Film Summary And Film Analysis: Food Inc.

“The average grocery store has 47,000 products which makes it look like there is a large variety of choice – but it is an illusion – there are only a few major companies and a few major crops involved.”(Food Inc.) In the documentary Food Inc., multiple ideas about how big industrial corporations have taken over all the aspects of the food chain industry in the US are discussed. Initially, this film made me upset. It showed me a lot about the food chain industry that I didn't know about, such as how animals are raised and treated . As I was watching it, I felt as if a thick wool was being lifted from my eyes, showing me how completely oblivious I was to this growing problem. This documentary really sheds light on the food industry as a whole,

Corn is the root of all evil in the food chain industry. Corn is in majority of the things we eat and drink, although people may not be aware of it. In the film it states, “Corn is the main component in feed ingredients whether it's chicken,hogs, cattle-- you name it. Increasingly, we're feeding the corn to the fish whether we're eating the tilapia or the farmed salmon. We're teaching fish how to eat corn. The fact that we had so much cheap corn really allowed us to drive down the price of meat. I mean, the average American is eating over 200 lbs of meat per person per year. That wouldn't be possible had we not fed them this diet of cheap grain. Since you're selling corn at below the price of production, the feedlot operator can buy corn at a fraction of what it costs to grow,so that all the animals are sucked off of all the farms in the Midwest.” (Food Inc.) Building on this the film goes on to talk about the meat industry and how because of corn they can afford to lower the price of meat. I personally think it's great that the film covers this topic because it shows people where their food comes from and how it is made. In the film it shows how corn among other things is fed to animals which diets did not in the beginning compose of corn. For example, cows are not supposed to be fed corn and a result of this is the cows getting infected with E. Coli which in turn makes humans sick, such as how

In 1950, it took 68 days to raise a chicken to full size. In 2008, the number of days reduced dramatically to 47 days. This is a result of artificial stimulants and antibodies. Farmers feed chickens corn and other chemicals to make them grow faster so they can make more money for the big companies. The farmers don't really make a profit, are put in huge amounts of debt and are threatened by big name companies if they reveal or say anything they do not approve of. The chickens are put through horrible conditions just for profit. On a positive side to that one farmer raises his animals organically. They don't eat corn like the others, they eat grass as they were made to do originally. As a result of this his food costs more and some people don't like it. This in my opinion is better than the other farms that animals are raised on.

The film goes on more to talk about how the food chain industry is affecting humans.For example, one family shared their experience about the negative impacts that hormone-infused food had on them. The dad is a diabetic and his medication takes up most of their income and they have two mouths to feed so they go to the easiest thing which is fast food. They know fast food isn't good for them but that is all they can afford. I engaged more with this topic because of the fact that I have a lot of diabetics in my family and it is