Notes On Fruit And Vegetable Purchase Data Obtained

It is very easy to be amazed at the variety of products that can be found in today's supermarkets, all over the world. The United States in particular is a society of consumers, and many in this country would expect no less than full shelves of everything from produce, to meats, to snacks, etc. However, what most consumers today fail to realize is that the variety seen in most supermarkets in this country is really not too varied at all. In fact, the point that Michael Pollan aims to make in the first chapter of his book is just that: everything comes from corn. The paragraphs below will detail this author's beliefs in relation to today's consumer market, and focus on the ways in which most of us consume the products we are offered (often without questioning anything). Pollan's point will be stressed in this paper as well; namely, that today's society is suffering from poor nutrition and a lack of variety, due to the fact that 'everything boils down to corn,' as Pollan states, as well as the relative lack of education about the places from which one's food comes.

The dollar menu section of this documentary focused on how processed foods and fast food are typically less expensive than healthier foods. The documentary shows one family having the dilemma at the grocery store: a family is aware that the father who has diabetes needs a healthier diet with more fresh, but they are forced to buy foods they can afford. As the film implies people with lower incomes are more likely to eat processed, cheaper, foods, leading to a higher rate of diabetes, obesity and other health problems. The federal government spends billions each year subsidizing commodity crops. Over time, prices of certain crops, like soybeans and corn, were lowered due to these subsidies causing overproduction which made them a lot cheaper than other crops. Since these crops were so cheap, meat and food producers started using them for a variety of purposes, such as, high-fructose corn syrup, animal feed and hydrogenated oils. The lowest-priced options at the grocery are processed foods made from subsidized ingredients that have refined grains with added fats and sugars. This cheap food has had the greatest impact on low-income families. Because are on a tight budget, the price difference between fresh healthy foods and food with subsidized

Today, nearly 57 million Americans receive benefits from nutrition assistance programs such as SNAP and WIC. The 47.6 million Americans that are part of SNAP are currently able to purchase food staples as well as prepackaged foods. The 9 million WIC beneficiaries however, are limited to the types of products they can purchase to only food staples. There is a new bill being constructed for the approval or denial of Congress that will alter the current US Farm Bill. This new bill will restrict the purchases of SNAP beneficiaries to food staples only in addition to adding white potatoes to the list of foods WIC recipients can purchase. These changes will have an impact on the price and quantity of food markets such as: the rice, sugar, and

Michael Pollen’s book brought everything together and cleared all my confusion about American food system based on how he tracked the food we eat from the farm to when we swallow it. The environment and economy have been the main shapers of foodways and in many cases people will have crops that are cheap to grow, animal that will grow mostly cheap and which will sell at the best price, and that is what people will eat, they have no choice (Anderson, 2013). This is what exactly happening in America where most of the food we buy in supermarket or restaurant like Macdonald lack of quality. Pollan tracked the corn as the staple crop in America and showed how in most of the food at the supermarket consist of corn, but we buy those food without knowing,

The Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative is a public private partnership, created in 2004 by the Pennsylvania state. It helped to create new supermarkets and refurbish or replace equipment at existing stores. The eligible stores were located in a low-income areas that were underserved, and to eligible for funding they agree to provide a full selection of fresh foods. The partnership funded more than 83 projects across Pennsylvania involving major national chains and smaller independent stores. Over the years the project has resulted in the creation and retention of about 5,000 jobs and 1.4 million square feet of retail space. Evidence from the program shows that adding more supermarkets with the access to high quality fruit and vegetable in an undeserved areas result in improved availability and an increased variety of foods in the community. It also shows that they are on the verge of reducing the high incidence of diet-related diseases by providing healthy food (Department of Health and Human Services, 2011, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Strategies to Prevent Obesity and Other Chronic Diseases: The CDC Guide to Strategies to Increase the Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables”, Atlanta U.S, http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/download/fandv_2011_web_tag508.pdf retrieved 5th May

Individuals who live in low-income areas have to rely heavily on fast food and cheap food from convenience stores because it is the only food close and affordable to them. People in poor neighborhoods are, “Confronted with a high concentration of poor diet choices” and, “End up eating a less healthy diet” because, “Few markets” offer, “Fresh fruit and vegetables” (Cortright 1). Even if

For states that have needed more help to become healthier in their food choices such as southern states like Alabama and Georgia, they could receive a higher rebate of $0.45 for every dollar they spend on fruits and vegetables. Adding this incentive into the program is expected to actually increase consumption of fruits and vegetables by twenty-five percent, according to the Healthy Incentives Pilot program in Massachusetts. This policy should be enacted because as of right now there is no other way to promote spending on healthier choices when the prices on these choices are already so high for low-income families. In order to expand the SNAP program to fund this incentive, we need to allow for more government spending on this program. Though this would lead to higher debt for our domestic consumption, it would help those in the U.S. who have virtually nothing to eat. We plan on getting the money to fund this by allocating money from other unneeded government purchases such as the ones in our so called, “waste book”.

Produce on sale at community farmer’s markets is at the peak of ripeness and nutrition because “food begins to lose nutrition as soon as it is harvested” (Source B). Correspondingly, Smith and MacKinnon put this information in context, explaining that the locavore diet is unnecessary for optimal health, especially because any person who makes healthy eating choices on a daily basis meets his or her nutritional needs effortlessly. The marginal health benefit that locavores acquire does not provide significant advantages. A key issue of the movement is the implications of nutrition on

For numerous amounts of people, fruits and vegetables may take a backseat to other foods such as junk food, but for many these healthy food choices are just not options. This is a very widespread issue that has swept the nation and the individual cities that formulate it. In particular, the lack of food security in Columbus, Ohio has had devastating effects for many residents, especially those who live in rural areas and the many underserved communities. These effects include being more prone to chronic diseases and unhealthy Body Mass Index (BMI) measurements. For adults “Twenty-five percent of Franklin County, Ohio, adults say they don’t eat five servings of foods and vegetables each day” (NLC). The residents of Columbus City should be able

The article titled “why eating for the season” is important explores the benefits of eating healthy foods at specific times. This scholarly article begins by discussing how purchasing certain produce during specific times of the years has evolved. Years ago it was only possible to purchase food that were in season. Today, however, most “seasonal” produce is sold years around. This article analogizes this disparity and examines that impact it has on one’s health. The author Janella Purcell argues that it is alarming how certain food, only grown by farmers in a particular season, are now being sold years around. Purcell goes on to add that when food are not is season we should not be consuming them. To further prove her proposition, a table was

The Quad Cities Area adult population generally fails to meet the USDA’s recommended dietary guideline of consuming at least five servings of fruits and vegetables per day, with only 35.7% reporting meeting these guidelines (Professional Research Consultants, 2015). This policy analysis will review current community efforts within the Quad Cities area that are concentrating on improving fruit and vegetable consumption of area adults. Additional policy options to help increase access, knowledge and skills regarding fruit and vegetable consumption will also be reviewed in terms of strengths, weaknesses, feasibility, and economic impact.

Would you rather find a bug in your apple and have your salad be on the wilted side, or take a big bite of artificial flavors and chemicals? What would you rather eat for dinner; a quick pick up from a fast food restaurant or a nutritious home cooked meal? For some, there may be no choice but to pick off the dollar menu at McDonalds or Burger King. Due to this circumstance, the consequences include an all-time rise of childhood obesity and Type 2 diabetes in the U.S. However, this circumstance is usually due to parents not being around, or a parent not having enough time or money to purchase fresh produce. The access to fresh, local, organic produce is difficult to come by, especially in low-income neighborhoods or towns. “I tend to sympathize

I classified both families as belonging to the lower middle class because of how much they spent on what and because of their occupations, neighborhoods, and family size and how it correlates to the amount of food they bought. The Cuis, a family of 6 spent a total of $57.27 on a week’s supply of food, while the Cabañas spent $49.42, most of their money going into proteins ($25.53 and $21.73 respectively). I had previously mentioned that the Cuis had a great amount of protein in their diets, a little over twice as much as the Cabañas, who had an average 218.7 grams per person. Another difference is the amount they each spent on fresh fruits and vegetables. While the Cabañas only had 15% fresh produce ($7.17), the Cuis had 21% ($11.84).

foods in the United States? Unfortunately, people don’t really realize what they purchase at the

3. Sample Population: Who exactly was used in the study? How many? (Be as specific as possible.)