1.

a. In class, Dr. Bronson said that we might consider John Deere as a new
Facebook - a company that trades in and makes money from the use of "big
data." What is one negative food system consequence of big data in
agriculture?
2.
b. In the film Food Inc. a LatinX family is shown buying pseudofood
instead of whole foods. How is their food insecurity related to the capitalist
nature of our food system?
c. In the film, Food Inc, the Latin family is forced to purchase fast food
due to their inability to balance work and life, coming home at 10pm and not
being able to have access to groceries, hence resorting to the cheapest and
easiest option. This falls under the categories of food insecurity and capitalism
because food is no longer consumed due to necessity, rather consumed as a
commodity, and for the sake of high demand. The profits made from the food
are what have become priority over the basic need for nutrients in the human
body. In this regard, food security holds a high significance, as it is what keeps
humans healthy and alive. It also denotes the amount of energy one has to
power through, and produce mass changes, ultimately causing evolution –
thus, food security has immediate correlation with state development.
According to statistics, currently, the world is producing about one and a half
times more food to sustain the planet’s population. The narratives that are
being shared with the public, in relation to food scarcity was produced by
corporate food companies to attain their benefits through capitalism. This
allows agricultural sectors to depict the price increase and generate maximum
amount of profit through production. As a result of food insecurity, there is
also a result of the failure of capitalism. Over production may cause wealth for
agricultural corporations, as well as shareholders, thus causing companies to
set a fixed price for the farmers cost, despite the crops produced through
agricultural decline.
3.
c. Why are genetically modified organisms (GMOs) not a properly
sociological response to the food system problem of hunger? (Try to use either
neo-Malthusianism OR technosolutionism in your answer).
d. A genetically modified organism, otherwise known as a GMO, is a plant,
animal, or other organism whose genetic makeup has been modified,
artificially, in a lab using genetic engineering and technology. This results in
the occurrence or plants, animals, bacteria, and viruses that do not present
themselves in nature. An example of this in food, would be that GMO potatoes
stay fresh for a longer period of time due to genetic modification. It is
unfortunate that the decisions of regulating GMOs and incorporating it into
food is entirely up to the biotechnology corporations. They prioritize the
maximization, standardization and industrialization of the system – of
everything.
 e. Sociologically, this does not answer the problem of hunger because this does
not provide a transparent system, as well as GMO regulation to both the
political system and the company, thus the influence of corporation still exists.
The release of the scientific information and models used to asses GMOs are
also not publicly available, as farmers identify long-term impacts of the
biotechnologies on humans.
4.
4.
d. What is an Alternative Food Initiative? Explain the concept and detail
an example of one.
e. Alternative Food Initiatives, otherwise known as AFIs, is when the
industry attempts to improve the conditions of how the food system operates.
This change typically stems from the traditional, local, and sustainable food
level of production. This typically means that farmers’ markets and community
markets/gardens are interested in reduction of the process that food goes
through from time of harvest to time of consumption.
5.
e. What is the nutritionist "healthy food discourse"? Explain, detailing an
example of one.
6.
f. Name the three coffee markets that LVC's Andrew described in his
guest lecture. Briefly explain the sociological impacts of the market that most
of the world's coffee is sourced from.
g.
7.
g. Define "foodscape" and explain why your neighbourhood foodscape, if
you live near campus, is likely to be dominated by fast food restaurants.
h. Foodscape is a newly coined term to describe the integration of an
edible garden into a landscape, known as edible landscaping. This is
integration of landscaping and farming but may also exist in an urban setting.
Food scaping may be appreciated for both the sustainability, as well as the
aesthetic pleasure that comes hand in hand with the process. Food scaping can.
Also be accepted as a way of increasing the availability to food, providing
citizens with food security. When on campus, students are usually recruited
into dorms, where they usually don’t have the means to curate a food scaping
situation for themselves, spatially. They also don’t have the time to care for the
agriculture, nor have time to harvest, cook and consume. The convenience in
having the food prepared in a short amount of time while also tasting good is
one of the main reasons university students resort to fast food chains. Statistics
show that recruitment and enrollment have gone up drastically just by adding a
few fast-food chains and restaurants within the vicinity of the university.

h. What is the food supply chain? Name two ways it was disrupted by
COVID-19.
9. The food supply chain consists of all the processes involved in the production
to the delivery of food from distributors to households. This includes the farming
process, shelving as well as consumption. Every industry has a different role in the
food supply chain – farmers, for example are responsible for plantation, harvesting
and shipping whereas management and distribution industries are responsible for the
incoming quantity of materials, storage, and delivery to consumer. After the crops
and meat are harvested, the process is passed onto the processing industry where
manufacturers and butchers are required to chop and process the meat and
vegetables, and package it. Once that’s done, the goods are sent to the grocery
stores and restaurants to be consumed by the citizens. The covid-19 Pandemic
changed everyone’s lives, by forcing employees too either stay or work from home.
This meant that there weren’t enough employees out n the farms, manufacturing
sites. And grocery stores, thus causing an interruption in the food supply chain.
Another interruption that has come from covid was the increase in the cost of living,
resulting in higher prices for the basic necessities. This has also caused a downfall in
the economy, thus less consumption, overall.
i. One of your uncles says that "cooking is a woman's job" as if this were
fact. What would you say to him in response, based upon what you have
learned in class?
10.
j. How do food labels foster distancing? (Ideally mention a few different
types of food labels in your answer).
k. Food labels act as objective information passing tools from consumer to
producer, industries and consumers, and industries and food products. They
serve as the authoritative truth providers of the food that is being sold. There
exist the mandatory labels, which outline the nutritional facts, serving sizes and
portions, daily values and calorie counts. This also includes a list of
ingredients. There also exists the voluntary food labels, that provide nutritional
claims, certifications and extravagant images and words that stray away from
certain nutrients and focus on others. This contributes to distancing because
there is huge emphasis on the symbols and romanticized imaginary. This also,
again, strays away from certain elements that should be considered, and rather
emphasizing the unessential characteristics of the product. This includes
insisting on certain nutrients over otherers and also hiding or dumbing down
certain nutritional facts. By providing the “need to know” information, the
industries are cutting consumers short of the information that they deem,
should not be of concern. Our understanding of the food and the food system is
skewed, because of this. The industries essentially have power over our
knowledge of the food and contribute to the ideologies of globalisation and
nutritionism.