Food Inc.: Viewing Guide

Transcription

1 Name: Gr. 10 Geography: Miss Goodwill Food Inc.: Viewing Guide Describe the impact of various agricultural practices Identify the stages involved in food production and distribution. Give examples of ways in which food production has changed over time Identify the changing nature of farming on the prairies and describe the social and economic implications for communities Identify issues related to genetic modification of plants and animals You are about to watch a documentary that deals with the food industry in North America. The video, FOOD, INC., deals with issues that surround the production and processing of food from field to our kitchen tables. Parts of the video are somewhat disturbing but are necessary to explain the effect of the food industry on all North Americans. Introduction 1. How are the names of brands and labels placed on meat and dairy products in the supermarket misleading? Part 1 Fast Food to All Food 2. What are some of the consequences of the McDonald s food production mentality of uniformity, conformity and cheapness? 3. How are the chickens raised differently now than they used to be?

2 4. What issues concerned you about the chicken industry? List them. 5. Explain why farmers are economically bound to the large meat companies. Part 2 - A Cornucopia of Choices 6. Why is so much corn grown? 7. What percentage of products on the supermarket shelves is estimated to contain a corn or soybean product? Were you surprised to find out how much of our food contains corn? 8. List three food products and three non-food items made from corn. Food Products Non-Food Products

3 9. Why are cows now fed corn instead of grass? What problem evolved as a result of feeding corn to the cattle? Part 3 Unintended Consequences 10. Why is E. Coli bacteria spreading to other foods? 11. Why are the regulatory boards (such as the F.D.A.) that govern the food industry and its major corporations so ineffective? 12. USDA implemented microbial testing for salmonella and E. coli 0157:h7. If a plant repeatedly failed these tests, that the USDA would shut the plant down because they had an ongoing contamination problem. Was it successful? Why or Why not? 13. What was Kevin law? Why isn t it passed? 14. Instead of taking the cattle off the feed that contains corn, what technological solution has been created to solve the E. Coli problem?

4 Part 4: The Dollar Menu 15. Why are the less healthy food choices typically cheaper? 16. Why is obesity not a simple matter of personal lifestyle and responsibility but rather deeply connected to the design and production of the modern food industry? 17. Why is low income directly related to obesity and diabetes? Part 5 - In The Grasses 18. Describe two ways cows in a pasture benefit the farm/farmer. 19. The meat packing industry in the United States was at one time one of the most respected and safe industries. Why did it go downhill so quickly and become so dangerous?

5 20. Why are so many plant workers migrant workers from Mexico? Part 6 Hidden Costs 21. Hirshberg stated that the large companies don t grow organically, how did they make their organic business successful? 22. How has the business of farming been revolutionized by the food industry? Part 7 - From Seeds To The Supermarket 23. Monsanto owns the seeds such as soybeans and controls the product from seed to supermarket. Explain how this impacted the farmers.

6 Part 8 - The Veil 24. Why is the food and agriculture industry opposed to labeling GMOs and cloned foods? Part 9 - Shocks to the System 25. The food system is based on a very small number of crops, run by a small number of companies. Why is this dangerous? 26. Pollan said in order to eat well, we need to make the costs of healthy food cheaper than unhealthy food, what do they need to do to change that? 27.What individual or collective actions can we take to improve our food system?