Analysis Of David Barboza's If You Pitch It, They Will Eat It

In the corn section of The Omnivore's Dilemma the author, Michael Pollan, goes on a journey to follow the industrial food chain and on his journey he finds out that corn is in nearly everything we eat. Since it is fed to cows, salmon and other animal corn ends up in places we would not think of like hamburgers, milk and soda. In one of the chapters Pollan tells the readers that for every bushel of corn it cost one dollar more to produce it than to buy it. The abundance of corn has caused the price to go down, however farmers are still producing corn due to government subsidies, even though they necessarily won’t make a profit off of it. This in turn keeps farmers in business but not out of debt.

In Eric Schlosser article, “ Kid Kustomers” he focuses on how American companies have began to target kids in the marketing business. This began in the 80’s and the companies attempt to influence children at a young age to decide on what companies they will buy from. Doing so the companies hope to create lifelong customers and increasing their profit. This can be seen in areas such as a children’s club where ads are seen regularly to be viewed by the kids. Nevertheless these companies benefit from targeting child audiences because eventually it will increase sales.

David Zinczenko’s “Don’t Blame the Eater” is an article about the dangers of the fast food industry and their direct correlation to childhood obesity. Through his argument, he shows the readers that the consumers are not the ones at fault. He provides great detail on how the cheap and convenient places for food are the ones to blame for the continuous growth of diabetes in our youth. Zinczenko gives a well-balanced argument as to why this is true through his use of personal stories, dictation, and tone. Through this, he is able to effectively prove his thoughts and opinions, and also include the reader into following along.

For many decades the food system was an endless controversial issue on how our food was processed and the impertioness. This issue influenced Upton Sinclair who wrote a book called “The Jungle”, which exposed the secrets of the meat industry and unsanity poor conditions of the slaughterhouses, indeed, this book inspired president Roosevelt right into action for solutions for the problem, with great struggle the meat inspection Act of 1906 came into law. Till today many reformers and authors are exposing the large corporations that have full control over the food production and how fast foods had a huge affect on families all over the world. For example, Fast Food Nation, Food Inc, and Fast Food Babies had one aim and that was to bring awareness

The fast food industry also hurts environments around farms in general. It has created an unsustainable cycle that farmers cannot escape. In order to feed themselves and their family, farmers play it safe and buy more fertilizer than needed. When the farmers do not use all of it, they must dispose of it, because that fertilizer will not be as effective next year, so they dump the fertilizer in the areas surrounding their farms. But what this causes is too much nitrogen in the environment because too much nitrogen can kill plants and throw the nitrogen cycle out of balance, in turn hurting the environment.

The article “Amid Kale and Quinoa, Pop-Tarts Keep Hanging On,” written by Sarah Nassauer displays Pop-Tarts’ ability to remain successful in a constantly changing business environment. In recent years healthy food products have experienced an increase in sales. Unhealthy foods have in turn experienced a decrease in sales however Pop-Tarts are an exception to this trend. In Nassauer’s article she explores the reasons for Pop-Tarts continued success.

In 1906, Upton Sinclair wrote a novel that was designed to attract the people of the United States. Throughout this novel, Sinclair pointed out several defining details about the workers in the food industry (Sinclair). The title of this novel is The Jungle because Sinclair always believed that the food industry reminded him of the jungle. Back in 1906, the food industry was very hazardous. The working conditions were very unsafe, including the extreme fluctuation in temperatures from unbearable heat to freezing cold, the lack of safety equipment, sanitary needs, and even the high amounts of workers.

The life pursued by the average young person in America is fast paced and scheduled to the point of breaking. As time has progressed this time stretched life style has impacted the need for food that isn’t cooked at home or even at restaurants that cook with traditional methods. This coupled with the swelling number of households with either a single parent or two working parents has increased the reliance on the fast food industry and in turn increased the overweight and obesity rates in the country. In his article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” David Zinczenko addresses this topic and places the blame not on those partaking in these delectable dinners, but in the hands of the fast food industry and their lack of understandable labeling. Zinczenko’s argument is valid and strong due to his equal use of ethos, logos and pathos.

Nowadays in America, we are encountering problems with our food system. The way it’s being processed is affecting everyone. From youngest to oldest, farmers to lawyers and smallest to biggest animal. Consumers are made to believe that they are buying and eating healthy foods , but the labels that led them to believe that are not completely honest. The essay “Escape from the Western Diet” written by Michael Pollan is an explanation of the theories of the western diet.

In David Freedman’s essay How Junk food Can End Obesity, Freedman makes the claim to policy arguing that instead of demonizing processed foods, Americans should instead support the idea and production of healthier processed and junk foods. He calls on the public to recognize that while many products on the market these days are labeled as “wholesome” and “healthy”, consumers should learn to become aware of the fat and calorie content in these products because many times they have the same- if not more- fat and calorie contents as that of a typical Big Mac or Whopper. In his essay, Freedman primarily places blame on the media and the wholesome food movement for the condemnation of the fast and processed food industries saying, “An enormous amount of media space has been dedicated to promoting the notion that all processed food, and only processed food, us making us sickly and overweight” (Freedman), he further expresses that this portrayal of the

Eating Factory Farm-Raised Meat The American diet focuses heavily on animal products and factory farm-raised meat. Factory farming is a system of large-scale industrialized and intensive agriculture that is focused on profit with animals kept indoors and restricted in mobility. Factory farming is a very profitable business and seems to be growing daily and supported my many Americans purchasing these products. Most people don’t know where the meat they eat comes from, let alone know how these animals are treated during the entire producing process.

The director’s assertion, in the film, is also that food companies are in control of what goes in our food and how is it produced. The documentary investigates

Obesity rates have risen, our food has been modified, and production in America has drastically changed. This book has open the eyes of many Americans, so that they may take a stand and fight for what’s right. The people deserve to know what they are buying and what they are eating. And that's exactly what they don't want you to know.

In the world, there are one billion people undernourished and one and a half billion more people overweight. In this day and age, where food has become a means of profit rather than a means of keeping people thriving and healthy, Raj Patel took it upon himself to explore why our world has become the home of these two opposite extremes: the stuffed and the starved. He does so by travelling the world and investigating the mess that was created by the big men (corporate food companies) when they took power away from the little men (farmers and farm workers) in order to provide for everyone else (the consumers) as conveniently and profitably as possible. In his book Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System, Patel reveals his findings and tries to reach out to people not just as readers, but also as consumers, in hopes of regaining control over the one thing that has brought us all down: the world food system.

“Don’t Blame the Eater”, written by David Zinczenko, is a short article discussing how fast food is the main cause of childhood obesity. This article came about in relations to two kids filing a lawsuit against McDonalds for making them fat. He begins his piece by sympathizing with these individuals because he used to be like them. Zinczenko then informs the reader of his background and how he fell into the category of being dependent upon quick and easy meals. In an attempt to provide a valid argument, he debates on how kids raise themselves while their parents are at work and that the nutritional values are not labeled upon prepared foods.