How much does eating locally-produced food help the climate problem? What are the other potential environmental and social benefits of eating locally-grown/produced food? Do you have a food garden in your school or at home? If not, do you want one?
Home Grown >
"Factory Farms"
By having your own garden, you can ensure that you know what is going into it. When buying food from big-time farmers and companies, you don't know what chemicals they put in. For example, according to Pollan in "The Omnivore's Dilemna", he notes that “I asked the feedlot manager why they didn't just spray the liquefied manure on neighboring farms. The farmers don't want it, he explained. The nitrogen and phosphorus levels are so high that spraying the crops would kill them" ("The Omnivore's Dilemma") This shows how much chemicals we use on our plants alone; even though some of these chemicals are necessary for our existence, too much of them can have deadly results, such as killing crops. If you have your own garden, you can ensure that everything grown has a regulated amount of everything it needs to grow. When I was little, I was set on owning my own garden; I tried planting some seeds, but sadly, nothing grew. However, now that I understand how growing things works, my grandma and I can start a garden! My grandma loves to garden, and she has her own set of plants in the backyard.
Source: Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.
In relation to growing/ purchasing organic vegetables, consuming humanely raised meat and poultry is much better for the environment. Factory Farms that produce meat have devastating impacts on the environment. Sadly, about 99% of farm animals in the United States are raised in factory farms. The conditions in these farms are absolutely deplorable. The animals experience overcrowding, neglect, sickness, and a generally unsanitary environment. Farms that are not properly maintained are breeding grounds for diseases such as salmonella and e. coli that can be passed on to humans through the consumption of these animals. Furthermore, the excessive waste produced by these factory farms is polluting our water, air, and land. For these reasons, we should eat organic, free range, humanely produced meat, poultry, and dairy products.