Once the UK is outside the EU, its food industry will need to factor in time for longer inspections of food imports at its borders, and build the necessary infrastructure to conduct these checks. This may, in fact, be their biggest feat. Recently, food movement heroes like Michael Pollan and Alice Waters have brought debates about our food system to mainstream America. Expansion of such testing could increase expenses for meat suppliers and packagers, thereby affecting their bottom lines. We need a workers’ movement—including workers in every segment of the food chain, from farm workers toiling in the fields, to meat plant workers, to McDonald’s employees—that demands a living wage. When you deal with political factors affecting the food industry, think of ways you can turn it to your advantage. And what can we do about it? The political factors affecting fast food industry can vary from country to country. It’s been unable to produce real and radical alternatives, instead catering to the logic of consumerism and the marketplace through its insistence on buying our way to a better food system—or, as the catchphrase goes, “Changing the world, one meal at a time.” This has played perfectly into the logic of industrial food and has resulted in an ever- growing, two-tiered food system. There are regulations related to wages, hygiene and food quality that need to be complied with. The industrial food corporations stay one step ahead of the food movement, absorbing its language into the corporate food model and utilizing huge marketing budgets to obfuscate the truth. Another corporation with broad reach and control over the foods we eat is Cargill, the largest privately held corporation in the nation, owning Cargill Pork and Cargill Beef. Political Influence. Despite the enormity of these companies and the lack of concern they show for our environment and our health, the food industry and its players have been successful at framing any attack on industrial practices as elitist and anti-American. These corporations also have broad reach into our government and lobby for policies and regulations that benefit large-scale production that turns the growth and production of food into a business model based strictly on profit without regard for health or environmental concerns. Here are the Political factors impacting the food industry: Wide Regulation. Lobbying in any industry can turn out to be a negative thing for the consumer. Dean has pushed to lower organic standards for years and found success and profitability through Walmart—the number one seller of “organic” milk in the country. As Pollan writes in his bestselling In Defense of Food, “Not everyone can afford to eat high-quality food in America, and this is sahmeful; however, those of us who can, should.”. Food industry and political influences on American nutrition. It also probably won’t be a good idea to openly declare your political affiliations as a restaurant or even as a restaurant owner. Nothing about food safety takes place in a political vacuum. Food Politics is a book that deserves to change national and international attitudes, as Carson's Silent Spring did in the 1960s. The food industry [has framed] any attack on industrial practices as elitist and anti- American. Food industry influence on the dietary guidelines process, food and agricultural policy was ranked among the top five political factors under both ranking systems, and commodity organizations were the second most important external social factor under ordinal ranking. She also studied business in college. The environmental consequences of industrial agriculture negatively impact our health in multiple ways. Take, for example, what famed Chez Panisse chef and sustainable food advocate Alice Waters had to say on the subject in a 60 Minutes interview from 2009: “We make decisions every day about what we’re going to eat and some people want to buy Nike shoes, two pairs, and other people want to eat Bronx grapes and nourish themselves. But any reaction that looks like a ‘cheap food’ policy could cost all of us dear in terms of job losses, food standards, NHS spending, and competitiveness in high calibre international food markets. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! Many workers in the food system live at or below the poverty level and can only afford to eat the industrial foods that harm them. Many of the underlying is available, structural inequities that exist within our exploited working class. Below is a summary of political influence by the food industry in Australia in two areas – the Senate inquiry into the Obesity Epidemic in Australia in 2018; and the introduction of Health Star Rating System in 2014. Because there is no real attempt at the Federal level to monitor and measure actual hunger, food security as a term has supplanted hunger in the public space. This pits upper-class New Yorkers or Californians and their food sensibilities against a “real” American one that favors “normal” fast food and junk food in schools and stores without any interference from the govern- ment. It is also largely a distribution channel for products grown or raised by companies like Monsanto and Cargill and it’s where many Americans find and purchase “organic” versions of food. Until that day comes, we must demand the regulation of the advertising industry. The settings, hierarchy, policies, and overall work culture should be very clear to avoid political conflict. Walmart has been involved in multiple lawsuits over its use of the word “organic” on various product labels. This includes the cleanliness of commercial kitchens, the standards for storing and transporting produce, and even the requirements for laborers in the food business. Political influence on food availability can have cultural consequences on the food choices of a nation. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Researchers have drawn parallels between the activity of the processed food industry and the long-running corporate political activity of the tobacco industry. Even government regulation may prove limited in its effectiveness since ideas like taxes on junk food or bans on large portion sizes still target the consumer. So why is there reluctance to fight for meaningful change on the part of the most vocal and successful representatives of the food movement? Powered by CUNY. ‘Farmers’ markets continue to grow but only 2 percent of Americans currently do the majority of their shopping there. What influences our food choices? As author and professor Julie Guthman puts it in her book, Weighing In, “[t]he limited solutions to a deeply problematic food system reflect the cultural values and social power of those who have fared reasonably well under contemporary capitalism…”. That might end up alienating a section of your customers and ultimately affecting your bottom line. The Horizon “organic” milk sold at Walmart is produced by Dean Foods, the sixth largest food company in North America. Diversity Scholarship- dedicated to fostering diverse leadership in the labor movement and labor studies. Animal waste and fertilizer runoff from industrial agriculture are now the biggest source of pollution in American waterways. The industry also shows little concern for the health impact on farm workers, factory workers, and those living near farms and processing plants. It is a study of how powerful agribusiness and food companies distort our scientific concepts of healthy eating and drinking, in the process paying congresspersons, co-opting nutritionists, and wrecking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Some of the political factors affecting the food industry may immediately be felt in the short term while others may be felt in the longer term. They also put us at greater risk for foodborne illnesses due to unsanitary factory conditions and lack of proper oversight and regulation. In N. J. Temple, T. Wilson, & D. R. Jacobs (Eds. Whatever happens in the world of politics can have some kind of effect on business including the restaurant and the general food industry. The UK has an unprecedented opportunity, in the context of Brexit, to equip its food system to withstand these challenges, but the transition will need to be managed carefully. Pollan’s point is that the true cost of food does not take into account government subsidies for commodity crops like soy, corn, and wheat; environmental considerations; animal welfare concerns; or the high concentration of exploited workers—all aspects of the industry that flourish because of a lack of fair regulation and proper oversight. As my colleague Matt Schruers discussed in a previous blog post , “losers”–or those losing business to disruptive competition–have a compelling political story to tell. Factors that impact on and influence the organisation The business environment is often an uncertain one, where managers are faced with many factors that impact on and influence the organisation. Global Political Instability – Political hotspots- such as the Russia/ Ukraine situation- have an impact … One such example is “Label It Yourself,” which encourages people to print warning labels for GMOs and sticker foods on grocery store shelves themselves. If Pollan advises “those of us who can” to pay more , then those who can’t are stuck eating unhealthy industrial foods. You don’t have to be one of them. Such policies might include more stringent tests for bacteria in meat. In fact, for most Americans living in suburban regions, inner cities or rural areas the primary (and sometimes only) food options are industrial foods. Humana Press. When the deduction was reduced to 50 percent, that patronage likely became reduced, as it seemed less attractive to eat out on business meetings. Be a leader. Some food industry representatives will try to do their best to ensure that the status quo remains as long as it benefits restauranteurs. This is regulation through market choice rather than stopping production practices that are dangerous or unfair to both consumers and workers. Where successful, this influence can jeopardise the development and implementation of policies that effectively safeguard public health. The Political Factors And Its Influences For Hospitality Industry. This has been an important step in creating real alternatives, but the vast majority of Americans will never be privy to such foods. Get paid and earn college credits. On the other hand, without the bad intent, it is a good thing to monitor political goings-on as a way to know how to react as a restaurant owner to either comply or take advantage of the situation. Critics charge that the agency is invested in measuring “food insecurity,” because it produces vastly higher numbers which in turn are used to justify expanding federal food programs. They have made the very new phenomenon of eating fast and convenient foods every day seem as if it has always been so. Meanwhile, the food movement’s primary solution to these complex problems is framed within the over-simplified instruction to pay more for higher quality food. Seeing as your restaurant will be staffed and run by people of different backgrounds and beliefs, it may develop a political climate of its own. You can use this to your advantage and include healthier options in your menu as well as use healthier ingredients and cooking practices to prepare your foods. This gets at the very problem with the food movement’s premise of paying more for food. It is now possible to buy truly organic, biodynamic, small-scale foods from artisan producers and heritage farmers in certain areas of the country- these producers and farmers embody all that the food movement espouses in its language of alternatives to industrial food. 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