Industrial Food is a reference to foods grown and produced that rely on an industrialized system of production.
The modern food system is a product of the forces inherent in free-market capitalism. Decisions on where to invest in technological research and where to apply its fruits have been guided by the drive for ever greater efficiency, productivity, and profit.
The result has been a long, steady trend toward greater abundance. …The steady march of higher yields was achieved by using large quantities of fertilizers and pesticides, as well as by discarding local crop varieties that were deemed unfavorable. Farmland became concentrated in the hands of a few large players. …In the same period, the proportion of the US workforce employed in agriculture shrank from slightly over 40% to around 2%. Supply chains have continued to be optimized for speed, reduced costs, and increased returns on investment. …Consumers have been mostly happy to enjoy the increases in convenience that have come with these trends, but there has also been a backlash. Products that are distributed globally can come across as soulless, removed from local culinary tradition and cultural contexts. …As a reaction, more affluent eaters now look for “authenticity” and turn to food as an arena in which to declare their identity. …Such attitudes fail to acknowledge the obvious: the availability, accessibility, and affordability of Industrial Food has been a major force in reducing food insecurity around the world.
—MIT Technology Review, “Technology can help us feed the world, if we look beyond profit: Powerful technologies like genetic modification aren’t the enemy of a healthy, sustainable food system.“
Technology has completely transformed the global food supply system, yet still hasn’t brought an end to hunger. For that to happen, the choices we need to make are political, not technological.
Technology can help us feed the world, if we look beyond profit Read More