Food Inc. Critical Thought Questions

Food, Inc

Fast Food to All Food

1.     What were the advantages of the McDonalds restaurant switching to an assembly-line type operation?

2.     About 80% of the beef supply is controlled by only four companies.  List them.

3.     How are the names of brands and labels placed on meat and dairy products in the supermarket misleading?

4.     List two ways that chickens are physically different now than in the 1950s, before the green revolution.

5.     Vince Edwards, the chicken grower working for Tyson, was not given permission to allow the filmmakers inside his chicken coops.  Speculate to the reason for this, after watching the segment with Carole Morison, the Purdue grower.

6.     What are some of the health issues faced by the chickens as a result of their accelerated growth and confined living conditions?  What does Carole do to try to mitigate these health problems?

7.     Explain why farmers are economically bound to the large meat companies.

A CORNucopia of Choices

8.     About 30% of the United States land mass is used to grow corn.  Explain the role that government policy plays in making corn such a dominant crop.

9.     Why would the large meat suppliers be interested in lobbying the government for subsidies for corn?

10.  List three products that are partially made of corn.

11.  What is a CAFO?

12.  Cattle and other ruminants have evolved to eat grass.  What problem has emerged as a result of feeding corn to cattle instead?

Unintended Consequences

13.  There has been a noticeable increase in the frequency of food recalls in the last several years.  Describe how both the industrialized food system and the government regulatory agencies are behind this problem.

14.  Kevin Kowalcyk died in 2001 of hemolytic-uremic syndrome caused by eating ground beef contaminated with E. coli O157:H7.  What regulatory shortcomings that contributed to his death are his mom working to raise awareness of?

15.  What change would Kevin’s Law, if passed, make to the meat processing industry?

16.  What additive is used in some meat fillers to prevent E. coli contamination?

The Dollar Menu

17.  What kinds of foods are the cheapest?  Why?

18.  Explain how obesity, diabetes, and poverty are linked.

19.  What is the expected rate of Type II Diabetes in people born after the year 2000?  In minorities?

In The Grass

20.  According to the USDA, Joel Salatin’s farm is “unsanitary.”  What was the basis of this opinion?  What were the results of the bacterial contamination tests that were performed as comparison?

21.  How many hogs are slaughtered per year in the Smithfield processing plant in Tar Heel, NC?

22.  Where do the large meat packing plants get most of their workers?

Hidden Costs

23.  How is the cheap cost of industrial food “dishonest” or misleading?

24.  Many of the smaller companies that produced organic and healthier foods have been acquired by larger conglomerate-type companies.  Organic food produces are becoming available in places like Wal-Mart.  Explain whether this is a good or bad thing.

From Seed to the Supermarket

25.  What is Roundup, and what are Roundup-Ready soybeans?

26.  Since the Roundup-Ready crop seeds are patented by Monsanto, what happens when a farmer attempts to save his seeds at the end of the season?

27.  If pollen from a GMO field blows into and pollinates a non-GMO field, does Monsanto have a legal claim?

The Veil

28.  There has been little debate over the idea of patenting and controlling specific strains of food crops.  What does the documentary attribute this to?

29.  What are “Veggie Libel” laws?

Shocks to the System

30.  What kind of changes can have huge effects on the food system?

31.  Explain how consumers can “vote with their wallet” on issues raised in this documentary.

Post-Movie Discussion

During the documentary, the farmer Joel Salatin said,

“If we put glass walls on all the mega-processing facilities, we would have a different food system in this country.”

What does he mean by this?  Do you think this is an accurate statement?  What specific changes do you think would happen if there was a greater amount of transparency within our food system?

Mitochondria Factory

Cell Factory Poster 

**To demonstrate an understanding of how energy in your body is developed and why nutrition plays such an important role.  

Cell Factory Poster
An analogy
According to Webster an analogy means; similar in some ways, otherwise unlike.
According to Longmans an analogy means; something that seems similar in two situations or processes.
For example we can make an analogy between the brain and a computer.
In biology that means similarity in function (job)
But not in origin or structure (how it appears)

JUST like the cell produces proteins, factories work to produce various products. Certain areas in a factory perform  a specific function and the people who run the factory specific jobs. Organelles can be compared to a factory.

STEP 1: NAME AND PRODUCT

 Decide What your factory will produce and what you will call  (name) your factory

STEP 2: THE LABELING PROCESS

You will develop a small poster of the "factory" as it relates to mitochondria.  You will choose a “type” of factory to design. You will need to label specific areas of the factory according to the “work” performed in that area of the factory. Then you will label the organelle that most “fits” that description . You must JUSTIFY or explain WHY you chose that organelle to represent that area of the factory. You may use a simile format but you will still need to JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWER! FOR EXAMPLE:  

The engine room is like the Mitochondria of the cell because ……..OR

The mitochondria is to the energy producer of the cell as the engine room is to this car factory because it provides the power for the whole factory. BUT DON’T STOP THERE!

Explain (BOTH) what the real organelle’s function in the cell is and how that corresponds or “syncs” to the area in your factory.
FOR EXAMPLE:
**The mitochondria (powerhouse) of a cell corresponds to the “engine room” of this factory because the mitochondria is a double membrane organelle that produces the cells ATP (energy) just like this shoe factory has a “power room” where all the power comes from. The power room in this factory provides all the power and electricity for the functioning of the factory.

So remember!

1.     Explain what your factory will be produce.

2.     Choose a name or topic for the poster. Topics can include:
·         Basketball Factory, Nike Factory, Amusement Park, School, Mall, Vehicles, Ecosystems, The Navy etc… Let your imagination soar.

3.     Draw and label a factory whose parts/rooms/areas correspond and function similarly in a cell.

4.    Explain why certain foods (proteins for example) are important in this process.  




Cell Analogy Project       
Name:_______________________    Date: ___________Period: _______

 

Scoring Rubric 

Assign points for each category, then add up the total points. There are 40 points possible.

Category	10 pts	8 pts	6 pts	4 pts	Enter Points	Mrs. R
Graphics	All graphics are related to the topic, super attractive Includes neat labels	All graphics are related to the topic and attractive Nice labeling	All graphics are related to the topic. Okay looking Labels included	Some graphics do not relate to topic. Distractingly messy
Content	At least 8 organelles are displayed on the poster , shows great understanding of the analogy	7-6 organelles are displayed on the poster. Shows knowledge of the analogy	5-4 organelles are displayed on the poster. Shows a llittle knowledge of the analogy	Less than 4 organelles are displayed on the poster or model. Does not understand the analogy
One sentence analogy comparing organelles to factory parts	8 detailed analogies clearly written in complete, correct form	8 analogies written in complete , correct form.	6-7 analogies are written in complete. Correct form.	4 or less analogies are written or analogies are not written in complete sentences.
Attractiveness	The poster or model is exceptionally attractive in terms of design, layout, creativity, and neatness.	The poster or model is attractive in terms of design, layout and neatness.	The poster or model is acceptably attractive though it may be a bit messy.	The poster or model is distractingly messy or very poorly designed. Its layout distracts from the content of the project.