Rhetorical Appeals In Food Inc

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Food is the fuel for humans, supplying energy and nutrients to get them throughout the day. But how has the way of getting food changed as a result of industrialization? Consider the tomato; it is ripe, farm fresh, and transformable to any desired recipe. However, today’s tomatoes are grown in places that consumers would probably not be able to locate on a map, ripened with assistance of ethylene gas, and picked while they are green. The process of obtaining food has undoubtedly changed. The American documentary film, Food, Inc. creates a rhetorical, ceremonial argument that is to anger and disgust consumers that are most prominently of the lower and middle classes by showing them the horrors of the present day industrial food system that tend …show more content…

In the segment called Unintended Consequences, Patricia Buck and her daughter Barbara Kowalcyk, who are food safety advocates, visit Washington, D.C. to speak with Diana DeGette, a representative from Colorado, in order to spread concern for E.Coli and get support for Kevin’s Law, a bill that has been in circulation to pass through Congress in remembrance of her son’s death. This example shows that the documentary aims to connect with the consumers to show the risks they should fear as they are at the will of the companies. Kowalcyk’s account also supports the main argument that the documentary is trying to convey, which is that factories are more unsanitary than before. To support their case, the documentary visits Beef Products Inc.(BPI) in Nebraska and speaks with Eldon Roth, the founder of BPI, to uncover the conditions of some of his different beef factories. According to Roth, his factories are ones that are ahead of normal standards from a food safety standpoint. However, even though E. Coli is being prevented, the beef is glossed with ammonia and other chemicals. This establishes credibility because it relates to people within the audience who may be worried about the processes that foods go through. These chemical processes can affect the healthiness of the beef producers, and in Maria Andrea Gonzalez’s case, the healthiness of food has changed her family. Due to the fact that healthy food is oftentimes more expensive than massively produced unhealthy food, Gonzalez's family often opts for cheeseburgers instead of a head of lettuce at the supermarket in the segment, The Dollar Menu. This is a common interest for many families because of the convenience that fast food brings. In addition, Gonzalez’s account shows the consumer