Starting Your Own Food Hubs

Nutritional organic food is not affordable for Americans compared to mass produced processed food controlled by large corporations. The cost is “is a major determinant of food choice, and healthful foods generally cost more than unhealthful foods in the United States” (Wang). There is a real problem is with the farming industry, where it used to be a level playing field with many competitors, but is now is controlled by a few major corporations. For example, big companies using low doses of antibiotics to increase production the poultry sector alone “control a lot of the food industry. 5 companies control 75% of the US market for chicken” (Lee Sally). In order to keep their dominance in the agriculture market big companies use genetically modified

Food hubs are businesses or organizations that help small to midsize farmers reach “institutional buyers (restaurants, hospitals, schools, etc) and end consumers” (Rogers). Food hubs give small to midsize farmer the opportunity to focus on producing instead of marketing and distribution. A low-cost alternative for farmers who find they may have too much produce for a farmers’ market but not enough to supply a grocery chain or vice versa. There are a variety of successful food hubs in the United State to model one specific for your

Corporation should not be allowed to have monopoly via patents in the United States or for that matter world. Food is a basic necessity for everyone and should not be solely controlled by a few large corporations. “As the seed is basic to the whole food system” (Adhikari), farmers should have the right to keep their own seeds to improve upon, trade and replant as they so desire. If we don’t do something soon corporations are going to continue to dominate the food chain, control what we eat and dictate how much we pay for it. Large companies are focusing on one commodity at a time and dominating the market with their patents, an example of this is how “Monsanto’s Roundup Ready seeds accounted for 93–94% of US soybean production in 2012” (Shannon Kerry L.). The alarming problem here is that it is the pesticide producers who own the seed