Thesis Statement

Despite current efforts together with strategies aimed at achieving global food adequacy, food as presently constituted has had significant effect on the wellbeing of people and indeed the planet. The current composition of the food consumed today has resulted in an increase in various nutrition related health problems such as an increased occurrence of cases of obesity, diabetes and different cancers just to mention a few. This research will explore issues concerning food safety within this context. Researchers have credited this increase in the food consumed currently.

Introduction

Feeding has driven the advancement of civilizations since inception. There is no argument in the fact that that human beings have to eat in order to enhance existence (Ballard, 2012). Food in this regard provides them essential nutrients necessary for growth, reproduction as well as energy provision to support life. With evolution, the type of food in addition to the eating, habits among humans has changed strongly. Food represents the leading human basic need (Godfray & Beddington, 2010).

The essence of this research exercise is to seek to understand that changes that have occurred in various changes in food over the years within the from a food safety perspectives thus presenting a acceptable case for “What’s in Our Food?”

1. Argument: History of food

Kenneth (2000), in his book “The Cambridge world history of food 2”, gives a detailed history of food in the world. He portrays first human as foragers, who later developed into hunters and gatherers. As foragers, the main food was comprised of leaves and fruits that grew naturally. Increased competition for forage pushed early man to adapt to prevailing circumstances explaining the advancement into a gatherer-a rank where food was readily available and widely distributed and competition nearly (Kenneth, 2000).

Today, the food processing sector has developed creative ways to generate and produce most of the foods in the globe, primarily through chemical additives to ensure improved yields, greater resistance of diseases and pests and prolonged existence as a result of a number of factors (Godfray & Beddington, 2010). Such food processing techniques are both constructive and negative. Research on the topic further indicates considerable agreement among experts in that such additives or agents are principal causal factors of different ailments key among them some forms of cancer, hypertension, and obesity among others  (David, 2016).

Further, increases in global population have influenced the development of intensive food production in large scale and development of different forms of the same to address the resultant demand pressures (Schneidera & Havlík, 2011). These developments have also informed the creation of resourceful methods for producing food over the centuries confirming that efforts aimed at ensuring food security as well as safety is not restricted to the current century. However, the methods have varied with time include the use of scientist and infact artificial means if improving production as well processing given the historical significance food has played in the advancement of populations (Godfray & Beddington, 2010). The overriding argument is predicated on the assertion that current techniques are the only solution to increased food demand given the dynamic nature of population and climatic conditions hence the need for artificial food.

1. Impact of population growth on food supply and food production

The human population in the world has grown drastically in the last century with significant impacts on food supply in a number of ways. To begin with, population growth has led to over exploitation of resources and pollution of environment in attempt to cater for the various needs of the population. This has resulted in global warming responsible for climate change due to depletion of the ozone layer greenhouse gases from increased industrial fossil fuel usage. Global warming together with the resulting exceptional changes in overall climatic conditions has in regards to prolonged draughts thereby informing the current techniques employed to increase food availability (Godfray & Beddington, 2010). This has informed the significant production and use of artificial foods in the modern age.

However, it must be noted that artificial foods trace their origin to the 19^th century 1800used to feed infants food as invented by Henri Nestle in 1867  (Ballard, 2012). This confirms the suggestion that the need for better processing methods that allowed people to produce more food using less resources is not a recent development but the reasons are clearly dissimilar.

Secondly, exponential population explosions over the years have led to an increase in demand for food in the world. This increased demand has influenced intensification of land use to the greatest extent. This has  resulted in exhaustion of land resources degradation over time and consequently a decline in food production due to nonstop production withut allowing land an opportunity to regenerate its ability to provide food (Schneidera & Havlík, 2011).

Based on these observations, scientist have developed measures and continuously pushed for different approaches to tackling this problem. The introduction of new food production as well as breeding methods such as hybrid crops and animals in addition to the controversial genetically modified organisms; greenhouses and hydroponics; and application of different chemicals to curb diseases and parasites- has increased capacity to produce food thus enhancing food security on the one hand but the health implications on humans and animals alike are grave and masked by misconceptions.

Finally, increase in global population is responsible for substantial reduction of agriculturally-productive in order to provide settlement to the extra numbers notes Sassen, (2009). This practice has further motivated an already dismal situation leading to thoughtful the advancements in biotechnology especially in regards to GMOs largely seen as the ultimate solution to food shortages. The artificially-generated growth elements applied in this regard imitate and accelerate actions of natural hormones responsible for growth (Kenneth, 2000).

Research on the effects of these substances is still inconclusive as many experts and the general public expressing concern and hesitation as to what current food contains and the effects of food safety and therefore health. Hormones such as estrogen and testosterone used in animal production to speed weight gains have however been shown to result in ovarian cysts and breast enlargement which are all precursors of cancer (David, 2016).

Additionally, artificial sweeteners are a common ingredient in many foods due to the small amounts required to achieve the same effect as natural sugar and as such, there is concern regarding its role in causing cancer among consumers due to it synthetic nature. In this regard, the  The National Cancer Association (2016) note that carcinogenicity studies do not indicate a clear link between artificial sweeteners and cancer among humans.  In regards to diabetes,  Stanford Medicine (2013) found a direct connection between sugar and diabetes where different epidemiological studies established that indeed too much sugar consumption and not the resultant obesioty can result in diabetes. In their conclusion, the reserachers note that increased sugar levels xin the food supply available to a  particular population led to elevated diabetes rates, autonomous of obesity prevalence.  Experimental data from lab animals indicates a strong correlation between food especially high-fat diets and weakened insulin action leding to Type 2-daibetes (Marshall & Bessesen, 2002).

In conclusion man has evolved from being a forager feeding on wild, naturally growing leaves and fruits, to a hunter and gatherer consuming wild fruits, nuts, leaves, tubers and wild animals, to an intensive farmer hybrid growing crops through irrigation and raring animals in domestically.  This suggests that changes in the food available for human as well as animal consumption have been driven by the need to ensure food security in terms of scarcity and effects on general wellbeing. Some of the developing techniques from these transformations have however increased concerns in regards to the composition of food and their implications to the health of humans and animals alike.

1. Counter argument

The argument advanced in this submission in regards to improving food safety and availability through artificial means largely disregards potential risks on wellbeing. While the ability  of these approaches are not in question in terms of achieving sustainable supplies of food, consumers are justified in seeking to know what products (natural and artificial), food produced and processed through such means contains and the associated risks. This argument is hinged on an erroneous assumption in that contemporary production methods are the best means of guaranteeing food safety by using lesser resources thereby reducing overreliance on land. While this is true, those pushing this perception seem aloof to the fact that the changes that have informed current trends are primarily the result of varying climatic changes caused by human activity (Sassen, 2009). This should be the focus of any initiative aimed at addressing the issue and as such, artificial production as well as processing methods should only be applied as supplement in instances where there is sufficient evidence to prove that they are not harmful.

Moreover, the arguments herein effectively ignore or else overlook the effects constituents of modern foods as well as method of food production on health due to the huge monetary profits generated by the food industry. In recent terms, the term greenwashing has emerged a critical marketing approach applied by different firms aimed at increasing sales. Greenwashing is refers to practices employed by corporation in making a particular product and in this case as green and therefore safe for consumption while in reality such products have been developed artificially using chemical agents whose benefits to wellbeing cannot be verified (Godfray & Beddington, 2010).

1. Rebuttal

It must be noted that while the composition of current food is unknown, and climate change continues to influence availability of food, this counter argument does not reflect the reality of the problem as presently constituted. It is in this regard misplaced to a certain extent in that one cannot simply apply a blanket assumption that modern food productions as well as processing techniques indicate serious ramifications on the health of man and animals within the global context. Advances made in this field are indeed capable of addressing the problem sufficiently but it must be understood that most of these effects on health are not proven as yet as they largely rely on theoretical approaches to realize this connection

For instance, medical experts contend that GMOs contain organism capable of causing cancers on the one hand, but fail to demonstrate a clear association between the two (Ballard, 2012). The focus should therefore be on establishing these claims as climate change will continue influence food safety hence the need for effective and timely interventions based upon on the need to safeguard health and food safety.

Conclusion

As previously stated, current efforts together with strategies aimed at realizing global food sufficiency notwithstanding, food as currently constituted has significant impacts on the wellbeing of people. The current composition of the food consumed today has been associated with an increase in various nutrition related health problems such as an increased occurrence of cases of obesity, and diabetes. Food in this regards can be used to save lives if concerted efforts are made to develop proven techniques for improving food production given that they do not cause harm to consumers. It is therefore important to re-examine the composition of food and their effects on wellbeing together with the use of relevant regulatory tools to ensure consumers know what they are consuming and the implication.

References

Ballard, C. (2012). Is Our Food Safe? Britannica Digital Learning. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=dV1zCQAAQBAJ&pg=PT1&dq=Is+Our+Food+Safe%3F+Britannica+Digital+Learning.&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Is%20Our%20Food%20Safe%3F%20Britannica%20Digital%20Learning.&f=false

Godfray, H. C., & Beddington, J. R. (2010). Food Security: The Challenge of Feeding 9 Billion People. Science, 327( 5967), 812-818. Retrieved from http://science.sciencemag.org/content/327/5967/812

Kenneth, F. (2000). The Cambridge world history of food. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=Vr2qnK_QOuAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Kenneth,+F.+%282000%29.+The+Cambridge+world+history+of+food&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Kenneth%2C%20F.%20%282000%29.%20The%20Cambridge%20world%20history%20of%20food&f=false

Sassen, S. (2009). Human Settlement Development. New York, NY: Cengage Learning. Retrieved from https://books.google.co.ke/books?id=5JxpCwAAQBAJ&pg=PP5&dq=Human+Settlement+Development&hl=en&sa=X&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=Human%20Settlement%20Development&f=false

Schneidera, U. A., & Havlík, P. (2011). Impacts of population growth, economic development, and technical change on global food production and consumption. Agriculture Systems. Agricultural Systems, 104(2), 204–215. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/227411143_Impacts_of_population_growth_economic_development_and_technical_change_on_global_food_production_and_consumption

Marshall, J. A., & Bessesen, D. H. (2002). Dietary Fat and the Development of Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes Care , 25 (3), 620-622.

Stanford Medicine. (2013). Study finds direct link between sugar and diabetes. Retrieved February 12th, 2016, from Stanford Medicine: http://stanfordmedicine.org/communitynews/2013spring/sugar.html

The National Cancer Association. (2016). Artificial Sweeteners and Cancer. Retrieved February 12th, 2016, from The National Cancer Association: http://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/artificial-sweeteners-fact-sheet

David, W. (2016, February 6th). Frequently Asked questions on Playing Chicken:Avoiding Arsenic in Your Meat. Minneapolis: Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policies. Retrieved from IATP: http://www.iatp-web.us/iatp/files/421_2_80533.pdf