ETHICS OF FOOD CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION Food Consumption

ETHICS OF FOOD CONSUMPTION AND PRODUCTION

Food Consumption and Production Ethics Michael Pollan: food movement spokesperson; an American author, journalist, activist, and professor of journalism at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism Books: Omnivore’s Dilemma; In Defense of Food; Cooked Farmer in Chief, M. Pollan, NY Times October 2008: http: //www. nytimes. com/2008/10/12/magazine/12 policy-t. html? _r=0 Why did the Obamas fail to take on corporate agriculture? , M. Pollan, NY Times October 2016: http: //www. nytimes. com/interactive/2016/10/09/magazine/obamaadministration-big-food-policy. html

Our Current Food System (Big Food) -Organized around subsidized monocultures of corn and soy -Requires significant fossil fuel, chemical fertilizers and pesticides -Emits tremendous amounts of greenhouse gas -Food made from corn and soy include feedlot meat and processed foods -These foods bear a large measure of responsibility for steep rise in health care costs (i. e. obesity and related health issues) -Much of what we spend on health care in U. S. treats chronic diseases linked to diet -Scale and centralization of a food system in which 1 factory washes 25 million servings of salad or grinds 20 million hamburger patties each week is vulnerable to food safety threats.

Big Food Protected by Lobbying Powers in D. C. Is a 1. 3 trillion dollar industry/yr Grocery Manufacturer’s Association (household brand names) North American Meat Institute (livestock production) American Farm Bureau Federation (growers) National Restaurant Association (fast foods) Crop. Life American (pesticides)

Food Movement Effort in U. S. Collection of Disparate Groups Seeking to Change Food and Agriculture (Ethics: doing what is “right” for people and the planet) Animal rights activists Sustainable farmers Hunger activists Public health advocates Environmentalists Sustainable cattle ranchers Eat local supporters Environmental justice groups Waste reduction programs

Twin Cities Food Justice https: //www. tcfoodjustice. org/ FOOD RESCUE PROGRAM Largest and longest-running program at TC Food Justice Find donors with excess produce they wish to donate instead of discard; Partner with nearby hunger relief organizations for produce drop-offs Coordinate volunteers to collect, sort, and deliver the food by bike or by car. Serve smaller grocers and hunger relief organizations that have been excluded from traditional, larger-scale food rescue programs. Deliver food the same or next day, maximizing its quality Free of cost to donor and recipient organizations.

Background to Unbroken Ground (produced by Patagonia) explains the critical role food will play in the next frontier of our efforts to solve the environmental crisis. Explores 4 areas of agriculture that aim to change our relationship to the land oceans; will see stories of 4 groups pioneering change. Most of our food is produced using methods that reduce biodiversity, decimate soil and contribute to climate change. Patagonia believes our food can and should be a part of the solution to the environmental crisis – grown, harvested and produced in ways that restore our land, water and wildlife and enhance human health.

https: //vimeo. com/169559548 Unbroken Ground https: //youtu. be/3 Ezkp 7 Cteys