Community Farm Observation Essay

Within the vast expanse of my snack emporium, most of the foods I harbor in my dorm and tend to eat at the dining halls are all foods that could be considered apart of the industrial culture. Almost all of the foods I eat are processed, pre-prepared, and easy to access. Despite having worked on a community farm and experienced the intimacy of the relationship between a farmer and their farm, I still manage to fall for the false-image of consumerism. As a child, it wasn’t unfamiliar to see both my parents working vigorously to pay for the bills. We had little money to spend outside of that, and so when it came for us to eat, my parents often chose the affordable, quick, and easy-to-make option. This seems to have transferred onto me, due to

I participated in the planting and gathering of foods, and was able to be apart of the relationship of a community that cares for each other and exchanges good. When you are apart of the process that cares and creates food, you gain pleasure in knowing what and how your food is made. The foods there had a freshness that could not be matched by any grocery store that claims to have fresh foods. The carrots were crisp and earthy, the chard was flavorful and crunchy, the peaches were savory, and the strawberries were sweet and tart. I grew appreciative of foods due to my time on the farm and of the work I put into taking care of those plants. You understand every step and detail that goes into tending for these plants and everything that goes into growing it. I grew more aware of the food I was putting in my mouth, and grew comforted in knowing the processes in which the foods I ate were prepared. In the time span that I worked on the farm, I made small steps towards being careful with what I chose to eat. “The simple act of making healthier food choices ripples out into an entire shift towards a more natural, organic lifestyle” (Dicum, pg.1). In The Pleasures Of Eating, it also further emphasizes this concept. “The knowledge of good health of the garden

Growing up in an environment where you are constantly surrounded by media influenced by food companies like McDonald's, you are bound to reluctantly base your idealities and mindset of foods from what you are exposed to. In my situation, I grew up in a family where we often bought pre-prepared foods like fast-food or microwaveable dinners because it was quick and affordable. It is what influenced me at an early age. Even now, I still buy potato chips from time to time. However, after I participated in what seems to be an unfamiliar process of participating in the preparation of food on a farm, I began to understand the importance of eating fresh, organic foods. Processed foods are not only harmful for you, but for the environment. The process which is used to create a mass of products in a small amount of time damages our planet. An example is the mass production of cattle, a big contributor of pollution, and the industrial farming of plants. Thousands of cattle are squished together to make room for more and kept in terrible conditions. Thousands of plants are produced quickly with chemicals sprayed onto them to encourage quickening its operations. Not only is the process of obtaining these foods damaging the environment,