Inequality In Will Allen's Growing Power

He argues that the food movement of our generation has been successful in changing popular consciousness. However, it has been struggling with shifting, in any impactful way, the “standard American diet,” which he purports has only gotten worse since the 1970s (Envision in Depth p.g

In Eric Schlosser’ Fast Food Nation, Schlosser reveals the good, the bad, and the ugly secrets that brought fame and fortune to many fast food companies. One distinct reason why Schlosser believes that fast food companies gained a large amount of power is because of uniformity. Many corporations and their leaders claim that “the key to a successful franchise… can be expressed in one word: ‘uniformity’. (5)” However, according to Schlosser, uniformity is more of a vice than it actually seems to be. Schlosser exposes how the demand for uniformity from fast food companies such as McDonald’s caused severe economic problems for potato farmers and beef ranchers who cannot keep up with larger corporations. However, the same demand for uniformity undeniably creates millions of low-skill jobs that boost America’s economy. In addition, uniformity makes food more affordable for lower-income families with it’s value pricing (115). Indeed, uniformity can be seen as something positive because of

On January 17, 2001 Eric Schlosser, a contributing editor at the Atlantic Monthly and author of Reefer Madness, depicts “The Dark side of the All-American Meal” in his novel Fast Food Nation, one of TIME’s 100 best nonfiction books. In the novel, Schlosser employs many different rhetorical strategies throughout the chapters to inform and convince his audience of the scandalous nature of the fast food industry. Schlosser describes the unseen truths of industry in order to dissuade not only the American public, but all supporters of fast food. He writes to all members of society who eat fast food, so that he can alert them of what is happening beneath the surface of one of America’s most profitable and private industry’s.

In his book, Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser discusses the acculturation that the United States has undergone since the beginning of the fast food industry; the sprawl of indistinguishable fast food restaurants has conceived a homogenized landscape. The average American does not think much when stopping for fast food. Perhaps on their way home from work they stop for a quick bite. The same meals can be purchased anywhere, from California to New York, and everywhere between. Placelessness is rampant; everywhere there is a McDonald’s within walking distance. It is highly important to maintain culture and diversity, but it is difficult to do so when popular culture and large corporations take over. The homogenization of the United States has

Schlosser argues America’s lives are solely based off of fast food. Throughout his writing he describes how common it is in our society in which fast food is ordered, sold, and consumed. Everywhere you go, every glimpse you take, every corner you pass, fast food is being sold everywhere. Schlosser describes throughout his text the commonality of fast food in restaurants, airports, schools, and large chained stores available nationwide, in which each compress the similarity of fast food. Not only does he include how common fast food is in an American’s life, but he describes how Americans will spend more of their money in their wallet on fast food than they would on other livelihood essentials. He includes how vastly the economy has been effected

“‘If they’ve got a pulse… we’ll take an application’” (Schlosser 162). Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the American Meal by Eric Schlosser and The Jungle by Upton Sinclair convey corporations treating the public inhumanely. The books discuss how the companies will fix their prices, the lengths they will go to avoid unionization within their establishments, highlight how their employees are struggling to survive on their low wages, and provide a look into the risks of working for these corporations.

In the economically unpredictable country, the United States of America, there is obvious signs of corporate exploitation of the middle and lower classes in terms of economic status. However, the last thing you would think of are these huge food corporations scheming a class-based geographical empire of fast food chains with a scarcity of supermarkets. Food deserts are urban and rural areas, mainly of the lower class, that have virtually no access to healthy food options. Leading to more obesity and other dietary related diseases, such as diabetes. There are about 23 million people that live in food deserts, and out of that 23 million, “[more] than half of those people (13.5 million) are low- income” (Agricultural Marketing). A barren wasteland consisting of no healthy food options, or even a market where you can at least have a choice on what you eat, seems to be impossible to come by.

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.

Over recent years, the United States obesity epidemic has increased in abundance to the point where an individual should be worried about making healthier life choices. Eating habits are an immense reason why our health has changed for the worse since the 70s. People die young due to developing obesity related diseases. Diseases occur from choices people make, what one decides to eat, and how much an individual decides to eat. Studies show the life expectancy for an unhealthy person who chooses to eat a bigger portion size, often less than the average individual who keeps a balanced way of eating. An individual is at fault, choosing to eat unhealthy or not, yet fast food restaurants can make a change when advertising fast food, providing the

Now before we identify the causes, we need to identify the skepticism regarding this topic. It doesn’t affect everyone, and it only effects certain communities. What is important to understand is that with the rapid rise of fast food, and the increase in the price of fresh food, we will see these food deserts arise at a quicker rate than ever before. That leads to the first cause, opening more fast food restaurants. That action leads to a clear and present danger in our communities. Now don’t get me a wrong, a good juicy cheeseburger is good every once in a while. Through the opening of these fast food restaurants, kids, adults, and students alike will be more tempted than ever to spend the money on a quick and easy meal. I can’t count the number of times my parents have gotten take out simply because they didn’t want to cook. Secondly, the prices of fresh food are at an all-time high. Currently, the prices of fresh eggs are higher than recent years because of a bird flu. In turn that means that farmers producing our eggs don’t have the chickens to produce the eggs. And in result jacking up the prices of a dozen eggs. As a cashier at a grocery store, I know firsthand the anger this causes consumers. Produce prices are also at a new high as we look outside of the United States to get our fresh produce. Finally, our nation is faced with a big problem: Inadequate

As Ban Ki Moon once stated; “Migration is an expression of the human aspiration for a better future.” All migration accomplished by mankind has followed a consistent pattern of looking for a better living. In Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist, we can see this similarity.

There 's a queue of people outside the church 's doors, the hungry line the street. Faces with unshaven beards, piles of shopping bags, and shabby clothes all standing outside the Church of the Apostles waiting just to be fed. With our country 's hunger issues growing larger in parallel with our elites power, Anna Quindlen exposes one of America 's growing economic issues to the everyday American. Anna Quindlen’s informative use of logos perpetuates the connection between our countries elite and its hungry.

In the infamous prose “Attention Whole Foods Shoppers” Robert Paarlberg, a Harvard international affairs expert divulges on the ongoing warfare with the issue of sustainability. Paarlberg focuses on how the rise in global starvation increases in less developed nations, but it is often ignored by those in developed countries because of their fixation with the green revolution. He asserts many claims as to why Africa and Asia still have high food deprivation rates, which quite contrary to popular belief has nothing to do with overpopulation. This stems from lack of investment into agricultural infrastructure and investments. His criticism of whole foods shoppers seeks to bring awareness to the issue of world hunger and how the quest to eat organically

In “The Pleasures of Eating,” Wendell Berry responds, “eat responsibly” to his students who ask what they can do as city people to help stop the decline of American

He argues that subsidized land grants and communal gardening are solutions that would lift some out of poverty while also assisting in curbing the trajectory of obesity rates among western children. More likely to be accepted by the western minded is Yanovski’s suggestion of diet journals being shared in public classes and worked upon as a group to develop better eating habits as children. Either or would inevitably save taxpayers money down the road and increase the overall quality of life for the average American at the same