An author named Michael Pollan has made a book called The Omnivore’s Dilemma which talked about 4 different food chains and their pros and cons. Local sustainable farms let the animals roam freely and not be held captive. The animals eat what they are supposed to eat and all the food is natural. The best food chain to feed all the people of the United States is the local sustainable food chain because it’s healthier for the consumer, the farms treat the animals better, and it’s better for the environment. This is important because it’s important to know what exactly is in the food we eat and if it’s actually natural or not. The first reason why local sustainable is the best food chain to feed all the people of the United States is because it’s healthier for the consumer. According to The Omnivore’s Dilemma page 173 it states that there is no pesticides or artificial fertilizer in the food. This shows that the food is all natural with no pesticides, artificial fertilizer, chemicals, etc. It also states that the consumer knows exactly where there food is coming from. (Pollan 208) The consumers can see where there chickens have been killed and see how clean it is to show that …show more content…
In the Polyface farm, the animals “move in a circle” instead in a straight line with no space to move. (Pollan 169) Animals get to move around all day and for the rest of their lives unlike in the industrial farms where the animals stay in a line and eat corn all day long and for the rest of their lives. On the Polyface farm, animals are eating grass instead of corn. They eat a new paddock of grass everyday. (Pollan 176) The animals are eating grass which is good for them instead of corn which ruins there digestive system. It’s important that the local sustainable farms give the animals the freedom and food they need ro be
This past week of class we were to read chapters ten through fourteen of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. This week’s readings were really a mix of different things, but it was a more behind the scenes look at what happens on a farm. I found it all very interesting, as I have this entire book, because often times I do not know what all goes into farming and it was interesting to see how it traveled from Polyface Farms to the market to a meal. In chapters ten and eleven, Pollan continues to observe Salatin’s Polyface Farm where he focuses on his agricultural practice. In chapter thirteen, Pollan views how Salatin sells his food and his beliefs behind agriculture. Finally, chapter twelve deals with the
By evaluating the social aspects regarding the “omnivore’s dilemma,” Michael Pollan argues that people “don’t really know” where the products we consume come from. Thus, he decides to take matters into his own hands in order to discover “what exactly it is” society as a whole is consuming and how this affects their health, as well as the way they enjoy their meals. Furthermore, Pollan accentuates that the role the government plays in the way agriculture is manufactured, implicates the quality of the products in the stands of our local grocery stores.
In the book ‘The Omnivore’s Dilemma’, by Michael Pollan, he inquires into the secrets within the four food chains; Industrial, Industrial Organic, Local Sustainable, and Hunter-Gatherer. Pollan lists the pros and cons of these four food chains. Industrial food is your Wendy’s, your McDonalds, your Burger King. There are multifarious benefits to this food chain. A major benefit for sure is the fact that it is inexpensive.
In the book The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, Pollan explains and describes each of the four major food chains in America; Industrial, Industrial Organic, Local Sustainable, and Hunter-Gatherer. The book was written to inform people about how the food is treated, made, processed, and farmed. However, with four major food chains, the question that arose was, which food chain is the best to feed America? The adjective “best” could be categorized as many things, including taste, accessibility, and affordability. The food chain Industrial Organic is the best way to feed the United States of America.
The local sustainable food chain from The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan would best feed the United States because it is efficient and natural and has little to no impact on the environment compared to the industrial food chains. Pollan illustrates several different food chains in his book, but currently we are depending on two out of the four he discussed. The two industrial food chains already are feed the entire U.S, and it doesn’t look like they are going away. In a perfect world we would all buy local sustainable products.
This book will show you the problem with our food and how it affects more the just us with fact research and visiting farms where our food come from while taking to the farmers about the way they rise the animals. Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan. This book is about how Michael Pollan explain all the problems in omnivore's diet with research and facts. Food industries don't tell you everything about what is in your food.
Horrigan, L., Lawrence, R., & Walker, P. (2002). How sustainable agriculture can address the environmental and human health harms of industrial agriculture. Environmental Health Perspective. In this article, Horrigan agrees with Pollan that there is definitely a problem with using corn-based feed for animals who are to then be fed to human beings. Specifically, Horrigan examines both animal feed and the danger of other forms of pollution which have an impact on human food production and eventual consumption. The authors make the claim that animal consumption itself is highly dangerous and perhaps should be universally abolished in order to help the environment in terms of pollutants and to help humans in their health concerns.
Pollan’s style of writing has often left me in confusion from some of the details he provides. In chapter 3 of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” it’s clear to me how and why farmers previously used burlap sacks for their corn and that in 1850’s they had to transition to the system of commodity corn due to the invention of the grain elevator in the 1850’s. However, what I don’t understand is the technical issue between the burlap bag and the grain elevator that caused the inevitable scheme of commodity corn. Why couldn’t the elevator store the burlap sacks? Furthermore, if the elevator couldn’t accommodate for the sacks, then why was it invented that way?
Even though the dairy cows seem to be well taken care of based on their healthier diets and I am sure the chickens are rotated. Something about the fact that the cows are hooked up to machines, instead of being handled by people and that the chickens never actually get to roam around, like I feel they were intended to bothers me. This may come from me being an animal lover or my distaste for large corporations. Although I have pondered this thought many times since reading the chapter, I am still unsure what makes me so uncomfortable. I much more enjoyed reading about the small organic farms. Even though organic food is more expensive, it usually tastes better, and is better for our health. As well as being better for the environment. These organic farms use manure and other natural methods instead of toxic pesticides. Pollan’s statements throughout the chapter flowed nicely and kept me thinking that the next time I am shopping I wanted to know where the productions is based out of because I would much rather purchase from a small organic farm rather than large scale.
In the book Omnivore's Dilemma, author Michael Pollan explains the many deficits that he perceives in the ways in which food is distributed in the United States of America. Pollan's harshest criticisms are aimed at the food production companies and the ways in which they have bastardized the natural system of food production and turned it into a system which is dependent on fossil fuels; specifically the way that processed corn has become a staple of food products including how it is used as a substitute for grass in the feeding of cattle and as corn syrup and similar derivatives to be used to unnaturally preserve packaged food products. Omnivore's Dilemma does make an interesting point about the denaturalization of the food industry, but Michael Pollan overlooks the many benefits of the current system of food production, which allows humans to produce more food on less land than in pre-industrial agriculture which in turn allows for greater sustenance to the human consumer. Additionally, the proposals that Pollan makes are simply not feasible. He believes that the United States should change from an industrialized food distribution system to a model which only uses local produce, a proposal which is not economically logical, particularly in this aggressively depressed economy.
In the book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, by Michael Pollan, Pollan introduces some very interesting ideas and positions relating to the how and what we eat. Pollan poses the questions: Is America eating the right kind of food? Is what we are eating healthy? And, where is our food coming from, how is it treated, and what is in the food we eat? Throughout the book Pollan places his own argument alongside the answers to these questions. He moves the reader to reflect on the evidence presented about eating organic foods rather than processed foods. Pollan also puts forth a compelling, and strong argument that contains ideas, like food is of higher quality and has better taste when it is not
The Omnivore’s Dilemma, written by Michael Pollan, gives light to the question, “What should we have for dinner?” that he thinks Americans today cannot answer simply due to the fact that there are too many food options. This book serves as an eye-opener to challenge readers to be more aware and accountable of what is consumed daily. In order to understand fully where our food comes from, we must follow it back to the very beginning. Pollan goes on to discuss three different modern food chains in which we get our food: the industrial, the organic, and the hunter-gatherer. By tracing our food back to the beginning, we can understand that most of the nutritional and health problems America is going through today can be found on the farms that make our food and the government that can decide what happens. America deals with many food related illness such as, heart disease, obesity, and type II diabetes. Majority of a human and animals diet consists of being corn-fed leading to a high cause of obesity in the United States these are just some of the many diseases that come with over processed foods and diets we are unaware of. In this study, we will highlight the environmental and health issues and impacts related with modern agriculture and how these systems can be made more sustainable.
Michael Pollan the author of Omnivore 's Dilemma discusses and asks, “what should we have for dinner?” He attempts to answer one of the pressing questions of sustainability in today 's society, to save money or to save the planet, and how? Pollan talks about how humans are omnivores and we have the choice to eat whatever we want, no matter the health and sustainability implications of our decisions. Pollan discusses three main food chains, industrial (corn), organic, and hunter/gatherer. He analyzes each food chain, learning eating industrial is basically eating corn, and goes into the complex issues
What am I exactly eating? Where does our food come from? Why should I care? “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” may forever change the way you think about food. I enjoyed Mr. Pollan’s book, “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and learned a great deal of information. Pollan’s book is a plea for us to stop and think for a moment about our whole process of eating. Pollan sets out to corn fields and natural farms, goes hunting and foraging, all in the name of coming to terms with where food really comes from in modern America and what the ramifications are for the eaters, the eaten, the economy and the environment. The results are far more than I expected them to be.
In the book, Omnivore's Dilemma, by Michael Pollan. He is exploring the different food chains in our food industry. Michael Pollan writes about four different methods of farming., the four methods are industrial, industrial organic, local sustainable, and hunter and gather. To feed a family of four, industrial organic is the best, it doesn’t use toxic fertilizers or pesticides, better for your family’s health, and the animals aren’t fed antibiotics and hormones to make them grow faster, but instead fed on an organic diet.