Nutrition

INTRODUCTION

Humanity regularly asks itself some very important questions. Who are we? What do we stand for? And what do we stand up against? Nowhere in all of the conversations that people have and nowhere in all of the daily tasks that people perform are these questions more important and their answers more painfully personal than when mankind takes a look at himself, at his food and at the impact of that food on his body, on his health and upon his family. That is why looming debate over the safety of food additives, preservatives, growth hormones, pesticides and chemicals is one that we cannot afford to neglect or ignore. The seemingly benign practice of using some 2,500 additives in food is generally regarded as a technological advancement which improves the taste and color of food. Other chemical processes are believed to improve the size, texture, shelf life and survivability of food and agricultural products so that now, more than ever, the food supply is booming, the production cost is small, and the shelf life is long. Nevertheless, this paper will weigh both sides of the food argument and seek to determine both the best and right answers to the most controversial questions which currently plague the nutritional aspects of America’s food supply process (Kenner et al., Bartolotto; Block and Langseth; Emmanuelle et al.; Branen, Davidson, Salminen and Thorngate).

ORIGINS AND HISTORY OF AGRICULTURE

The Green Revolution over the past 50–60 years has resulted in: improved plant breeding techniques; the use of modern fertilizers and pesticides to kill bugs and assure plant survivability; and significant increases in agricultural productivity (Napa Valley Register; Reddy and Yang; Soumya and Siddiqui).

And it’s a good thing that technology had improved the capabilities of our agricultural economy because humans make up less than half of 1% of the total biomass of Earth's animals and still use more than 30% of Earth's net primary production to secure food and fiber. In fact, about one-third of the Earth's habitable land has been converted to agriculture despite that this production has focused upon a relatively small number of species of plants and animals to date (Napa Valley Register; Reddy and Yang; Soumya and Siddiqui).

Moreover, the development of agriculture and the necessary improvements in productivity have caused the human population to explode and have helped to ensure the general well-being of human communities around the world. Nevertheless, the rapid rate at which these crops and animals must reproduce continue to put an unnatural strain on the agroecosystem which has resulted in a number of measures to assure replenishment much faster than might naturally be possible. In effect, in order to maintain high levels of primary production, farmers have fixed the imbalance between nutrient inflow and outflow by applying fertilizers to crops to cut losses for four reasons: harvest, continual disturbance, irrigation, and low biodiversity. In 2010, National Geographic Magazine called Jerry Glover one of “five crop researchers who could change the world” because Glover argued that a decreased dependence on annual crops and an increased use of perennial crops could result in a safer, more stable food supply and a decreased reliance on annual crops (like corn, rice, wheat and beans) from which 70% of the calories in the human diet are derived (Helmer; Kenner et al.; Wettstein, Ferreira, Alves, and Goldim; Ali).

ENTER THE ADDITIVES

A well accepted, albeit increasingly controversial aspect of basic food processing involves the use of at least 2,500 additives which are generally regarded as a technological advancement that should not induce be expected to induce direct harm to those who ingest food products, or at least this is the metrics by which the Food and Drug Administration will use to determine which foods are safe and which ones do not meet criteria. But, there are other issues apart from a concern about what is and is not added in foods (Axelson, 2013). Columnist, Ursula Rozum seems to understand this best when she says that “we deserve to know what’s in our foods” (Axelson, 2013). More plainly stated, the issue is not just that there are new and strange things in the food supply, there’s also an issue with not knowing what those things are. Moreover, because the general population cannot make heads or tails of food labels, the vast majority of them have no actual value to the public. Rozum goes on to observe that “the presence of genetically modified ingredients in food – without transparent safety testing – amounts to a massive science experiment on human health in the name of corporate profits” (Axelson, 2013). She makes some very compelling arguments, but, are they an exaggeration of point?

On the other side of the “transparency” argument is a certifiable reality: ignorance is bliss. Only imagine the panic and pandemonium that would come from knowing every single thing about the food process. We live in this “more” reality, “more” truth that gratifies people with this falsehood which urges that Americans really want to know everything. We believe that government and politicians really out to be honest and that we really want to be fully informed. The truth, however, is that the average American would not last 10 seconds in view of a real farm where real animals are fast-fed feed and fattened for eventual slaughter.

In fact, probably the most disheartening facts about food production in America come from the news, stories and statistics regarding how food farming affects workers. The production of beef and chicken affects workers at every level: from the chicken farmers who manage and maintain the animal in a condition suited only to mass feeding and rapid growth to the cattle farmers who have stopped feeding their cows grass and, instead, opt for a diet based on corn feed that can be purchased below the price of production (Kenner et. al., Food Inc).

GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISMS AND ADDITIVES

Does our America now welcome the chance to abandon the image of the farmer with his tractor and farm animals to view the evidence of the antibiotics in the chicken and farmers who have developed a resistance to drugs because they must handle these animals every day. Rather than give chickens more space to live and grow naturally, profit margins soar only if chickens are covered in and passing out in their own feces. Companies like Smithfield and Tyson require their chickens to be raised in the most hostile, cheap and uncomfortable conditions possible (Kenner et. al., Food Inc). Based on a model provided by the growth of the fast food industry, industrial foods are genetically modified so that everything is fast – growth, slaughter, processing and preparation. Workers are just a tiny sliver of the pie and are an easy-to-replace, non-entity in a cheap and highly mechanized infrastructure that makes no consideration of human or animal (Kenner et. al., Food Inc).

Still, why is it so important that we know what we are eating? Because, the implications of not knowing are great. As career dietitian and writer for the Huff Post noted, not knowing is like being a part of "the largest research study ever conducted in the United States, but you never signed a consent form or agreed to participate" (Bartolotto). When put like that, it's quite chilling. To think that Americans have been exposed to GMOs since 1996 and are not fully aware of how safe or dangerous they are is serious. Soybeans, wheat and corn are genetically modified. Products such as high fructose corn syrup, salad dressing, Twinkies, ketchup, cheese, Kool-Aid, burgers and animal feed are created from these crops and added to processed foods (Food Inc). GMOs are not safe for the environment and they are probably are not safe for people. And, it is important that Americans know that there are companies like Monsanto (the company that owns all trademark rights to seeds because they have all been genetically modified) who will spend $8 million dollars in an attempt to defeat Proposition 37 and prevent GE food labeling initiatives (Napa Valley Register).

Meanwhile, experts have found that the greatest likelihood of coming into contact with foods made from GMOs lies with processed ingredients and additives. Additives undergo several processing steps by the end of which they cannot be differentiated from their conventionally produced parts. Processed additives made from GM plants and additives produced with the help of genetically modified microorganisms are all lumped in together with no labeling or differentiation to inform consumers (Napa Valley Register).

THE SOYBEAN

Soybeans are a case in point. While soybeans are a staple ingredient for thousands of additives and vitamins and while they provide essential nutrients for cows, pigs and chickens, their presence in food is often hard to trace or is often under-stated. The reality is that soy plays a part in 20,000 to 30,000 food products that are on the market at the local grocer. The European Union imports 38 million tons of soybeans and soy meal from Brazil, the US, and Argentina, the majority of which ends up as animal feed or in the oil mills to be processed in numerous food additives. More alarming is that if tests of food shipments reveal that GM products are less than 0.9 percent of the shipment, no labeling is legally required in some countries (Soy is everywhere).

CONCLUSION

Many believe that good and well-informed nutritional decisions are the ultimate keys to good health. Moreover, how can one hope to achieve a proportional diet without having access to all essential nutritional information? The answer is that they cannot hope to achieve the best health allowable and this, no matter the cost of complete information, is a public health travesty.

When reviewing modes of food preparation, it is important to know the various types of processes (including additives, chemicals, pesticides and more) that go into the making of food and which distort one’s natural expectation of what food preparation and processing is really all about (Soumya). In fact, an erstwhile glance backward begs a crucial definition: an additive is “a substance or mixture of substances other than a basic foodstuff which is present in a good as a result of any aspect of production, processing, storage or packaging” (Branen, Davidson, Salminen and Thorngate, p. 1). And while the term does not automatically suggest contaminants or chemicals, the modern reality – as evidenced by food recalls, is that these unnatural processes are unsafe and that they will have adverse effects over time as technology is impersonal, even that which concerns and impacts the most personal layer of human society: food.

Works Cited

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Axelson, Ben. “Your comments on GMO labeling: Whose responsibility is it to inform consumers?” Syracuse.com. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/06/your_comments_on_gmo_labeling.html. Web. 10/17/2013.

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Eisenbraun, Karen. ”Corn-Fed Vs. Grass-Fed Beef” healthytheory.com, 11/28/2013 from http://www.healthytheory.com/corn-fed-vs-grass-fed-beef.

Emmanuelle, R., Myriam, R., Perrot, E., Christiane, D., and Victor, P, et al. “Bioaccessibility of Carotenoids and Vitamin E from Their Main Dietary Sources.” J Agric Food Chem. 54: 8749-8755.

Helmer, Jodi. "Get Real: The Real Cost of Eating Organic and Local Food". Online Post. 2008. gaiam.com. http://life.gaiam.com/article/get-real-real-cost-eating-organic-and-local-food

Kenner, Robert, Richard Pearce, Eric Schlosser, Melissa Robledo, William Pohlad, Jeff Skoll, Robin Schorr, Diane Weyermann, Elise Pearlstein, Kim Roberts, Michael Pollan, Gary Hirshberg, Joel Salatin, and Mark Adler. Food, Inc. Los Angeles, CA: Magnolia Home Entertainment, 2009.

Napa Valley Register. "Protest planned Saturday against genetically modified foods." http://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/protest-planned-saturday-against-genetically-modified-foods/article_bb27f250-2f6b-11e3-a3ce-0019bb2963f4.html.

Reddy, N., and Yang, Y. “Plant Proteins for Medical Applications.” J Microbial Biochem Technol. 3: i-i. 2011.

Soumya, D. and Aliya. Siddiqui A. “A Prime Concern on Good Nutrition versus Good Health.” J Food Process Technol. 2:132. 2011.

"Soy is Everywhere." Ingredients and Additives from Soybeans. N.p., n.d. http://www.gmocompass.org/eng/grocery_shopping/ingredients_additives/34.ingredients_additives_soybeans.html.

Wettstein, M.F., Ferreira, Alves, L.N., and Goldim, J.R. “Bioethics and Food Restrictions by Religious Motivations: Decision Making Processes in Health.” J Clinic Res Bioeth. 2: 106. 2011.