Turnip Tom Case Study

An arising food category in America is anything organic. Over the years, several local grocery stores organic section is rapidly increasing. Michael Pollan, who wrote Omnivore's Dilemma, is a New York Times bestselling author. Pollan stated, “Forty years ago there was no such category as ‘organic’ food. Today it is a $20-billion business- the fastest growing part of the food industry.” (112) With organic farming becoming more common, there are many changes being made that are resulting in significant outcomes. One of the substantial changes while using organic farming is the improved treatment and health of animals. Further knowledge and awareness of the importance on how organic farming is better for the lives of animals, as well as our health is needed. Gaining more education on animals lives with organic farming, will potentially lead organic food becoming the most popular because of its remarkable outcomes.

The organic food industry has seen a huge spike in growth that is expected to continue into the future due to an increase in consumption. This will provide Whole Foods Market with huge opportunities. In addition, a wave of ethical and responsible consumption has swept across America. Whole Foods’ decision to pursue sustainable activities will certainly give consumers an added incentive to purchase its organic products.

Over the last few years, awareness of organic food has risen. Due to this, the demand for organic food is a factor which is influencing the farmers to switch to use this technique, and it is being sold in specialty stores and conventional supermarkets. Organic products contain numerous marketing claims that it is healthier, it offers more value, and the farming is more environmentally friendly than traditional foods, so, how does one determine if organic is the way to go? Some argue that there is evidence that supports and demonstrates why organic foods and farming are better overall, while others insist that conventional foods and agriculture can offer the same benefits as going organic. There is no right or wrong answer. Within this

Steven Shapin is an expert when it comes to telling people the reality of the situation. In his, article “What Are You Buying When You Buy Organic?” Shapin exposes and explains the truth behind the word organic. He explains that our view on organic is not a reality. The small farms that we picture in our heads are really just big business in disguise. He then constantly goes back and forth defending those big businesses and rejecting them. While the reasoning and logic of “What Are You Buying When You Buy Organic?” is quite strong, Shapin’s lack of argument makes the article seem a little all over the place and therefore makes it unconvincing.

There is more and more demand in the market for organic food. Lots of educated people are going organic instead of buying the regular foods that are full of pesticides and chemicals that are hazardous for human consumption. Since my product is 100% organic it can easily enter that market and satisfy those demands. Even though there are some grocery stores selling organic products there aren’t many suppliers. Therefore, my products have very little competition and I need to expand statewide and nationwide.

From A.J Cotton’s practice, breaking extra land for cultivation provided for maximum crop output during harvesting, and the proper utilization of farming costs. But for expansion to be realized, the farmer would require extra credit, which meant being indebted at high interest rates. The extra land also increased costs of farming such as additional hired hands for plowing, threshing and harvesting the crop. Furthermore, maintenance of farm implements and equipments could prove disastrous to a new farmer especially if it had to be done during the first few years of the venture. The example of Mr. and Mrs. John Hilsop depicting their experience of farming in Canada explains in detail just how hard it was to raise capital for farming. Only with the assistance of A J. Cotton did they realize growth and prosperity.

Other flaws in “big” organic are discussed, painting a picture  of a feel‐good movement that provides few benefits. Pollan’s final position on “big” organic is  somewhat unclear. He clearly perceives substantial flaws in the system, such as the fact that it is  as non‐sustainable as typical industrial food production, but at the same time he seems to argue  that it is at least a step in the right direction.     Pollan’s position on “small” organic is much less equivocal. He spends a substantial section of  the book detailing his visit to a small organic “grass” farm. Although Pollan does his best to  maintain a journalistic, neutral view throughout the book, it is clear that he was captivated by  the work being done by the grass farmers. Pollan shows that the most important crop to these  farmers is in fact the numerous varieties of grass, which form the foundation of the life cycle on  the farm. These farmers work to farm in a sustainable, natural way that closely resembles the  symbiosis of nature. In this section, Pollan provides a fascinating look at the evolved  relationships between different species of plants and animals, and how these relationships can  be utilized to create a sustainable farming system. Although Pollan is clearly enamored with  such “small” grass‐based farming, he also recognizes the near impossibility of implementing  such farming on a large scale. For example, the higher costs

The general public sees any type of organic food as being produced “straight out of a backyard garden” or “right off of the family farm”. But is it really freshly picked tomatoes right out of Grandma Mae’s garden or chicken breast from a local farm? If the food purchased is from Whole Foods or the organic section at Walmart, then that probably is not the case. Large organic farms are what usually supply Whole Foods and other larger chain stores that have organics. They are not what people initially think of when imagining the typical organic farm. They usually think of a small plot of land with an old farmhouse, chicken coops, a red barn, and a large pasture of grass. Even though there are still organic farms like that,

Change of policies about organic cattle farms could have a significant impact on the profit of the ranch. Depending on the changes made to organic compliance polices, the Fritz Ranch may profit or shutdown. Since the Fritz Ranch is a small-time operation, any change in policy would significantly change how the operation

operations to heavily processed foods are making their way onto store shelves and passing off as USDA organic. The regulations that are in place are keeping small farmers out of the loop. The price to register as organic with the USDA is too much for small farmers to afford. The low prices offered by corporations are out competing the small farmers. In addition to this, many foods that are pre-frozen, packaged, and full of dozens of ingredients are labeled organic. And if this was not enough, an enormous quantity of organic foods is being shipped to the United States from overseas. These shipped foods come with very low prices that the local farmer cannot match. The social justice issue is the suppression of the true organic movement; the small

It is becoming a universally known fact that organic foods is the key to beginning a

A significant point is that Polyface farm owner Joel Salatin does not sell his own beef. The reason he doesn't sell his own beef is because shipping it is horrible for the environment. After farmers slaughter the animal and get the beef or meat ready to be sold they then have to ship it on a truck to a local foods store or fast food place. Once they do that they have already wasted tons of fossil fuel and that causes tons of waste and pollution. This point is significant because so many “organic” food companies claim to be organic. But really they aren't, yes they may grow the food without any chemicals but shipping to food is 10x worse because of the pollution it causes. Polyface farm is truly doing it the organic way because they aren't

Ceres Company, backed by its innovative GetCeres program, has been capitalizing on a previously untouched segment of the organics market. In capturing a key demographic of consumers, those causal gardeners who demand instant gratification, rather than the extended gardening period, Ceres is eager to expand quickly to capitalize on this opportunity before its competitors.  This strategy is putting extensive strain on the company’s resources and its relationship with suppliers.  The exciting growth in sales have eclipsed the company’s sustainable growth rate and Ceres is hampered by cash deficits.

The Farm Bank has asked for the advice of your company. They recently installed a new MIS system which, as of yet, has not resulted in the expected increase in efficiency. The president, Mr. Swain, wants to find out why. Your supervisor recently requested an internal analysis of the onsite consultant’s work, who has already written a case summary document. You begin your assignment by reading this document.

Big businesses have a major influence towards American agriculture. Large capital investments have contributed to the success of American agriculture. Monsanto is the world’s leading agricultural biotechnology company that has used fundamentally changed the way many