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Natalie Bedrosian
Professor Morinini
English 114B
20 April 2015
Local farming Vs. Corporate Agribusiness
Have you ever thought about where the food you eat comes from? If not, you might want
to educate yourself about it if healthiness is a priority for you. The average North American
supper travels 1,500 miles between farm gate and dinner plate. Our farms are so vast and efficient
that they provide us with an excess of cheap food even though less than 2 percent of us work on
them. The large agribusiness corporations that were mainly national in 1977 are now global, and
are replacing the world's agricultural diversity, which was useful primarily to farmers and local
consumers.
Theres a kind of farm that has caught the imagination of the food-conscious among us.
Its relatively small, and you know the farmer who runs it. Its diverse, growing different kinds of
crops and often incorporating livestock. It may or may not be organic, but it incorporates
practices crop rotation, minimal pesticide use, composting that are planet-friendly. Food grown
on small, local farms are far more expensive than large ones. Tim Griffin, director of the
Agriculture, Food and Environment program at Tufts Universitys Friedman School of Nutrition
Science and Policy, explains the dynamic simply: economy of scale. As the farms get larger, its
easier to invest in labor-saving machinery, technology and specialized management, and
production cost per unit goes down, he says.

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It is important to have local farms in our communities and grow our own food when we have a
chance. Just because there are markets around us that make it easy to buy produce, does not mean
we should avoid growing our own fruits and vegetables. Local agriculture can contribute to a
sense of community and growing it ourselves can be a great idea. Local agriculture puts power
back into the hands of the individual. People will start demanding diversity in their food groups
and accept seasonality. They will uncover the trail between farmer and plate and learn about the
unsustainable aspects of industrial agriculture. Involvement of the community through local ties
to farmers will increase social relationships in an area. As education of proper diet increases, rates
of obesity decrease. Thus, the community thrives as a coherent group, asserting social and
environmental justice. Local gardens help to raise this awareness and join people around a
common cause. The current food system will be hard to break, but help from local individual
players proves to be worth it.
With massive population growth, a discourse began about the food economy and the
ability to churn out mass quantities of food for profit and the hopes of feeding a nation.
Farms are built by farmers but progressed by legislation. After the food shortage of the Great
Depression, heavy emphasis on food productivity in America pushed for high yield of land and
bioengineering of food to create crops. This led to a Green Revolution of the 1960s before the
environmental movement of the 1970s could call for sustainable practices. Farmland turned into
an industry, pumping out more wheat, corn, and soy than ever before. The government used
subsidies to heavily support these crops:the Farm Bill was meant to push farmers to switch to all
one type crops with economic benefits. This system has culminated in an agricultural crisis that
leads to shrinking of farmers share of the food dollar, erosion, air and water pollution, and
decline of biodiversity. We need to change this system for the sake of the environment and the

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future of American citizens everywhere.
Large industrial farms grow corn and soy which are foods that are making us overweight
and ill. This is an issue that needs to be dealt with the government instead of farmers who grow
what is in demand. Small farms are more expensive but are more likely to grow healthy foods
and are better for our environment. Think quality over quantity. However, large farms are
environmentally unfriendly but raise large amounts of food easily and with less expense. Clearly,
both small and large farms have their own benefits.
Ensuring we are eating good quality foods can be grown right in our own backyards.
Huge farms with thousands of animals are being recognized as the concentration camps of
agriculture because the corporate agriculture is using genetic engineering, antibiotics, and sex
hormones so that "every cow and every tomato will have the same texture, taste and
composition." "You have to come together. You've got to be vigilant. But I think we can have
faith in what is coming. The people of this country want good food. They want a sustainable
system. They want the common good," added Hightower, who has written a book titled "Swim
Against the Current: Even a Dead Fish Can Go with the Flow." There have been many cases
where E. Coli has entered wells because of manure contaminated groundwater and as a result has
unfortunately made many people severely ill and dead.
Industrial farms cause smaller farms to go out of business by mass producing food.
Efficiency is the key to production, despite the use of unnatural chemicals, genetic engineering,
and inhumane methods of treating livestock. So why do the majority support industrial farming?
Increased amounts of food mean that food prices can drop and make it easier for consumers to
feed themselves and their families. With a growing population, the government supports
industrial farming because of its efficiency and less cost. Industrial farming has become a big
business.

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Many people confuse organic food and local food thinking it is the same thing but it is
not. Organic food is not local food. The meaning of local food is that it is grown within the
community. The food we eat comes from across the country since soybean and corn are converted
into processed food ingredients. Like I mentioned in the beginning, food typically travels 1,500
miles or even more before it reaches the store.
The large corporations in charge of the crops are harming the nutritional value of
everyday food that can be grown in local farms which are better for the community. However, the
larger industries produce larger quantities of food that can be fed to more people around the
world. Therefore, a balance must be drawn to ensure healthy but plentiful harvests both nationally
and internationally.

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Works Cited
Weier, Anita. "Farm Fight." Madison Capital Times. N.p., 2008. Web. 2015.
"Family vs Corporate Farming." Family Farming in America. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Apr. 2015.
"Food Fight." Bill McKibben, 2003. Web. 2015.
"Big Ag Hurts the Small Farm, But Which Grows More Food?"NationofChange. Christina
Sarich, 2013. Web. 16 Apr. 2015.
Haspel, Tamar. "Small vs. Large: Which Size Farm Is Better for the Planet?"Washington Post.
The Washington Post, 2014. Web. 16 Apr. 2015.