What I've gained from Food and Politics

Throughout my whole writing process I've learned so much about Food and politics. Because of the research required I've learned different things such as the process of becoming an organic based company, the rules and regulations of organic farms and so on. This unit has taught me a lot of things about food and politics that I didn't even know existed. My writing process was all research before I started anything and that's where I just kept reading and reading different articles. I now know some statistics and found out some interesting information on where my food was coming from. This just wasn't a writing assignment it was also a learning experience.

Knowledge Gained From "Politics of Food"

When we began this unit, I had very little knowledge about our country’s food policy. Now that I’m more educated on the topic, I see it everywhere; gallons of milk with “Growth Hormone Free!” Stickers and articles on GMO’s seemingly everywhere I visit online. I have learned that a lot of the labels on our food are deceiving. Just because you're eating an apple does not mean that it hasn't been sprayed with pesticides and even though the milk came from hormone free cows, the doesn't mean the cows weren't treated poorly. Everyone seems to be jumping on the organic band-wagon, like big snack companies such as General Mills, buying smaller companies like Annie’s Organic. Did General Mills really buy Annie’s because they believe organic foods are better? I don’t think so.

As eating organically becomes increasingly popular, big companies see it as a business opportunity. I wonder if clean eating and organic foods are just a fad or if these are lasting lifestyles that will still be around in 20 years. A decade ago, no one was doing pressed juice cleanses and there wasn't a vegan donut or cupcake shop on every block in Los Angeles. We knew people who were vegetarians, but to come across someone who was vegan, was rare. It’s encouraging to see this organic and non-GMO movement take off like it has, but I’m doubtful that it will last.

While this unit has been very informative and has opened my eyes to our food policy, I admit that it has not impacted my diet. If anything, it has made me more understanding of the process our food goes through. I now know the difference between regular produce and meats and organic meats and produce. I’m now more educated on the issues and don't just turn a blind eye to them.

Practical

Of all the units we've covered so far, I would say that this is the most interesting one. In ERW, I understand that this class explores topics that are practical nowadays. What's not more practical than food? In the last unit, we have looked into the issue of anonymity. We get it; it's a problem that rose because of modern-day internet. But we are not thinking about it all the time unlike food. Essentially, we are the sum of the food we eat that constitutes our growth. Because of this unit, our attention is brought into the contents of the food we blindly take from our local market shelves. I'm pretty sure many of us are now becoming more aware of what is in we eat.

As eye-opening this unit is, we all still groan at each at the need for each of us to write a research paper. The process is definitely tough and frustrating. We all have our sources but the hard part is actually putting everything together to get your point across while making yourself sound clear. Not to mention we have to give credit for each fact written that was not of our prior knowledge. One thing I dislike is just not having enough information from a source. For myself, I really don't like the imbalance of information I receive from my sources.

My Writing Process

I would have to say that this unit by far has been really challenging. I've cone across multiple questions about food in general and just so many other things that we put in our bodies. Its actually quite scary too. This unit has also been very eye opening also, it helped me realize that my topic question not only help me understand the true growing process of most of our fruits, but it also raised many more questions. Not only did I start questioning everything about our food after that, but I also started questioning how it affects our Earth. See, and this is why this unit was so difficult for me, because as I felt like I was headed towards the right direction writing my paper, there would come times where another question would form in my head and just completely throw me off. I'm going through my paper now and I'm noticing that I have to stay focused, because it shows in my paper that I'm completely going off topic and its not flowing how I would like it to. Nothing like a little trial and error to help you to become a better writer right?

During this unit I learned more about food than I thought. I feel more aware of the issues that are in our food system. Even though I'm still going to eat the same way I was, I feel better informed. Every time I'm at the store I tell my mom about GMOs like some nature loving nerd. But I think its interesting how much I've learned by just reading the articles in class. The different videos that were shown also helped me learn a lot. Its really unusual for me to enjoy things like this but I even liked researching my topic. I was curious about the production of these different foods.
While writing this paper I made it a point to try and envision each issue in my everyday life. Relating it to my everyday life made it much easier. Since I've never written a paper this long I made sure to take it one paragraph at a time. I explained the issue only using sources that interested me. This paper however, has been the hardest for me to write. I think it's because I was allowed to pick my own topic and make it as broad or specific as I wanted.

Unfair

This unit has taught me so much about different topics. My topic specifically is about animal cruelty and why it should be considered illegal just like animal abuse. While I was researching I came across so many gruesome descriptions that the animal go through on a daily basis. Some of the daily living included poor conditions and others included a cheater life. To further expand, cheating their lives is one of the top reasons why I am against this issue. I believe that all animal have the right to live the way they want to. I understand that they might not fully understand, but that doesn't mean they don't have feelings. It's just disgusting knowing that the chicken I'm boiling at home was given antibiotics to grow bigger without consent. Why don't these animals get to live on their own? It's unfair! Also, the abuse they are treated with in the factory farms should be stopped because it's just as cruel as kicking a dog around. I just wish that one day the way these animals are treated would stop and that the food producers would think of a better and safe way to treat them.

Trapped

I feel trapped while I write about my topic. My topic is on organic food. There are many links about organic food but most of them don't specifically show me the information that I need for my writing process. There are some things that I grabbed upon. One is that it shows most organic milks are considered unhealthier than regular milk. Many companies lie about the foods they put in to their milks so they can get consumers to buy their products. Also, it is shown that organic food is healthier, but pricier than regular foods. Consumers buy to whatever they consider healthy or foods that make them feel happy. My topic is that if we should change our lifestyles to organic foods. But if not, should we just eat however we please? And in conclusion, I think in my opinion, it really doesn't matter what you eat because there are people who eat unhealthily yet, they are seemingly the healthiest than those who care about themselves to the point where it's annoying. I just feel like organic food is a boost to your life insurance, whereas you might be able to live a little longer because it's healthy.

-Robin Hwang
ERWC 5