The Facts :

We are currently facing a social and environ me ntal global crisis rooted in the way we produce and consu me food.

Agribusiness and biotechnology has turned our food production into a highly toxic machine that has little benefit for the public here in the US , as well as our international neighbors. The indiscriminant use of chemical products and heavy reliance on fuel consumption in current agricultural practices has caused irreversible environ me ntal degradation including; the loss of fertile topsoil, polluted and depleted water tables, loss of biodiversity in plants and other living creatures, increase in greenhouse gases, and the exploitation of natural and human resources.

• Genetically modified organisms have been released into nature without proper testing for environ me ntal impact or potential harmful consequences to human health.
• Cultivation of GM crops also requires applications of chemical fertilizer and pesticides.
• The legalization of seed ownership has placed the ability to cultivate plants for human consumption in the domain of corporate control, threatening plant species as well as the right for people to save seeds as they have done for centuries.

 

• Agribusiness also puts small far me rs out of business locally as well as abroad.
• Our govern me nt's financial support in the form of billions of dollars worth of subsidies to the top producers, result in poverty and loss of land and livelihood for millions of food producers around the world who cannot compete with the below production cost of staples such as rice, corn, soy and wheat (our top subsidized commodities), which we dump on foreign markets.

 

• The industrialization of raising livestock on factory farms or CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) requires enormous amounts of fossil fuel and water.
• 70 % of antibiotics in the U.S. are fed to poultry, swine and beef cattle for non-therapeutic uses, creating resistant strains of diseases.
• Concentrated livestock operations contaminate waterways, soil, aquifers, air quality and produce up to 18% of global warming me thane.

 

The effects of this agricultural shift from far me rs feeding the world to corporations and chemical companies feeding the world, has also caused enormous health problems that we are facing here in the US . The subsidized corn, wheat, rice, cotton and soy is a great boon for processed food corporations that can produce a plethora of products using these few staple ingredients. These cheap foods high in calorie and low on nutrition are causing major health problems in our society.

• Diet related illness is now the number two preventable cause of death, next to cigarettes.
• Heart disease, obesity, type II diabetes are all on the rise and increasingly shortening the lives of our children.
• It is estimated that children born after the year 2000 will most likely be the first generation whose parents outlive their offspring.

 

Solutions :

There is much we can do to ensure a healthy, clean and sustainable food system that protects our health, natural resources and human rights. Any size action makes a tre me ndous difference. Here are just a few suggestions:

 

• Get educated and share information with your family, friends and colleagues.
• Support your local, small scale food producers by shopping at far me r's markets.
• Eat less processed food and more whole, fresh foods.
• Join a CSA, community garden or food co-op in your neighborhood or start one!
• Ask your local grocer or restaurant to offer local, organic, fair trade products.
• Eat less me at and make sure it's humanely raised.
• Grow food wherever you can; on your rooftop, garden, window sill, fire escape…
• Support local health and wellness initiatives
• Voice your concerns to your local representatives