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Kaitlyn Williams
Period 3
Mrs.Jones
ERWC English 12
Research Paper
The food industry is mainly focused on making money. They deceive consumers by mass
producing food that is potentially harmful.The food industry view people as merely consumers.
As many would think that these industries are thinking about the health and satisfaction of
consumers, they care about sales and persuading us into buying their products. As in “The
Pleasures of Eating” Wendell Berry states, “Mere consumers-passive, uncritical and
dependent.”(37). The food industry relies on the people, the consumers. They will try and do
anything it takes just so we will buy their product; they are unconcerned of the harm that it can
bring. The industries have developed a concealed reputation, “Consumers must be kept from
discovering- the overriding concerns, not quality and health, but volume and price.” (39).It’s an
issue that many are not aware of, and it a shame because if more would know things would
eventually change. “Why being a foodie isn’t elitist” Eric Schlosser says, “They don’t want
people to think about what they’re eating” (2). We have no idea what exactly goes into our body
do we? No. Not to the fullest extent. We put our trust forward, and they influence us as
consumers as much as they can. Berry refers to our food industry mind as and “abstract idea,
something we know or imagine until it appears on the grocery shelf or on the table” (37).

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Consumers support only because they’re oblivious to the cold hard facts. We look at food before
we eat it right? What looks and smells good can be another down fall. Berry mentions that they
“Persuade the consumer that food is produced so good, tasty, and healthful” (39). We are
misconceived and tricked by their ways.
Furthermore the food industry is basically behind closed locked doors. Many of the major
company’swon’t take interviews to show the public what goes on in the factories. As consumer
wouldn’t we like to know what goes on? In the documentary Our Daily
BreadNikolausGeyrhalter shows some disturbing footage in some major factories, there’s a
scene that shows men in white “space suits” that are fully clothed head to feet covered, spraying
plant pesticides. If the pesticides are so dangerous to breathe in while spraying plants how can it
be healthy for consumers to eat? This method completely contradicts itself in multiple ways.
Schlosser states a fact, “About 80 percent of the antibiotics in the United states are currently
given to lives stock, simply to make the animals grow faster or to prevent them from becoming
sick amid the terrible overcrowded conditions at factory farms” (2). It’s unstoppable to not
wonder why the US has to do these things like prevent them from getting sick because of their
living conditions. Shouldn’t they just improve living conditions? Instead there giving these poor
animals chemicals and antibiotics that aren’t healthy for them, so also can’t be healthy for
consumers. In the article “Hiding the Truth about Factory Farms” The NYT states “Factory
farming confines animals in highly crowded, unnatural and often unsanitary conditions”. I find it
disgusting and I’m sure many other would to. It’s only going to get worse because no one is
taking precautions . Producing the product is just as dangerous as eating it, they have to take
many precaution procedures to keep safe. In the article “Occupational Safety in the Food
Industry”Taunda Edwards goes into detail, “Employees working in the food industry can suffer

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from injuries, illnesses and deaths like any other workplace.” It’s scary to think of the risk these
companies and industries take just to produce their product, even there workers at stake. There’s
a scene from Food Inc.by Robert Kenner where they talk about the works fingernails fall off due
to the terrible working conditions. It’s utterly disturbing that this is all for the sake of our food.
The industries put forward a front so the consumers can’t find out specific things, “Limiting
public awareness, companies such as Monsanto and Dow Chemical have blocked the labeling of
genetically modified foods while meat packing industry has prevented the labeling of milk and
meat from cloned animals.”(Schlosser 4). There are many secrets that consumers will never find
out, it’s sad but it’s the truth. The food industries do things that they aren’t proud of, so why do
they?
Pursing this further the beef industry remains a huge part in society today and many are
unaware of the effects of the consumption consequences. We as American’s consume a massive
amount of meat that is fittingly unhealthy. In the article “Rainforest and Beef Industry” Sandra
Ariskan says “The average consumption of 67 pounds per person a year”. The beef consumption
is humongous, it’s so close in our daily diet in America and many go over board and eat way
more then they should. There has to be land that we are taking up to raise all this cattle right
More and more land is going to be taken because were basically asking them to. “This rocketing
global demand has boosted cattle raising in Central and South America to triggering
deforestation in the Amazon rain forest” (Ariskan). We are slowly killing off our natural
resources that are needs to keep living on earth. So many consumers of the beef industry are so
unaware to the massive demand for cattle and deforestation and the demand is always going to
rise. There are many issues with massive risingcattle; a main issue has to do with corn fed vs.
grass fed cattle. The food Inc. website states “Cattle are traditionally bred to eat grass but major

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producers have shifted to corn”. Many large producing farmers have changed their feeding
method to corn because of corn feeding is way cheaper than traditional grass feed. Even though
grass fed have many more benefits then corn. In the article “The Health Benefits of Grass
Farming” Jo Johnson goes on to tell, “Although grass-fed meat is low in "bad" fat (including
saturated fat), it gives you from two to six times more of a type of "good" fat called "omega-3
fatty acids." Feeding cattle corn feed can result badly in many ways, “Feeding corn to cattle
results in high occurrence of acid resistant e coli” (Food Inc.). It goes to show Producers don’t
care about consumer’s health only the quantity and amount of meat. Kevin’s law was a law in a
result of a little boy of two years of age, ate a jack in the box hamburger and got ecoli and died
days later. They bill never passed, and the contaminated meat that Kevin ate didn’t get recalled
until 16 days later (Food Inc.).
In addition pesticides have many surprising effects not just on the product but on the
consumers to. We can’t tell if our fruit and vegetables are sprayed with pesticides and many
other chemicals. We have no clue if it can harm us. In the online article, “How to Win an
Argument with a Meat-Eater” John Robbins states, “Fewer than 1 out of 250,000 slaughtered
animals is tested for toxic chemicals.” There’s no way this can be safe for society. We have so
many health regulations yet they only test 1 out of so many slaughtered animals. Many pesticides
are unharmful but a lot are very harmful. The earth justice website tells, “Methyl iodide is an
extremely poisonous and dangerous pesticide that causes cancer and pollutes groundwater. It's
been linked to cancer and late-term miscarriages and, because it's a gas, easily drifts from the
fields.” No one realize the damage these chemicals really cause. Many think it’s just to keep the
bugs away it causes humans no harm and that’s completely wrong. These pesticides are being
linked to more and more health issues, and the run off from the pesticides is huge issue. It’s

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causing many neighbors of industries health problems. In the article “One Woman Takes a Brave
Stand against Factory Farming” Kathy Dobie says, “Their well contaminated, they couldn’t go
outside, couldn’t open their windows, they had to wear face mask.” She’s talking about an
elderly couple that was basically tortured by living next to a CAFO factory. Not only is it
harming humans it’s also harming out environment. According to “When a Crop Becomes King”
Michael Pollan shares that our cycle of making food looks “Sustainable, solar powered system
for producing food, but it’s actually a huge, inefficient, polluting machine that guzzles fossil
fuel” (45). We’re killing our environment and everything it has to offer. These industries think
that they’re working the system and making everything easier in a sense but actually there
making it even more complicated towards global warming.
Similarly, health inspections aren’t doing what is necessary to keep our food safe.
According to the journalist Carl Mungazi, “The cut in the number of inspections comes despite
the increase in the number of fast food outlets.” With the chain of fast food restaurant’s growing
vastly there should be a higher rate of health inspections but inspections are decreasing.
Mungazi also mentions that “There’s to be a 30% drop in the number of inspections for medium
to high risk food businesses and a 30% cut in the number of samples sent for testing.” Assuming
due to the cost of doing these inspections is what the set back is. But because the government
isn’t doing these inspections our health is at risk, all for the sake of them saving money. Adding
to the exact problem, we as consumers shouldn’t be at risk for our health because they can’t
afford health inspections. Do workers for these food industries work thoroughly? Do they do
everything they can to keep our food safe and do we trust them? The FWW Travis Waldron
seems to disagree, “Company employees often miss quality defects like “feathers, lungs, oil
glands, trachea and bile still on the carcass.” Many of these, consumers can’t see and we are not

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naturally looking for these specific things when we buy our products. If consumers new this
there would be a change in health inspections and the demand for them would rise. Are the
agencies just assuming? Wouldn’t we like to know, “Other foods were considered safe by the
government and they were not subject to daily inspection.” (Waldron) Just because the agencies
have checked a certain product and seems to be “safe” every time doesn’t mean that they can
assume it’s safe without any health inspections. It’s pretty scary that we put most of our health in
other people’s hands and we trust them and what they say even if we don’t know everything
that’s in the process of making our food.
Additionally relating to the money the food industry is strictly concerned about income
and is unconcerned of the harm towards consumers. They will possible put anything out in the
consumer’s world to get our attention. They have many tricks up their sleeves to have success
with their product. Julie Moore goes into detail about how demanding the food industry really is,
“Fast food restaurants can possibly be seen as the drug pushers of the culinary world.” Indeed
they are “pushers”, you wonder why every advertisement looks so appealing or why they always
try to catch our eye. To get there product noticed and known they will try anything and
everything to succeed. Many companies’ put themselves at risk of their liability and you could
call it “working the system”. “Food industry doesn't care for the health of its customers; this can
be seen through its advertisements geared towards youths and its frequent use of immigrants or
inexperienced employees to work for low pay.” (Moore). Cheaper to make is the way industry’s
think, if it’s cheap to make and they sell it for double the price they made it for why not right?
But in many cases cheaper is less health and less efficient. There’s a scene in Food Inc. where
they hire illegal immigrants and pay them as low as they can then let them go because they know
that there company is going to get in trouble, But they do this over and over again. Promising a

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person with a job then letting them go when they have a family to support is very sad, they
completely use the immigrants. Marketing towards children has become a huge issue in the food
world. Children are very susceptible and vulnerable; putting something anything in front of
children that’s appealing to them they’re going to want it no matter how unhealthy it is. Parents
for the most part want to buy things for the children that they want. The food industry
manipulates children in many ways to buy things.Moore states, “There has been a rise in health
concerns in our country; many blame the fast food industry, and they believe that the industry's
focus on marketing to children has contributed directly to the worsening health of the nation's
youth.” Agreeing with Moore the food industry is only going to find more tricks work around the
consumers.
As a result the food industry views people and their health as not an issue. When in many
eyes it’s the main issue. The industry doesn’t care for the satisfaction but for the currency. If
consumers would see what really goes on a lot would be different. Consumers are so blind to all
the things that these industries hide because the yhey make us believe everything is human ans
healthy, when that’s not the full truth. With the mass producing of food theirs only going to be
more and more health risks, and less and less inspections which conclude that people will be
more susceptible to harm. We as consumers need to take a stand for our health our environment,
and the sake of our animals. Not only are our animals being mistreated but we are to, we are
tricked and schemed in multiple ways, the industry basically has control on how we think about
our food and what we out into our bodies. All of these issues need to be put to an end,
Consumers need to be told the truth, and animals need to be actual living things and live natural,
and the environment needs to be a safe and healthy environment.