Eye Opener 2: Tour the Food Supply

Tour the Food Supply:

I was very interested in reading about this topic, where our food comes from because I was raised in Northern North Dakota where farms are abundant. I grew up with a Grandfather who ran a fertilizer plant for a living and farming was a way of life for majority of our small community. I will be honestly when I remember playing out in the front yard as a child and seeing fertilizer "spray planes" or "cropdusters" fly over town, and parents talk about being out a children when the planes would be spraying right near their homes! Non - related to the article but related to the subject matter, the number or deaths due to cancer are extremely high in our area, there is currently research being done to see if there is a correlation between the pesticides used on farms and the presence of cancer. The findings currently are very inconclusive, but the research is being done.

Therefore, reading the statistics on pesticides, and how the have a negative impact on the environment, I have provided links above about how the environment directly affects individual living within or under specific conditions.

The following facts about pesticides really struck me:

• Fertilizer plants pollute the air with acids, ammonia, and other greenhouse gases.
  
• Pesticides that kill weeds may also kill helpful insects and plants.
• In 2001, 181 pounds of pesticides - over one third of all pesticides were used in farming were applied to feed grains, hay, and pastures.
  

In addition to these facts, I thought that this website correlated with the video we are currently watching in that they both discuss issues about animal manure acting as pollutants to the surrounding water supplies. The following facts were provided about the topic on the website:

• Excessive use of animal manure as fertilizer can pollute waterways with nutrients that cause algal blooms and bacteria that are harmful to human health.
• Huge Cattle feedlots foul with smelly and harmful gases that pollute water with run-off from manure.
  
• Manure lagoons and industrial scale hog farms have broken open in storms polluting waterways and killing fish.

All of these facts are very eye opening and really challenge a persons thinking, but I feel that we also need to observe these facts and take measures to prevent the occurrences of pollution and unsafe practices in farms throughout our nation, but we need to be mindful that these and the places, and men and women, and families that are provided major sources of our food supply. It in my opinion is a controversial topic and should be considered with a very open mind:)