Crops
What crop is hidden in a wide range of processed foods, including soda, candy, and even meat products, highlighting its high influence in the modern diet.
Corn!
Give 2 examples of processed food
Lots of foods are processed! (Ex. popcorn, cereal, tortillas, crackers)
What is the difference between organic food and inorganic food?
Organic food is produced without human-made fertilizers and pesticides. Inorganic food is produced through human-made processes.
What is industrial farming?
Large-scale, intensive farming operations that rely heavily on mechanization, synthetic inputs, and monoculture cropping systems to maximize production efficiency and yields.
Define Food Chain
The process it takes for food to reach consumers.
According to Michael Pollan, what crop is the "keystone species" of industrial agriculture.
Corn :)
Are processed foods or organic foods widely considered to be cheaper?
Processed foods because the cost of production is lower than that of organic foods.
What is a GMO? What does GMO stand for?
A genetically modified organism. An organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques.
Nowadays is farming more organic or more industrial?
Industrial
What are local sustainable food chains?
A food chain that sources food from nearby, often smaller-scale farms that prioritize environmentally friendly and socially responsible practices.
Michael Pollan advocates for a diversified crop production in "The Omnivore's Dilemma," highlighting the benefits of growing a variety of crops such as fruits, vegetables, and grains. What farming practice does this describe?
Crop rotation
What is a consumer?
Us! Anyone who buys and eats the products produced by farms and food processing industries.
What is organic farming?
A method of farming that avoids the use of artificial inputs. Instead it relies on natural processes and inputs such as compost, crop rotations, and biological pest control to promote soil health and biodiversity.
What is monocultural farming?
The practice of growing one type of crop in a field at a time
Name one positive effect of inorganic foods like GMOs.
You can buy these foods no matter the season, they last longer, increase in production, food is cheaper, etc...
What is one alternative to the current corn-dominated food system that we have in America right now?
Organic farming, Grass-fed cattle, diversified crop rotation, local and sustainable farming, etc.
Name two unintended outputs of the food processing industry?
Garbage/waste production, pollution, health problems, production of bacteria
What are organic food co-ops?
When someone orders food directly from farmers
What is mad cow disease? Can humans get it?
A disease that cows get when they eat food that is mixed with cow brains. Humans can get it if they eat beef infected with mad cow disease.
What are the three types of author's purpose? What type of purpose do you think Michael Pollen had when writing the Omnivore's Dilemma? What makes you think this?
To inform, to entertain, to persuade. [To inform or to persuade are both correct if you can properly support your answer]
What is regenerative farming?
An approach to agriculture that focuses on restoring and improving the health of the soil, enhancing biodiversity, and promoting ecosystem resilience. It seeks to mimic natural ecosystems to create sustainable agricultural systems.
What is a farm subsidy?
A sum of money granted to farms by the government in order to help the farms out and keep prices of goods low.
What does synthetic mean? Are synthetic fertilizers found in organic or inorganic foods?
Something that is chemically or physically engineered by humans in order to mimic a natural product. Synthetic fertilizers are found in inorganic foods.
What type of energy do grass farmers utilize?
Solar energy transmitted by the sun and natural processes like photosynthesis.
The title of the book is the Omnivore's Dilemma. What is the Omnivore's Dilemma?
We have so many food options, but we don't know what is good or bad for us, or where our food comes from.