From Farm to Fork: Our Toxic Food System

                                         Courtesy of ww.visualnews.com by Neil Spencer

Before I became a housewife, I seriously do not care much about nutrients and food. As long as it is affordable and feeds my stomach, the food is fine with me. Getting married and having to have to cook for my husband, I was forced to learn about how food influences our health. Since, I will be cooking, I realized I need to know the names of vegetables, meat and other food products. Blessed with a health-freak mother, and health-concern mother-in-law, I started learning about the importance of why knowing what we put inside our mouth is crucial. One things leads to another, and before I know it, my knowledge on vegetables and meat started to improve. With the information I have, during grocery shopping, I started to nose around those vegetables packages, questioning the truth behind the package.

Ministry of  Agriculture Japan is probably best known for their strict restrictions on corporate farming. Corporate farming is a large-scale agricultural operation that is overseen by a company. And when a company comes into the picture, it means business. And when it means business, it means profits.The cheapest and quickest way to gain agricultural profits are achieved by injecting growth hormones to the fruits, vegetables, and animals. I have looked on several websites and Japan TV news coverage and are convinced that Japan does not support corporate farming. However, not all countries are as strict as Japan when it comes to agricultural business, especially America. Here are some spine-chilling facts every Americans should know(Science News) in bullet points:

1.  80 percent of all US feedlot cattle are injected with hormones.( In 1993, the FDA approved recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH), a synthetic cow hormone that spurs milk production)
2. A study of cows treated with melengestrol acetate (one of the artificial growth hormones approved for use in the US) revealed that residues of this hormone were traceable in soil up to 195 days after being administered to the animals.  
3. While the average dairy cow produced almost 5,300 pounds of milk a year in 1950,  today, the average is more than 20,000 pounds.

Fruits, vegetables and poultries are supposed to be our friends, not out enemies.The Food and Drug Administration should hold responsibilities for the American consumers health and concern, not treat agricultural business to their own advantages. The vicious cycle will only continue to kill consumers until the rBGH law is banned. After reading this post, hopefully, one will be more aware and wise in choosing what to put inside their mouth. Remember making an effort to question where and how the food is comes from will save your life.