Food Inc.Chapter 3:Unintended Consequences
- CH 3 Notes:Copy these notes in your own words into your Reader/Writer Notebook
Background of problem: During the film’s production (circa 2005), the head of the FDA was formerly the head of one of the Big Food companies. The film points out that this is common; officials of the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and USDA (United States Department of Agriculture have often previously been executives of Big Food companies. And likewise, Big food executives are often former government employees.
Results:-conflict of interest
-leads to de-regulation of food industry (reduced funding, self-policing)
Why is this a problem?
Three year old Kevin died from Hemolytic Uremic syndrome after eating hamburgers from a cow infected with e-coli. The e-coli bacteria in Kevin’s blood caused liver to fail.
Why do cows have e-coli bacteria?
-fed corn instead of grass, causes intestinal infection
-cows stand ankles deep in their own feces and feces of other cattle
-factory lines move so fast that workers often make mistakes, leading to cross-contamination
-meat from cows from all over the country are mingled together, origin of sick cattle is difficult to trace
Kevin’s mother, Barbara, proposed Kevin’s Law to congress which would give USDA power to shut down plants that produce contaminated meat. The bill would:
-require USDA to identify dangerous pathogens
-establish standards to reduce pathogens
-shut down plants that breech standards
Meat Industry does not want this because
-Profits would ↑
-Costs would ↓
-Create fear in consumer
Meat Industry’s solution?
-Put ammonia in the meat to kill e-coli
Returning cows to a grass fed diet would immediately and dramatically reduce e-coli.
- Chapter 3 Reflection. Write a 1 paragraph reflection in your Reader/Writer Notebook.
- Chapter 3DiscussionQuestions. Answer the following questions in your RWN
(min1 paragraph ea.)
- Who is responsible for Kevin’s Death?
- Whose responsibility is it to ensure food safety?
- What steps can be done to reduce or eliminate deaths due to e-coli? Think about the government, food industry, schools, families, etc. How can this problem be solved?
- Think about the concept of Unintended Consequences. Explain in your own words how the title of the chapter relates to the contents.