Republican or Democratic, Monsanto wields a strong power within politics that helps give them an edge in keeping their company going. (Obama). There are good aspects of Monsanto, like the efficiency of cheap seeds, and crops that can withstand the harsh behaviors of weathers, and the ability the crops have to survive a longer time. But not even the cheapest crops can cover up Monsanto’s long history of evil, from polluting the environment with PCB’s, the chemical Agent Orange, and the weed killer “Round-Up Ready”, to Monopolizing itself to being the owner of 90% of the seed industry and shutting down small