2018-04-15 Week1- Ominivore's dilemma

Q1: Tracing back to the very beginning of the food chain (such as the producing area/the food processing company), where do you think YOUR last supper come from?

To be honest,I have never think about it,my last supper,let me think,ok,my last supper was chicken soup，fortunately,the chicken was fed by some farmers,not from the industry.

Q2: How does the author connect chicken nugget with corn?

the chickens are corn-fed, as does “the modified corn starch that glues the thing together, the corn flour in the batter that coats it, and the corn oil in which it gets fried.So,I think what we eat is corn no matter they are chicken nugget or chicken wings.

Today's reading task is Chapter Two The Farm(page 32-56)

Question 1: Since 1920s, the yields of corn have raised from about 20 bushels per acre to almost 200 bushels per acre. Why or how are the yields able to increase so much?

I thinks it owes to the development of industry and technology.In the past,they would not grow corn every year,because it could ruin the land,but the advent of new technology made it possible for the farmers to grow the corn every year without any contamination.

Question 2: Where does the excessive fertilizer end up?

The excessive fertilizer will drain into other large rivers and might end up in the Gulf of Mexico.

Chapter Three The Elevator .

In this Chapter, Pollan depicts what the grain elevators are like, and the possible manipulating forces behinds those “giant barns”.

Question 1: How does the government manage to keep corn production high and corn prices low?

Government policy plays an important role in corn prices,at the beginning,farmers get loan from the government,and then the government change its ways to subsidy.

My idea

I  find this book is definitely worth my time,and it is fasinating. it is not like any books I have read. I enjoyed the language and style of writing even though it was complicated and slightly hard to understand in some spots. Frankly speaking,I have never thought of the relationship such as the food and the environment,the food and the economy.the book takes an in depth look at where our foods come from and the economic, chemical, environmental and social impact of the process.I acknowledge from the chapter that how corn is produced, dissected and reassembled into so many constituent ingredients for common products.It is amazing how corn is in absolutely everything,from high-fructose corn syrup to fish food; gasoline to paint..and so on.I have realized the dangers of our industrialized food production,and I know some women can not catch a child because of the food we eat.I think we need to demand healthier food that is not treated with a bunch of dangerous chemicals and antibiotics and our government should take some active action to supply us some healthier food with cheap prices.