Essay on "Organic Food Is Better Food? Deconstructing"
Essay 3 pages (1191 words) Sources: 0
[EXCERPT] . . . .
Organic Food is Better Food?Deconstructing a current cultural myth
Organic food, the media has counseled us, must be better for us than food cultivated by other methods. After all, we have been taught to believe that natural is better. A work colleague of mine is devoted to buying 'all organic,' and every morsel of food she brings with her to the office is organic, from the orange juice she drinks to the mustard she puts on her organic veggie burgers eaten on organic whole wheat bread. However, I remain unconvinced of the inherent value of organic products, either of their benefits to the environment or to human health. Eating a healthy diet that leaves a small carbon footprint is more important to me than simply buying organic. In other words, oranges may be good for you, but organic oranges are not necessarily 'better.'
To begin with the issue of 'organic' produce: an 'organic' orange, even though it is grown without chemicals, might be shipped in from far away. Growing crops without pesticides and artificial fertilizers can be expensive, and sometimes only very large farms can accomplish this task. It is not better for the environment if people eat fruits and vegetables shipped for long distances. Buying produce from a local farmer entails less damage to the environment, because it involves less burning of fossil fuels used in transport. It also ensures that the customer knows what the practices of the farmers are, given that he or she can talk to the individual who is selling the produce -- or, even if buying the local produce at a supermarket, the consumer at least has the confidence that the buyer at the supermarket knows the provider of 'Jersey
download full paper ⤓
Buying locally makes it easier to avoid the type of scares that occurred regarding spinach grown in California, where spinach became tainted with e.coli after being watered with liquid laden with the deadly bacteria contaminated with human waste. The spinach was organic, but grown by a large, commercial farmer. The farm may have been organic, but it was impersonal in its outlook, and had no ties to a community or sense of responsibility to the community like a local farmer. While organic produce is not supposed to be fertilized with human waste, the water was contaminated from an outside source and with no protections to guard against the infection (which could also happen with rainwater, which does not carry human waste, but may be contaminated with other harmful substances) the organic produce quickly became infected.
The spinach scare brings up another issue with organic produce -- some toxins in the environment are deadly, and certain 'unnatural' methods may be required to protect produce against these dangers to consumer health. Protecting crops from certain insects and bacteria with chemicals may be medically and economically necessary, to ensure a steady stream of produce is provided to consumers. While many chemicals are indeed harmful and should be avoided, simply because a substance is 'unnatural' does not automatically make it toxic, nor does the fact that something is 'natural' make it healthy. After all, bacteria and viruses that carry deadly diseases can be natural, and without chemical treatment they may be more difficult to eradicate from organic food. Ideally, organic food should not be exposed to already-existing harmful substances lying in the soil because of regulations as to how the organic farming must take place. But given that it is impossible to eliminate every possible bacterium from the… READ MORE
Quoted Instructions for "Organic Food Is Better Food? Deconstructing" Assignment:
General Instructions - Write a Persuasive Essay of 900 - 1,500 words to convince your reader to agree with your position on an issue that you have recently debated with a friend, co-worker, family member,or yourself. Work with your own ideas and experiences. Do not conduct any research or search outside sources for this essay.
Introduction - The opening line should catch the readers attention. The introduction engages the reader immediately in the issue, causes that person to begin pondering both sides. It ends with a clearly established claim representing your position on the issue as the correct one. Develop a controlling thesis. The thesis should be an argument or a claim-your position on an issue that has opposing viewpoints. Use of Persuasive Made - Use the appropriate persuasive methods that include specific experiences and your own thinking, creating a convincing argument that refutes the opposing side and carefully develops clear, logical support for your side. The essay must stay focused on the single issue, its tone relatively informal, authentic, and realistic. Each argument is essential to convince the reader and contains specific evidence with analysis (no generalizations). Use descriptive and narrative techniques to capture moments of intense discussion and conflicting views.
Conclusion - The last paragraph must maintain the persuasive mode as it reinforces the key arguments and convinces the reader that the essay's claim is in correct position.It cannot stray into another argument or new line of thought.
Coherence & Overall Development - The essay must be unified, cohesive, and coherent. It maintains a single, organized argument without clutter. Use appropriate transitions and/or connective discussion to guide the reader and to maintain clear focus. Each sentence and paragraph flows coherently to the next. Each paragraph must contain a controlling idea that develops the claim in persuasive fashion and each sentence works to develop fully that paragraph's controlling idea.
Grammar & Mechanics - Correctly use a variety of sentence types (compound and complex, short and long) that indicate you know when certain types of sentences work best to convey your message. The essay should contain no run-on sentences, comma splices, and no fragments.The essay must be free from grammar and usage, spelling and punctuation errors.
Length and Format - The essay must be double spaced in Times New Roman, size 12 font.The first line of each paragraph is indented by one tab. The length is 900 - 1,500 words.
How to Reference "Organic Food Is Better Food? Deconstructing" Essay in a Bibliography
“Organic Food Is Better Food? Deconstructing.” A1-TermPaper.com, 2008, https://www.a1-termpaper.com/topics/essay/organic-food-better/3094. Accessed 6 Jul 2024.
Related Essays:
Environmental Ethics Term Paper
Environmental Ethics: From Philosophy to Movement
Prior to the introduction of major legislation concerning the environment, it had been a popularly accepted notion that our utilization of the earth would… read more
Term Paper 10 pages (3604 words) Sources: 10 Topic: Environment / Conservation / Ecology
International Economic Trade Thesis
International Economic Trade -- International Trade Regulations of China
After many decades of international efforts to liberalize the global market, the forces of globalization continue to be restricted by the… read more
Thesis 7 pages (2028 words) Sources: 7 Style: APA Topic: Economics / Finance / Banking
Sat, Jul 6, 2024
If you don't see the paper you need, we will write it for you!
We can write a new, 100% unique paper!