Hwk 7b

Chapter Six – The Consumer: A Republic of Fat
Precis:
The high figures regarding obesity in America are simply caused by corn being over produced; the overproduction of corn causes this grass to become very cheap. Due to this fact, corn has replaced the use of sugar. Corn syrup can be found in many food items out there, such as soft drinks. The cheapness of corn has caused fast food restaurants and soft drink companies to use it in many of their products, in addition making their portions much larger.
Gems:
"The excess biomass works like a vacuum in reverse: Sooner or later, clever marketers will figure out a way to induce the human omnivore to consume the surfeit of cheap calories." (101)
"Three of every five Americans are overweight; one of every five is obese." (102)
"Corn accounts for most of the surplus calories we're growing and most of the surplus calories we're eating." (103)
"Researchers have found that people (and animals) presented with large portions will eat up to 30 percent more than they would otherwise." (106)
Thoughts:
I think the reason behind obesity in America is the over production of corn, but the marketers are the ones that should take the full blame. They are the ones that choose to promote unhealthy items to catch the eyes of innocent consumers. They take advantage of buyers by using corn in all the products they will consume and create them in larger portions. They seem to mask themselves as if what they are doing is a very good gesture indeed, but behind that mask they are a face of evil causing the percentage of obesity levels to rise. But I guess they are forced to do this, if they don't then what will happen to all that corn being produced? These marketers don't have any other options; going against this idea will cost them their jobs.
"While the surgeon general is raising alarms over the epidemic of obesity, the president is signing farm bills designed to keep the river of cheap corn flowing, guaranteeing that the cheapest calories in the supermarket will continue to be the unhealthiest." (108) Is the president not aware about the outcomes of signing such bills? Is he held responsible for America's struggle with obesity?

Chapter Seven – The Meal: Fast Food
Precis:
While consuming a meal from a local McDonalds, the customer usually doesn't realize that the meal being eaten mainly consists of corn. Majority of the meals sold throughout fast food restaurants wouldn't exist if it weren't for corn. Because fast food is simply fast food, it gives the buyer yet another reason to consume it. What they don't realize at the moment is the number of risks regarding their health that can be caused by eating meals from McDonalds.
Gems:
"My eleven-year-old son, Isaac, was more than happy to join me at McDonald's; he doesn't get there often, so it's a treat. (For most American children today, it is no longer such a treat: One in three of them eat fast food every single day.)" (109)
"Of the thirty-eight ingredients it takes to make a Mcnugget, I counted thirteen that can be derived from corn..." (112-113)
"In the long run, however, the eater pays a high price for these cheap calories: obesity, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease." (117)
"What is it about fast food? Not only is it served in a flash, but more often than not it's eaten that way too: We finished our meal in under ten minutes.(119)
Thoughts:
How does our dependence on corn compare to those of other countries?
Will fast food chains such as McDonald's be able to survive without the use of corn in their products, such as the famous Mcnugget? If this event were to take place in the near future what will replace McDonalds?

Chapter Eight: All Flesh is Grass
Precis:
Usually when we think of farms we picture beautiful green grass growing everywhere, cattle chewing on some of this grass, while some of it is used for hay; this is not the common case in America. Many farms in America do not depend on nature to keep their animals and plants alive; surprisingly, these include many farms thought to be growing "organic" foods. Many farmers in America don't take the concept of organic as seriously as some other farmers such as Joel Salatin do. Joel is one of the few farmers in America who owns a organic farm in which everything is grown naturally.
Gems:
"We think of grass as soft and hospitable stuff, but once it's been dried in the sun and shredded by machines - once it's become hay - grass is sharp enough to draw blood and dusty enough to thicken lungs." (123)
"Salatin is the choreographer and the grasses are his verdurous stage; the dance has made polyface one of the most productive and influential alternative farms in America". (126)
'Because a healthy soil digests the dead to nourish the living, Salatin calls it the earth's stomach." (127)
"Me and the folks who buy my food are like the Indians - we just want to opt out. That's all the Indians ever wanted -to keep their tepees, to give their kids herbs instead of patent medicines and leeches. They didn't care if there was a Washington, D.C., or a Custer or a USDA; just leave us alone. But the Western mind can't bear an opt - out option. We're going to have to refight the Battle of the Little Bighorn to preserve the right to opt out, or your grandchildren and mine will have no choice but to eat amalgamated, irradiated, genetically prostituted, barcoded, adulterated fecal spam from the centralized processing conglomerate". (132)
Thoughts:
If all American farmers were to follow Joel Salatin's organic way of owning a farm, won't the prices of organic foods drop making the prices friendlier for more individuals?
What if industrial farming came to a sudden stop? How would Americans react? Why do we seem to only worry about the present, yet not the future? Shouldn't we be coming up with new ideas that involve growing our food using natural methods?

Chapter Nine – Big Organic
Precis:
Many stores claiming they sell organic foods are using a web of lies in order to trap their customers, making them feel as if they are purchasing organic products; yet in reality it is the total opposite. After taking a closer look into organic farms and industrial farms, their aren't many significant differences noted in the way they grow their foods. Organic food stores such as Whole Foods create stories, which keep the truth hidden; in return appealing the innocent buyer to purchase more goods from their stores. At times, consuming conventional produce is better than consuming so called organic produce.
Gems:
"The organic movement, as it was once called, has come a remarkably long way in the last thirty years, to the point where it now looks considerably less like a movement than a big business." (138)
“Artificial manures lead to artificial nutrition, artificial food, artificial animals and finally to artificial men and women.” (148)
“And so, today, the organic food industry finds itself in a most unexpected, uncomfortable, and, yes, unsustainable position: floating on a sinking sea of petroleum.” (184)
Thoughts:
How do customers of stores such as Whole Foods react to all this? Will they revolt or accept this fact and move on with their lives keeping their mouths shut?
I think it is absurd the way stores claiming they sell organic foods trick innocent buyers by using a trap of sweet words. We shouldn't be tricked into consuming something unhealthy, while we consider it to be healthy. We are better off consuming food grown in industrial farms; at least when we purchase these foods we are well aware of how it was grown. We are brainwashed by organic food sellers into thinking we are committing a great act while purchasing their products; we are just too afraid face the deadly truth...

Chapter Ten – Grass: Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Pasture
Precis:
Many American farmers use corn to keep their farms running, but grass farmers, one of them being Joel Salatin, rely on grass. Grass is a very important necessity for farms owned by grass farmers. Joel Salatin refers to his pastures as the "salad bar"; the "salad bar" provides his cattle a source of energy and nutrients all living organisms need in order to survive. Grass farming does not use any toxic substances in the process of raising their animals and growing their fruits and vegetables. Joel Salatin and other grass farmers produce their food by naturally obtaining energy and nutrients which are packed away in the plants they grow and the animals they raise. Because industrial agriculture is cheap, grass farming is not very common in America.
Gems:
"The animals come and go, but the grasses, which directly or indirectly feed all the animals, abide, and the well - being of the farm depends more than anything else on the well - being of its grass." (187)
"We should call ourselves the sun farmers. The grass is just the way we capture the solar energy." (188)
“Grain is the closest thing in nature to an industrial commodity: storable, portable, fungible, ever the same today as it was yesterday and will be tomorrow.” (201)
Thoughts:
Knowing all the benefits (some regarding global warming) of replacing corn with grass in farms, why are we still relying on corn? Are we too lazy to make this transformation?
If grass farming becomes common in America, will it make a huge impact on its people? Such as the issue regarding obesity...If majority of the farms in America become grass farms, will the high numbers in obesity change drastically for the better?