In the current state of affairs, most of the food consumed in many parts of the developed world has its origins in factory farms. Factory farms seem to be the modern method of ensuring that industrial principles are applied to the provision of the contents of a meal. The main driving force in factory production is ensuring highest production using the fastest and most efficient method. However, factory farming does not really offer those benefits that it seeks to provide; rather, it is an avenue for adverse effects on communities and the societies in general. This paper will seek to explain the benefits of using locally produced food as opposed to the use of food sold by large companies.
Large companies that engage in the business of selling food such as Walmart and McDonalds source their food not from small local farmers, but from large farming companies that have the ability to provide the large amounts needed to satisfy the needs of their large chain stores.
Sourcing food from large companies has a recorded adverse effect on the environment. Environmental degradation occurs in the whole process; from the growing of the food to making it available on the shelves of large multinational chain stores.
Factory farming that is used in the production of the food that ends on the shelves of McDonalds and Walmart plays a very huge part in environmental degradation. Most factory farms employ the massive use of industrial fertilizers and pesticides on their farms. Since environmental protection is not one of their key goals, substances that have an adverse effect on the environment are used. Spillages are carried away by rainwater from these farms and these harmful substances find their way into delicate ecosystems. The effect is disastrous. Pollution in this manner has led to massive losses of ecosystems and pollution that will take years to reverse (Berg, Elizabeth 2014).
Most of the food that is sold by large companies also comes from huge farms that have a bearing on the forest cover of the planet. To create such large farms, acres of forests are cleared to pave way for these farms. Deforestation leaves many species of animals homeless since their natural habitats are destroyed. Deforestation also leads to global warming since plants paly a big role in the absorption of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The result is that although food will be produced cheaply in these farms, the long term costs on the environment are very high (Fisher, Larry, 2013).
In contrast, purchasing food locally has the opposite effect. Local producers of food will know how best to maintain the ecosystems in their areas, and will undertake their farming activities in the most delicate manner to ensure that the balance in the ecosystem is maintained. Buying food produced locally therefore ensures that even in the long term, a delicate balance needed between human activities and the ecosystem is maintained (Berg, Elizabeth 2014).
The movement of food from these arenas of pollution to the stores that sell them is a long process. It is estimated that in the United States, an average meal has ingredients that have travelled an average of 2400 kilometers to get to the table. It is also estimated that the average American meal contains ingredients from other five foreign countries. This shipping relies on the use of nonrenewable energy that is likely to be imported. The transportation of this food plays a role in the increased emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide emissions increase as more imported energy is used for the transportation of this food. The use of imported energy is not only in the shipping of food, but is also used in its processing and packaging (Fisher, Larry, 2013).
Local food production systems do not suffer these effects. Since such food is transported only for a short distance and is consumed within a given small locality, there are high savings on the use of fossil fuels. Air pollution and global warming are greatly reduced by buying and eating local food. Pollution is also greatly reduced when people make a choice of going local instead of sourcing food from large multinational chain stores and food companies. A decision to purchase food produced locally also plays an important part in a reduction of the dependency on use of fossil fuels. It in effect, consuming locally produced food saves energy (Fisher, Larry, 2013).
The massive effects on the environment due to the sourcing of food by large companies from large food companies has raised an issue of how sustainable that model is. Fossil fuel energy used in the production of such food is nonrenewable, and the destruction of the ecosystem is very difficult to reverse. In the long run, large scale farm production that is mainly driven by the desire for profits will not be sustainable, and by then the cost in terms of destruction of the environment may be too high to be substantiated. It is only fair that in the spirit of protecting the environment, local production and consumption of food should be encouraged (Fisher, Larry, 2013).
Factory farms that produce food for large companies also have a considerable impact on human health. Workers employed and working in such farms report suffering from ailments associated with exposure to substances used in fertilizers and pesticides. Lung infections are the most common due to breathing of toxic substances used in the mass production of crops. It is also reported that it is likely for factory farm workers that are involved in the production of animals to contract diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans like tuberculosis. It is also reported that people who live near factory farms complain of bad smells, flies and infestation of other insects from the factory farms. This adverse effect of factory farming should be discouragement enough from foods obtainable in large companies.
Animal factory farms have been accused of animal cruelty. Mass production of poultry and animals that provide meat is carried out in farms where the animals are kept in highly concentrated spaces. Such animals do not have enough space to move around and to naturally socialize. They are fed on high nutrient food to ensure that they grow in the shortest time possible. Such cruelty to animals in the pursuit of profits should not be encouraged, and avoiding factory produced food sold by large companies and opting for locally produced food is one of the ways of dealing with the issue (Fisher, Larry, 2013).
Human health, being so important in the survival of societies, is well protected in local food production mechanisms. Although not always the case, most small scale farmers who make use organic farming to produce their food. This means that the food is produced in a manner that is safe to the farmer, his employees and the final consumers of the food he produces. No diseases are likely to be contracted from such farm production, and both animal and human health is maintained. Buying locally produced food therefore goes a long way in ensuring that the health of oneself and of others is maintained (Danielle Nierenberg , 2005).
Consuming food grown locally also has economic benefits. In more cases than not, mass food production by companies have led to the loss of livelihoods by thousands of farmers in many countries. This is because due to the economies of scale available to those companies, they are able to elbow out small and medium scale farmers from the business of producing crops and animals. The number of people involved in the chain between local food producers and the end consumer is very short, and more often than not benefits people in the same local community. The farmer, the local distributor and the local food store that sell the produce to locals all benefit economically. Purchasing food from large companies would be like deaths kneel for such people as they would lose their livelihoods to faceless companies (Canning, Patrick, 2010).
The health benefits of consuming locally produced food are immense. The food is fresh from the farm, and essential nutrients are well preserved. Vegetables and fruits are ripened in the farm since it takes a very short time for them to move from the farm to the fork. This is unlike the food purchased in stores operated by large companies. Artificial methods are usually employed in the ripening of such foods, and in the process essential nutrients are lost. Health wise, an individual who consumes locally produced food is better off than a consumer of foods obtained from large multinational stores. Most of the farm produce sold in large multinational stores is picked from the farm when it is raw, and through the use of artificial method of gassing and refrigeration, is ripened while in transit. The result is produce that while it appears fresh, is lacking in essential nutrients. Consumers should avoid missing nutrients critical to their health by consuming food produced locally (Canning, P., A. Charles, S. Huang, K. R. Polenske, and A Waters, 2010).
Weighing the benefits of consuming locally produced food against the costs of producing food by large companies, it can be concluded that it is more beneficial both in the short run and long run to promote consumption of locally produced foods. Local food production does not have the large adverse impact on the environment that is created by producing food on a large scale. It also has economic benefits for the local communities that are involved in this production and its continued thriving will ensure that an industry with a long history is not sacrificed on the altar of profits seeking large food companies. It is also clear that the claim that large factory farms offer economic efficiency is a myth, since many farmers end up losing their livelihoods and a higher cost is born by the society through environmental degradation. It is also healthy to consume locally produced food not only because it is more nutritious, but also because its production does not pose a health hazard to those involved in producing it.
Works Cited
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Danielle Nierenberg , Happier Meals: Rethinking the Global Meat Industry. Worldwatch Paper 121: 5. 2005. Web.
EPA. 2011. Inventory of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and sinks: 1990-2009. United States Environmental Protection Agency. EPA 430-R-11-005. Pp 459. Web.
Fisher, Larry. “Rebuilding the Local Food System.” Economic Development Journal , 12.4. 2013.Web.
Halweil, Brian N. Energy Use in the U.S. Food System. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, 2010. Web.
Martinez, Steve. Local Food System: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, 2010. Web.
