The Supermarket Veil Reflection

    Today in class we were able to look at two videos. One is about seeds and the other about a "veil." In the seeds video, as a recap, we learned that a company named Monsanto now owns patent seeds in the United States. What this means is that they can control the use of the seeds and keep anyone from saving the seed. This is a huge problem because many farmers especially have been caught saving seeds and are being sued for violating Monsanto's rule. But there are good and bad sides to knowing about the information based on the seeds. For one, they have nutritional benefits that would be widely used from other farmers. But also, it is against Monsanto for anyone to be in charge of or have this type of information which is why Monsanto feels to have responsibility for it. Another bad consequence for Monsanto having genetic information on the seed is that other companies or those with money could probably sue in order to have hold of that information as well. This situation compares to downloading music from free sites because free sites may have background information that could be adding charge and could just say they are free but really aren't. A tradition in my family is traveling. We tend to travel and visit other family members during the month of August because its the month we are all least busy in. But if I did not have this tradition I would be upset because the summer is the time to travel and I rarely see my family as it is. If someone were to claim this tradition as theirs it would be upsetting for anyone because its what they usually do and having it taken away from them is like taking a privilege away. I think a warning labels are effective. It all depends on the consumer to actually take it into consideration or just shrug it off and buy it anyway.
     A pro for becoming regulators is that they would have a say in what would happen if something new were to come up. What I mean by this is that just like how information on the seeds was a huge discovery, something similar and beneficial could occur. Becoming a regulator would ensure your say in how you would want to handle that information based on letting it be public to all farmers or having in kept confidentially. A con would be that regulators facing many types of issues that could be thrown their way because of peoples' actions.

Food Inc Cornucopia Reflection

I think its important for people to know and understand what is in their foods. Reading the ingredients is as far as we know is the only thing people can get from understanding what is in their foods. Although half the things that are on there they might not understand. A lot of people might know that most words ending in -ose are sugars or a type of syrup. It makes them have a better understanding of what is put into it. And there are a lot of informative videos on how stuff is made.  I do believe people have a right to know what is in their food because a lot of people are curious about the stuff that is being consumed. But many people would prefer not to know only because it may be unappetizing knowing that information. But the ingredients on the back of packaging could be enough for them to know. A problem that could arise from having 90% of our food having corn and soy is the concern of what it is we are going to do when it runs out. Or if for some reason, farmers were not as encouraged to produce that much corn, what could be used instead? I think industries that are in charge of putting labels on food and factories that actually make it are responsible. People have to know what the stuff is made of even though we might not comprehend half of it, but its still a priority to make it visible for consumers.

Food Inc-Dollar Menu Reflections

I think that eating right is a responsibility. A lot of people don't consider the amount of money and time it takes to grow vegetables and fruits. Although it is also a process to make unhealthy food, people would prefer it over healthy food. People are responsible for their weight and they need to be aware of the consequences it will take on their body if they do not treat it properly. People who work and get enough money to buy food for themselves every week should be able to buy something healthier than the stuff on shelves at the grocery store. People know that there is a fruit and vegetable section at the grocery store but its their decision whether they want to get stuff from there, or go down the snack aisle.
My diet is different than when my grandparents were around because--I am sure they had some type of junk food of sweets back then--but now its different because we have a lot more things being put out on sale and kids are tempted to buy them. Now people don't want to eat food made at home or vegetables, they want to eat Burger King or McDonalds. Back then, people probably just didn't have the money to buy things at all or were only accessible to healthy food. I think I eat a decent amount of greens to consider myself healthy. But everyone has a sweet tooth from time to time and it overcomes your taste for something better for you. But I do eat my vegetables or fruit in every meal. There is not a day that goes by that I won't have something healthy. What I would say is the thing that makes my family and I not as healthy as we could be is that we love baking. I bake because my mom used to bake. So I occasionally will make them deserts. Also my friends and I will always go out to eat and the meal servings are quite large. A way to help that situation would be to stop baking for a while and start being more active.