Reflections on Food Solution in My Neighborhood - Coursework Example

Reflections on Food Solution in My Neighborhood al Affiliation Reflections on Food Solution in My Neighborhood School Food Programs Problem Observation Solution Monday Too much junk food because the high-sugar diet is readily available and cheap due to substantial subsidies. Obesity due to undisciplined consumption of junk food Healthy eating discourse and diet awareness to maintain healthy body weight Integrate food literacy in the curriculum through teaching hands-on gardening and culinary skills as part of the school curriculum from kindergarten to graduation Encourage schools to purchase healthy food for the students from local growers that are known to be sustainable farmers Tuesday Good food offerings are unaffordable National school meal program to supply healthy meals to children Teach people about how they can preserve, cook, and share food for the benefit of those that cannot afford. Wednesday Food wastage Create food awareness through environmental studies and community Arts movements that advocate for social change regarding food conservation Thursday Unhealthy, poorly cooked and cold lunch program Encourage the Good Food Café that offers a healthy hot lunch program for school kids Friday Malnutrition and hunger is rampant due to inadequate food supplies and poverty. The government should create school meal programs to provide children with constant food supply. Encourage diverse culinary tastes for multicultural population to honor the different cultural rituals Saturday Kindergarten children change their attitude towards fresh fruits and vegetables Encourage children to eat fresh fruits and vegetables more than processed and canned food. Collaborate with food scholars and non profit private and public organizations to exhume, document and link people with their food practices to determine where health deficiency occurs. Form organizations such as Food-share that supplies fresh, nutritious, and affordable fruits and vegetables to children and adults every month. Sunday Grown-up children prefer buying junk than preparing a meal for themselves Encourage after-school cooking and gardening practices, nutrition and support programs Farmer’s Markets Problem Observation Solution Monday Poor income from food sales hence low quality food Pollution and scarce water resources Diversion of the use of food grains into production of biofuel increased demand while supply diminished Food product advertising Generating standards for sanitation, water supply and public health policy Tuesday Poor weather and climatic changes due to global warming Pests reduce crop yield Economic policies are driving small farmers off the farming land Farmers that produce abundance of food are affected by the global economic forces Introduction of genetically modified organisms that are drought-resistant and pest-resistant and have rapid growth and high yield. Formulating food charter to curb local food challenges and champion sustainable food Wednesday Reliance on family labor but not wage labor as the basis of capitalist profits Transportation and storage companies, banks and merchants exploit farmers by charging high fees for service offered. Mixed family farming to pool resources in order to enhance diversity, and utilize natural biological cycles to reduce pollution such as crop rotation, manure generation, and weed removal. Replacement of manual labor with power engines that have increased speed, power and produce exponential output of farm operations. World Trade Organization intervention through structural shift that is aimed to create infrastructure that will support liberalized market economy. Thursday Harm on crops caused by genetic contamination that has led to a myriad social and environmental costs. Farmers avoid mixing the breeds to prevent contamination Friday Transportation of food to very far away markets in order to obtain good sales World Trade Organization intervention through creating infrastructure that will support liberalized market economy. Saturday Global economic relationships that include international trade and investment flows have reshaped the farmer’s market beyond the indigenous demand and supply. Legislated supply management system that will match the production needs of that market. Ensure that the production cost is met by the prices that the farmers receive for their produce Sunday Higher food prices in poor countries that is accompanied with enormous increase in the cost of agricultural inputs, seeds, and fertilizers. Challenge of trade negotiation Encourage liberalization of trade by reducing the taxes Instigate farmer’s collective marketing agencies to negotiate better prices for commodities. Corner Stores Problem Observation Solution Monday Too much junk food Food movement through digital stories and face-to-face contact to educate the people about health and food. Tuesday Storage of expensive, poor quality processed foods that are stored on the stores’ shelves Proactive increase of the number of health food stores. Wednesday Geographic isolation of food reserves that decrease availability of healthy foods Encourage supermarkets to open stores for fresh local products in poor countries. Thursday Failure to sustain food demand of the local community due to small size Open convenience chain stores that sell traditional foods Friday Sale of pseudo-foods in a seller-dominated manner Facilitate a two-way communication with the customers to understand their preferences Saturday Encourage the establishment of supermarkets to meet rural food demands supermarkets ensure product availability and physical visibility is enhanced Sunday consumers are persuaded by sellers to buy unhealthy foodstuff because they intend to increase turnover Encourage the domination of supermarkets where customers have the power to exercise land-lordship in their choice of food that is mutually beneficial Restaurants Problem Observation Solution Monday Restaurants sell low quality and stale food The menu items consist of too much junk Some health-checked approved foods lack nutritional value Dieticians and nutritionists claim some health-checked disapproved foods are healthier with higher nutrition content. Fresh food program that sells good quality produce to restaurants Grassroots initiative sustainable, equitable, democratic and community-based food policy Tuesday Most people are uncertain about the hygienic conditions under which the food was grown, processed, transported, and prepared before it is eaten by the final consumer. Customers should verify the source of the food that they are consuming. It should be locally available. Wednesday Most restaurants sell fast foods that are unhealthy and have supersized value Encourage fair-trade and organic agricultural movements to decrease the distance that food has to be transported to the restaurants. Encourage farmers to sell organic produce to local restaurant owners Thursday Most commodities are undervalued or overvalued Set low-priced food markets I n the cities that will enhance sustainable food system that will enhance affordability to the civil commons Friday Restaurants owners set up food stalls that sell similar food at less than 50% price of other restaurants The consumers should verify where the low-priced food has been obtained from because some are prepared under unhygienic conditions Saturday Economic legislations hinder restaurant expansion Support restaurants through proper legislation Sunday Regulations regarding healthy foods have been lightened Formulate food charter through municipal agreements to address food policy concerns Community Gardens Problem Observation Solution Monday People do not grow their own food in community gardens Place-based education and collective cultural expression through community Arts to create an equitable and sustainable food system, and create knowledge and culture. Tuesday High cost investment and poor produce prices that discourage community farmers Encourage community gardens that enhance self-reliance, enhance community development, contribute to a cleaner environment and improve fitness Wednesday Economic policies that diminish existence of community gardens Generate policies that legitimize and encourage existence of more community gardens. Thursday Seeds are spoilt by bad weather Safeguard seed diversity Friday Lack of distribution networks due to market flooding by large-scale farmers Encourage food distribution through non-market-based mechanisms. Saturday Lack of funds for investment Enhance opportunities on organic farming Sunday Threat to capital due to increase in the cost of living Increase minimum wage to encourage investments Food Banks Problem Observation Solution Monday Food insecurity Encourage the establishment of food banks by Anti-poverty perspective and food sovereignty perspective Encourage self reliance through education, and community gardens and kitchens so that they can operate individually-owned food banks. Help the farmers to invest without borrowing from banks and also, support innovation Tuesday Cultural issues and traditional issues that surround food Establishment of aboriginal cultures Wednesday Women serve themselves with lower quality food in small proportions due to financial constraints Stuff food banks with enough food to provide charitable aid to the less privileged individuals Thursday Civil unrest Food banks help to combat civil unrest and increase the national food-sharing system Friday Need for emergency food during hunger The swollen food banks are off-loaded and the food is transported to many households to meet the needs of the starving population. Saturday Lack of public funding hence increased dependability on charity donations Rationing the amount of food that is distributed due to limited resources Sunday Limited on-site storage and lack of refrigerators limit the distribution of fresh items such as milk and vegetables, fruits, eggs and meat. Most of the food offered are non-perishable, canned foods, cheese and peanut butter jars Reference Escajedo San-Epifanio, L. (2015). Challenging Food Governance Models: Analyzing the Food Citizen and the Emerging Food Constitutionalism from an EU Perspective. J Agric Environ Ethics, 28(3), 435-454. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10806-015-9543-1 Read More