Food Inc Research Paper
Food Inc.
The growth of food and the fast food industry has increased tremendously since the 1950s. “In the 1970’s, the top five beef packers controlled 25% of the market. Today, stunningly, these beef packers control more than 80% of the market.” (Food Inc. Quote) These handful of corporations have goals to produce large sums of food at minimum inputs resulting in large amounts of profit, which allows for market power within these top companies. Food Inc. shows how these companies have grown so big that the health and safety of the workers and food have been overlooked by the company itself and the government which as a result has a negative outcome of consequences. The advancements in technology, machinery, and science have increased …show more content…
shows the power of companies and their power in the market. 80% of the meat that can be bought in the United States is supplied by the four companies who act like monopolies. Each of these companies has diminished the incentive for other companies to enter the market, and the incentive with the quality of their food, because of such few competitors. The lack of competition in the meatpacking industry is a known market failure. The more the customers know about a product, such as the meat in the fast food industry, the better. The meat packing industry holds back information from the public for its own good. The central theme of Food Inc. is the corn industry. 30% of the land in the United States is used for growing corn. Corn is used in products such as ketchup and batteries, used as animal feed, and used as a food additive. Food Inc. explains how corn has been massed produced and harvested in large quantities because of how cheap it is. Corn is a multipurpose crop which can be fed to livestock and used in food, which was mentioned before. Due to corn being a multipurpose crop, it was heavily subsidized by the government. Subsidizing corn, since it is so cheap, has ensured that the unhealthiest food is the cheapest. This is the cause of obesity and bad
The growth of food and the fast food industry has increased tremendously since the 1950s. “In the 1970’s, the top five beef packers controlled 25% of the market. Today, stunningly, these beef packers control more than 80% of the market.” (Food Inc. Quote) These handful of corporations have goals to produce large sums of food at minimum inputs resulting in large amounts of profit, which allows for market power within these top companies. Food Inc. shows how these companies have grown so big that the health and safety of the workers and food have been overlooked by the company itself and the government which as a result has a negative outcome of consequences. The advancements in technology, machinery, and science have increased …show more content…
shows the power of companies and their power in the market. 80% of the meat that can be bought in the United States is supplied by the four companies who act like monopolies. Each of these companies has diminished the incentive for other companies to enter the market, and the incentive with the quality of their food, because of such few competitors. The lack of competition in the meatpacking industry is a known market failure. The more the customers know about a product, such as the meat in the fast food industry, the better. The meat packing industry holds back information from the public for its own good. The central theme of Food Inc. is the corn industry. 30% of the land in the United States is used for growing corn. Corn is used in products such as ketchup and batteries, used as animal feed, and used as a food additive. Food Inc. explains how corn has been massed produced and harvested in large quantities because of how cheap it is. Corn is a multipurpose crop which can be fed to livestock and used in food, which was mentioned before. Due to corn being a multipurpose crop, it was heavily subsidized by the government. Subsidizing corn, since it is so cheap, has ensured that the unhealthiest food is the cheapest. This is the cause of obesity and bad