Food Security
Course/Section: Personal and Community Health HT-155-22W
Date: 02/23/2014
Instructor: Janice Velozo, M.Ed.
Written Assignment 4
Food Security
“Most of us live in a food secure environment where we don’t worry about having enough to eat. Unfortunately, that is not true for everyone.” According to the United States Department of Agriculture, food security relates to quantity and availability for an active and healthy life style. (USDA ERS, 2013) Today there is an enormous availability of food, at a great variation of quality and costs. There is always an overwhelming amount of food options. However, there is not as much information about the quality of most available foods. The source of foods and it’s ingredients are not always known, and often come from different states, and even countries. In addition, there are many laws and regulations that allow for food companies to print misleading information on food packages. For this reasons, although the information about the importance of high quality food reaches a significant part of the population, most people still find it difficult to follow a healthy diet. My personal experience to keep up with high quality, nutrient dense foods has changed through my childhood and adulthood. There are different factors which contributed to the progressive changes in my eating habits, as I fell into the tricky habits of low nutritional levels meals. This written assignment will discuss the food security issue in the modern world today.
In the modern capitalist world, much thought is given to maximize the production of food. The staple crops, which compose most of the world’s diet today are corn, soybeans, wheat and rice. These crops gained popularity for it’s low cost, and abundance in derived foods. Most derived foods, of such crops, are usually very low in nutrients, but high in carbohydrates. In contrast to low nutrient dense foods, the term organic food, is becoming increasingly more popular. This term refers
Date: 02/23/2014
Instructor: Janice Velozo, M.Ed.
Written Assignment 4
Food Security
“Most of us live in a food secure environment where we don’t worry about having enough to eat. Unfortunately, that is not true for everyone.” According to the United States Department of Agriculture, food security relates to quantity and availability for an active and healthy life style. (USDA ERS, 2013) Today there is an enormous availability of food, at a great variation of quality and costs. There is always an overwhelming amount of food options. However, there is not as much information about the quality of most available foods. The source of foods and it’s ingredients are not always known, and often come from different states, and even countries. In addition, there are many laws and regulations that allow for food companies to print misleading information on food packages. For this reasons, although the information about the importance of high quality food reaches a significant part of the population, most people still find it difficult to follow a healthy diet. My personal experience to keep up with high quality, nutrient dense foods has changed through my childhood and adulthood. There are different factors which contributed to the progressive changes in my eating habits, as I fell into the tricky habits of low nutritional levels meals. This written assignment will discuss the food security issue in the modern world today.
In the modern capitalist world, much thought is given to maximize the production of food. The staple crops, which compose most of the world’s diet today are corn, soybeans, wheat and rice. These crops gained popularity for it’s low cost, and abundance in derived foods. Most derived foods, of such crops, are usually very low in nutrients, but high in carbohydrates. In contrast to low nutrient dense foods, the term organic food, is becoming increasingly more popular. This term refers
References: Payne GH, Wethington H, Olsho L, Jernigan J, Farris R, Walker DK. Implementing a Farmers’ Market Incentive Program: Perspectives on the New York City Health Bucks Program. Prev Chronic Dis 2013;10:120285. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd10.120285. Natural and Organic Foods. (n.d.). Food Marketing Institute. Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://www.fmi.org/docs/media-backgrounder/natural_organic_foods.pdf?sfvrsn=2 Pollan, M. (2008, October 11). Farmer In Chief. The New York Times. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 USDA ERS - Food Security in the U.S.. (2013, September 4). USDA ERS - Food Security in the U.S.. Retrieved February 21, 2014, from http://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us.aspx