Each supermarket item comes from a different farm,
processing plant, or even country of origin. Because of these options, many
consumers are unaware of what goes into preparing and packaging their food.
Learn why acclaimed food journalist and Instructor Michael Pollan believes you
should know where your food comes from.
Food literally comes from two sources: plants and animals,
but getting these items into your pantry and refrigerator requires a global
network of farms and food chains. As a result of widespread global trade,
countries profit from exporting to the rest of the world the food groups that
they grow best. This means that the food you eat in North America may have come
from suppliers in South America or Asia.
3 Sources Where Food Comes From
The food chain that leads to your grocery store could have
many different origins all over the world. Here are three examples of where the
food in your local supermarket comes from:
1. Domestic farms: Rather than being imported from other countries,
many foods arrive at grocery stores from farms right in their home country. For
example, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) tracks only food items
produced in the United States. Some domestic farms are small, local, and
family-run, whereas others are large, corporate-run enterprises. Each farmer or
farming company may differ in how humanely they treat their animals or how
organically they raise their crops.
2. International farms: Different habitats generate and
sustain various food products. For example, one country's ecosystem may be
conducive to growing avocados and blueberries, whereas another's may be more
conducive to growing pumpkins and soybeans. Because of globalization, the
world's population can now consume food products imported by municipalities
from countries far beyond their borders.
3. Manufacturing or Processing plants: As they pass through
processing plants, some cereals, meat products, and even plant-based foods
become contaminated with artificial preservatives and byproducts. These
industrial food manufacturers produce as much food as possible for distribution
to grocery stores. Chemicals added to foods can reduce nutritional value while
also assisting producers in preserving and packaging it more efficiently.
According to Michael, there are four major food chains, the
largest of which is the industrial food chain. The tiniest is what he refers to
as the "first person food chain." "This is food you grow or
forage for yourself," he says. It has the shortest food chain. So we go
from the longest to the shortest, and they all follow very different rules and
produce very different types of food."
Why is it important where our food comes from?
Food sources are important, whether for your own personal
health or on a larger environmental scale. Here are a few of the reasons
Michael Pollan, a food journalist and educator, believes you should know where
your food comes from:
To inform your consumption: Food labels may appear to be a
quick way to determine how healthy an item is, but Michael believes these
identifiers can be misleading. "People put labels on things that have no
meaning," he says. "'Farm fresh' or 'natural' are meaningless terms.
As a result, it's very easy to become perplexed in the supermarket." When
you understand where your food comes from, you can make more informed dietary
choices.
To maintain healthy eating: If you want to eat healthy food,
you should pay attention to how farmers and processors prepare it. "You
know, you can have a potato here and a potato there, and they might look the
same, and they might even taste the same," Michael says. However, one of
them may contain pesticides." A small organic farm, for example, will most
likely provide you with more nutritious and natural food than an industrial
processing plant.
To protect the environment: Some foods are bad for the
environment, while others make the world a better, more sustainable place to
live. "The industrial food chain is harmful to the environment,"
Michael claims. "Eating from the regenerative food chain may also benefit
environmental health." Learn more about the farms and vendors who supply
your food if you want to be an environmentally and socially conscious consumer.
What Effect Does Our Food Have on the Environment?
Global food consumption, particularly from industrial
sources, has the potential to have a significant negative impact on climate
change and other environmental concerns. People who grow food in a sustainable
and organic manner, on the other hand, help the environment maintain a healthy
state of equilibrium. Sustainable farming also contributes to increased food
security for people all over the world.
