I believe…in food ethics.
Growing up in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, a place notoriously known for endless rolling hills of farmland, and..yep…the Amish. My home is one of the reasons why I value local, and sustainably sourced food products. Lancaster has great resources that brings the farms (supplied by many of the Amish) to the public by supplying local businesses and grocery stores. Fun fact: the Lancaster Central Farmers Market is the oldest farmer’s market in The United States!
Ethical controversy in the food industry includes things like humane treatment of animals, the environmental impact of pesticides, fair trade, food waste, etc…In America today there is access to an abundance of food shipped to anywhere, from anyplace, at anytime. Although this is convenient, is it ethical?
Globalization in agriculture changes the means of production, distribution, and consumption of food sources. Most families don’t have farms, let alone even gardens that they use for their meals during the week. Families go to super markets and grocery stores.Most typical grocery stores get shipments from all over the world to supply the needs and wants of consumers. Some fruits and vegetables are known for losing many of their nutrients, only a few short days after being harvested.
Produce on display in the grocery store might take upwards of five days to be shipped, and three days until purchase. In that amount of time, over a week, significant nutrients may have already been lost.
When it comes to food purchasing, I try to buy local. When I’m home I buy from places like the Central Market because it aligns with my values. Some of the main values I focus on are knowing that the produce is fresh and not shipped from some undisclosed location, knowing that it is grown organically without pesticides, and knowing that the money contributes to local families in the community. Those values are important to me and part of the ethics that I believe in.
Food ethics is something to take very seriously. Thinking ethically, in any respect, requires weighing in all of the consequences of ones’ own actions. I aim to act this way when buying food because eating is life’s most vital activity. I treasure the way food tastes, but also what it does to my body. That is why I eat with care, not convenience.