One good way to examine the relationship between globalization and the environment is (again) by taking a look at food. On the one hand food is a very cultural--one could even say intimate--thing. Some of our most precious or powerful memories are often related to food, either smells or tastes, or events surrounding meals, for instance. And what we eat, with whom, where--even what we don't eat--all of these are very connected to our culture.
On the other hand, food is connected to our environment and ecosystems. Even if we have massively 'engineered' it, most food is still produced in ways that depend on things like water, climate, soils--not to mention transportation that uses fossil fuels, etc. So through an examination of food we can link up the many threads our course has covered so far: history, economy, politics, culture and ecology.
This week we will watch the documentary Food, Inc. It does a great job of linking up the various topics we have been exploring in our course. Take note of the ways in which environmental issues, economic ones, social and cultural ones, and political ones are all intertwined with one another.
Questions:
1. Why is meat so cheap in the US, compared to other countries and compared to fruits and vegetables? Describe the major pieces in the cheap meat-producing food ‘system' in the US. Would you describe this as a ‘free market' without government intervention? Why or why not?
2. What are some of the real ‘costs' of cheap meat in the US? Discuss three, in at least three sentences for each. [Hint: consider environmental, health, labor, etc. costs]
3. Are people who eat fast food simply making ‘poor individual choices'? What is misleading about approaching the issue as a matter of personal choices? Why can't some people ‘afford' to eat healthier? What could be done to help people eat a healthier diet?