Homeless or jobless and question themselves on how they will gain their next meal. The regulations and food examination that the USDA and FDA implement are to secure the quality of food products and that they pass the law requirements. Although this results in great irony, due to the fact that the government is focused in creating healthy and nutritious food products concerned about the health of the consumer, that they forget to distribute quality food to those who can’t afford it.
For example, public schools have low funds and tend to have contracts with companies that sell sugary beverages and starchy artificial snacks, they usually have pouring right contracts. This results harmful in children’s health, over the years they develop obesity, diabetes, heart disease, or high cholesterol, usually the ones affected are children that belong to a minority group, those who can’t afford a healthy meal in school and have to purchase vending machine snacks.
In the book Food Politics, the author implicates, “Why give your child [these]… when you can always obtain… pure fruit juices obtained direct from the lime, the berry, the orange or lemon? ” (Nestle, 207). This issue connects with the distribution in food products from minorities, it denotes the repercussions that low income households transmit onto their children’s health and dietary options. Food deserts are spreading like a disease into areas that have limited access to nutritious food.
The distribution in food retailers play a significant role in the sale of food products, the majority of these food companies only seem to care is the revenue they bring to their company and not the damage they leave behind to their clients. The author Thomas W. Hertel, states the relationship of poverty and the determinants of food security mentions, “The absolute poverty measure used in international comparisons seeks to do this by factoring in the amount of income required to meet not only the minimal level of food consumption, but also other subsistence requirements.
The socioeconomic status and geographic location status of minorities is an important factor that determines the disadvantage of their dietary intake. Food distribution systems in the United States produce sufficient food to feed an entire population, but although there is still struggle to feed the entire nation with healthy fresh produce. The unequal distribution of food supply and resources is causing a rise in food prices, families who gain a higher or decent income usually spend half it on groceries.
Having more revenue means more accessibility to organic fresh produce, the demands in quality food goes up because it is at the reach of families that can afford it. Once the demand of food goes up prices start to rise due to the lands irrigation, the transportation of perishables to food markets, and other expenses that farmers must make in order to increase the growth of the crops. This sets an imbalance in the market system, low income families cannot be affording quality products yet they spend the majority of their revenue on food.
In the article, “Social and Economic Effects of the U. S. Food System,” it divides into three classifications the effect of food distribution, “1) people involved directly in agricultural food production (e. g. , farmers); (2) people involved in the rest of the food system (e. g. , processing, manufacturing, food service, and retailing); and (3) consumers” (Nesheim, Oria, Tsai Yih). The U. S. s trying to find reliable methods to make healthy food accessible to low income families and minorities, they started establishing community gardens.
Many cities are being given the option to plant gardens and create programs where they promote programs to create their own garden and involve the community as a whole and integrate minority groups to socialize and aware themselves of the situation. Community gardens are increasing their food security to make healthy and fresh food available to low income minorities and families.
For example the article, “Community Gardens in Knoxville,” state the importance of community gardens, “Throughout the course of these movements, community gardens have met various needs for communities, serving a wide array of purposes such as providing poor relief, increasing food supplies, beautifying urban landscapes and promoting values of self-reliance (Rateike). By integrating community gardens it is socially integrating minorities and offering them benefits, it helps them gain awareness on how to balance a healthy diet.
It community gardens keep extending throughout the country little by little food will become accessible to minorities and hunger will a problem of the past. If minorities decide to become more involved in social programs that promote distribution of food supplies and become social activists for food justice, it will help to gain equality amongst them. Ethnic minorities have been victims of an unjust food global system where they get unequal access to food supplies and must find other resources to survive.
The author Flaminia Paddeu states in her article, “Food justice activists advocated for alternative food systems (Deverre & Lamine, 2010) in the United States as well as in some other countries, including the development of urban agriculture in inner cities. ” Food insecurity and the low distribution of resources for African American and Mexican communities have been growing throughout the years due to their low income that is below the poverty line.
The majority of minorities fail to be food secure and are unable to purchase basic foods that are essential for every day, and fail to nurture their bodies having a negative shift in their health. In the article, “Economics of fairness within the food supply chain,” assert the various economic variable for the food supply distribution, “Practically the food supply chain accounts for 5 % of EU value added and 7 % of employment” (Blizkovsky, Berendes).
It connects the food supply economically and agriculturally, it influences the industries distribution sector and the global food supply trade. Forming distinct distributions of food supply it helps the progression of the trading system and combating hunger between low income minority families. It is unfair for minorities to not have access to healthy fresh grown food. Living in such a culturally diverse country such as the United States, there should not be minority groups struggling for food supplies.
The government should create aid programs that give low income groups the opportunity to purchase fresh healthy vegetables and fruits instead of purchasing fat and starchy preserved food items. Breaking social and economic barriers and implementing programs that promote community gardens and healthy eating awareness can stop the unequal food distribution in low income minorities. Individuals would enjoy eating healthy freshly grown perishables and leave behind a diet high in fats, starches, high fructose corn syrup, and artificial substances.
This topic discussed relates to food justice due to the constant battle that minorities face every day to obtain a healthy meal, the discrimination they undergo for having low income and not being able to afford fresh produce. It addresses the food security issues on a unjust food system. By meeting the low income food needs of minorities hunger can end and the health of those individuals could get better over time, the most important factor is that reliable and sustainable food systems can be created.
The regulation of supermarkets and programs connects to food justice to have a reliable system in where citizens can rely to obtain their food sources. The creation of community gardens helps to create a social and political awareness of changing the agriculture process and food transportation to prevent the rise of food prices. Having a sustainable food production and equal distribution creates a diverse market and helps to bring justice for low income minorities in helping them acquire the food products that are essential and the integration of equality in food accessibility.
