The problems the food industry faces seem to have no end in sight. It often times makes you wonder — what can be done to fix this faucet with a poorly patched leak? Why does an industry regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and which is backed by such huge food companies like Nestle, Coco-Cola, Pepsi-Co, Kellogg’s and Dannon have such massive issues?
To understand these problems, one must understand its causes. For starters, consumers have been avoiding the center of stores and shopping at the perimeter of these stores. Why? One word: expense. This tactic has become a great challenge that’s weighed on traditional packaged food companies for years. Not only has this been a great issue in the food industry, but the reality of consumers drawing less focus on foods fit for dieting has, as well. Many people are seemingly motivated to purchase products they deem to be closely aligned with their health and well-being — such products are devoid of artificial ingredients, GMOs, or pesticides. This has put great pressure on major food companies to adapt to these trends.
One of the central issues is the anti-sugar movement. Due to organizations like the FDA coming out against high sugar intake, more consumers are turning away from foods that are high in sugar, particularly sodas. This movement has greatly affected major food companies such as Pepsi-Co and Coco-Cola. Still, the question remains. How can these problems be addressed and stopped?
Well, let’s give it a go. When an industry’s primary goal is to serve and protect people’s well-being, it at a point needs a person’s input on how he or she feels they need to be protected. But that’s not just it. Food manufacturers must do a better job of putting healthier products on the market. That alone would cancel out the problem of misleading customers with labels. But let’s take it a step further. It is imperative that farmers get a say in this matter. No matter what we as individuals do, the environmental influence of farming is indeed in the hands of the people who are actually doing it.
On an ethical standpoint, how can these problems be solved? How would it be managed? Who would create and regulate it?
Many of the food industry’s problems would cease to exist if farmers regulated the industry.
Farmers have the power to create markets for crops and animals raised with attention to the rights of farm-workers and the welfare of animals. Farmers have to grow what the people consume, and its costs of improvements that benefit the environment we live in should be shared amongst us all. In terms of management and creation, people should have the rights to do so. The people should all have a seat at the table to share their perspectives, engage in the food system, and construct change within it.
