Sustainability And Food: Individual Research Project - Essay Example

? SUSTAINABILITY AND FOOD: INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROJECT Food sustainability has become a significant segment contributing remarkably into the economy of developed as well as developing nations. More specifically, agricultural sustainability involves food production methods that are healthy, harmless to the environment, humane to animals, and support farming communities. It is significant to note that the welfare of farm animals is a matter of public concern in many countries across the world. Sustainable farm conditions employ healthy living conditions for farm animals which are also grown well and treated humanely. Further, the issues of food sustainability are an integral part of the economy of a nation along with a healthy lifestyle for its people. TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract………………………………………………………………..1 Introduction……………………………………………………………3 Research question……………………………………………………...3 Methodology…………………………………………………………..4 Literature review…………………………….….……………………..4 Conclusion and recommendations…………………………………….8 Appendices…………………………………………………………….9 References……………………………………………………………..10 Sustainability and Food: Animal Welfare Introduction: With the process of globalisation going multidimensional, food sustainability has also become a significant segment contributing remarkably into the economy of developed nations. Talking about sustainability, it provides people with the basic needs for healthy living. More specifically, agricultural sustainability involves food production methods that are healthy, harmless to the environment, humane to animals, and support farming communities. Further, sustainability issues in agriculture are mainly concerned with certain aspects of the consumers, food products and the environment. These aspects address the following: Conservation and preservation of the ecosystem and resources Maintain and improve biodiversity with minimal use of chemical pesticides Promote sustainable farming in order to strengthen rural communities Provide workers with competitive wages and benefits, and offer proper living conditions and food Treat animals humanely and with respect and care under animal welfare This paper will briefly address the upcoming issues and conflicts associated with animal welfare with regard to the impact of sustainability issues in food supply. It will also look into the issues of how animals are being taken care of under the broad dimension of sustainable agriculture. As farms have become more industrialised, animals have become more of a commodity. However, with consumers becoming more aware of the inhuman treatment of animals, sustainable agriculture has been considered as a primary platform for promoting animal welfare and considerable treatment of livestock in the food industry. The research question addressed in this paper is the following. Research question: Is there a conflict between cheap food and the well-being of farm animals? Are we prepared to pay more to make sure that farm animals are well cared for? Methodology: The paper will adopt both qualitative as well as quantitative research techniques to investigate the living conditions of farm animals and the kind of treatment these animals get. The paper is mainly based on literature review of sustainable agriculture and food supply. The questionnaire prepared for the research was designed from the resources collected from the references. Literature review: It is a bitter fact that industrialisation of the food sector has transformed animals into mere commodities. That is to say, industrialised or factory farms are large profit-driven companies that view animals as units of production rather than living creatures. Life on a factory farm means discomfort, pain and stress caused to the farm animals. These things could eventually lead to disease as well as lower quality of production. Therefore, sustainability has become a thing of utmost importance in the food industry following the growing awareness of food quality, production and market expansion. But before going for an empirical explanation of the relevance of food sustainability and animal welfare, it is important to know why we should buy sustainable food. Some common reasons provided by the consumers are: Health benefits from sustainable meat products Better taste buds for sustainable food Humane treatment with sustainably-raised animals Healthy environment in sustainable factory farms Healthy working conditions for sustainable farm workers along with fair wages and respectful treatment Considerable contribution to local economies Saves fossil fuels and energy use Animal welfare and sustainability are serious issues for nations as they play significant roles in the economies of the countries. With globalisation taking a step further, sustainability in the food sector has more prominently acquired the position of serious business. In fact, sustainability plays the most significant role in all stages of activity in the food sector. If we take the example of a food chain, it goes through a number of processes including: Primary production Manufacturing and production Packaging Distribution Retail Consumption With the food sector getting sufficient exposure and boom in recent years, the UK food market is now more vocal about promoting sustainable food production. Manufacturers are taking sustainability to the next level. With animal welfare and nutrition being the topmost contenders in the priority list, food production companies are now concerned with food quality, safety and CSR (corporate social responsibility) as well. In addition, they are highlighting innovation and technology for better production of sustainable food products. According to research by Nutreco (2010), evolution of food production and consumption has witnessed remarkable changes in the last few decades across the globe. The research discussed the aims and objectives of food production and consumption while bringing up the issue of sustainability. Year Objectives Region % of total income spent on food 1945-1960 Food security Elimination of poverty Africa, North Korea 40-65% 1960-1980 Rationalisation and modernisation China India 20-40% 1980-2000 Consciousness Environment, animal welfare, antibiotics East Europe 20-40% 2000-2010 Food safety and food quality Healthy, fresh, tasty, convenient N-America W-Europe 10-20% 2010 onwards Sustainability and technology Japan Australia 10-20% With considerable amount of investment in the adoption of new technology aimed at animal welfare, sustainability and food safety, animal production in the UK has become more efficient and sustainable. Nutreco as a leading global player in animal nutrition and fish feed has shown remarkable improvement in, Pig feed conversion ratio improvement (NL) >20% Reduction of P, N and ammonia emissions per ha (NL) ?50% Reduction of fish meal and fish oil in fish feed >25% Food sustainability in the US also calls for special attention with regard to the safety of the farm animals. The ‘animals in cage’ scene is soon going to be a far-off image of history. Cage-free eggs, for instance, have become the latest practice among the top chefs in the American food industry. As research says, cage-free hens have generally two or three times more space per bird than the caged hens. Food CEO has provided a clear report on this: 64% of the American universities and dozens of restaurant chains are using cage-free eggs. Compass Group, the world’s largest food service provider, has switched nearly 100 million eggs to cage-free. Hellmann’s mayonnaise announced plans to convert all of the 350 million eggs it uses in the US to cage-free. Further, the market of the egg industry in the US has gone for a drastic change over the last four decades. As statistical record shows, the egg industry in the US went from having about 10,000 egg farms in the mid-1970s to less than 200 farms last year (Nesterowich, 2010). The question of whether chickens should be caged or not is now a serious issue as it is related to broader issues like animal welfare, sustainability, food safety and holistic approaches. Nesterowich evidently quotes Jeff Armstrong, Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural resources, Michigan State University: “if you want to see evolutionary changes in the food system, and it should occur on the farm, we need to get better, we need to house animals where it’s the best welfare, the best food safety, lower the carbon footprint, use less water, etcetera.” (Nesterowich, 2010) It is significant to note here that the welfare of farm animals is a matter of public concern in many countries across the world, and particularly in Europe. Animal welfare and food security share a mutual relation. In most cases in most countries, improving the treatment of farm animals also improves their productivity. Food security is best achieved by growing food on a local basis for people who need it. If the farms are small in size, then there is hardly any requirement of complex infrastructure. That means, a small farm in a rural area can be looked after well and efficiently. Comparatively, there is a contrasting effect showing up in developed countries, that is, the concept of ‘cheap food’. This concept of cheap food has contradictory responses in developed and developing countries as it does not usually provide food security in the latter types. This is a serious problem with larger intensive farms when they provide such cheap food to developing countries: “the meat they produce is too expensive for the really poor and hungry, and such giant farms destroy the job structure and social stability of agriculture-based societies. In Brazil, for example, intensification of the poultry industry is driving thousands of small, family farms out of business.” (Appleby, 2006, p. 2) Further, the issues of animal welfare and better productivity are also related to the benefits of export as well as home consumption in most countries. More particularly, extensive land and relatively cheap labour can be beneficial for developing countries as these can give them a competitive advantage in agricultural trade. For instance, targeting high-value organic and welfare markets in Europe can definitely help developing countries in Africa and Latin America in bringing larger changes in their agriculture. Moreover, animal welfare can lead to protect the environment as well as the future sustainability of food production. Above all, intensive farming is now beginning to be recognised as inhumane to animals, inappropriate to biodiversity maintenance and a disadvantage for farmers, in comparison to livestock kept in extensive and sustainable conditions. Conclusion and recommendations: Sustainability issues are significant in the food industry provided that farm animals are taken care of along with the employees being well-paid and with respect. Eating healthy food always starts from the practice of keeping healthy food production and quality. Sustainable farm conditions employ healthy living conditions for farm animals which are also grown well and treated humanely. Further, the issues of food sustainability are an integral part of the economy of a nation along with a healthy lifestyle for its people. Following aspects are required to be paid attention while developing and implementing sustainable food production strategies. First of all, better understanding of farm animal welfare is required by emphasising and interpreting the subject both at national and international level. Besides, provision for higher wages and payments to support farmers’ costs is necessary for improving welfare. Developed countries should provide their developing counterparts with trade-related assistance and capacity building in terms of sustainable food production and marketing. As food safety is a significant issue, labelling programmes should be expanded to give consumers detailed information about their food. Appendices The paper has discussed only one question at length from the questionnaire designed specifically for investigating into the sustainability issues and food supply with regard to animal welfare, food safety and humane treatment of the farm animals. The questionnaire is given below. Questionnaire: 1. Is there a conflict between cheap food and the well-being of farm animals? Are we prepared to pay more to make sure that farm animals are well cared for? 2. Should the animal welfare provisions within the Livestock Market and Livestock Assembly Station Regulation be moved under Animal Protection Act? 3. What are the focused procedures and protocols implemented by the non/governmental authorities aimed to avoid, alleviate or minimize distress, potential pain or other adverse effects suffered by animals? 4. Do you produce health reports at regular basis for the animals you use? 5. Do you continuously monitor the animals through disease development processes in order to determine degree of suffering? 6. Do you practice humane killing of animals? What termination methods do you use? 7. Are you taking necessary steps to disseminate information and implement ethical procedures for the treatment of animals in research? 8. Are farmers/owners/producers as well as non-farmers generally concerned about farm animal welfare? 9. What kinds of farming practices, according to you, are affecting the welfare of animals? 10. What do you think are the necessary steps and standards to be developed and implemented for making the humane treatment of farm animals a successful endeavour? References: 1. Appleby, M. 2006, ‘Animals and People First. Why Good Animal Welfare is Important for Feeding People, for Trade and for the Future’, REDVET, Vol. 7, No. 12, . 2. Baldwin, C. J. (ed.) 2009, Sustainability in Food Industry, Wiley-Blackwell, Iowa. 3. Dekker, W. 2010, ‘Sustainable development of Animal Production: 10 years CSR in Nutreco’, . 4. Fish, R., Seymour, S., Watkins, C. and Steven, M. (eds.) 2008, Sustainable Farmland Management: Transdisciplinary Approaches, CABI, Cambridge. 5. Food CEO 2010, ‘Culinary School Launches New Animal Welfare, Sustainability Policy’, Food CEO, published in 17 August, 2010, . 6. Lawrence, G., Lyons, K. and Wallington, T. (eds.) 2010, Food Security, Nutrition and Sustainability, Earthscan, London. 7. Nesterowich, C. 2010, ‘Eggs: Helping us Learn about Sustainability and Food Safety’, mlive.com, published in 17 September, 2010, . Read More