Section Four - Where Food Comes From Flashcards
What is intensive farming?
They use methods that will produce the highest possible yield.
1) large mechanical equipment is used to harvest
2) artificial fertilisers are used to supply nutrients to soil
3) pesticides are used, these are chemicals that control pests and protect crops and include insecticides, herbicides and fungicides
4) they can damage the environment
What is organic farming?
It is grown naturally without using artificial fertilisers and pesticide
1) farmers add organic matter like manure and compost instead
2) crop rotation is used to ensure that soil is nutrient all year round
3) controlling pests can be done by releasing ladybirds, biological pesticides or spraying crops with hot water
What are the advantages of organic farming?
It reduces the amount of chemical pesticides going onto the land
Fewer non renewable resources are used than in intensive farming so its more sustainable
It appeals to consumers concerned about the environment
What are the disadvantages of organic farming?
Tends to produce a lower crop yield
There are higher production costs which mean higher prices in supermarkets
What safety concerns do consumers have about GM foods
Some people think we shouldn’t mess with genes because its not natural
In the EU all GM foods must undergo strict safety assessments
All foods that are gm or contain more than 1%gm ingredients must be clearly labelled
However meat and dairy products from animals fed on gm foods are not labelled
What is a GM food?
A GM food is a food that has had its genes altered to give it useful characteristics such as growth or colour.
They are produced by inserting a desirable gene from another plant, an animal or a bacterium into the plant you want to improve.
You can get GM maize which is pest resistant or weedkiller resistant
No GMs are grown in the Uk
What are the advantages of GM foods?
Crops can be made to grow quicker
Higher yields of crops for no extra space or seed
Cheaper to produce and cheaper to buy
Longer shelf life- so less food is wasted
Crops can be made to ripen, making them available all year
Crops can be modified to improve nutrients in poor countries
What are the disadvantages of GM foods?
Long term health affects aren’t known
There are concerns that modified genes could get out into the wider world e.g. the weedkiller resistant gene could transfer to a weed causing an indestructible super weed.
GM producers cant sell GM foods everywhere. E.g the EU blocks some GM foods
What are factory farmed animals? and describe their living conditions.
They don’t have a lot of room.
Animals are kept inside warm sheds so they don’t waste much energy keeping warm and more goes into the growth of meat.
Growth hormones speed up growth
Intensively farmed animals don’t live nice lives
Battery cages were banned
What are free range animals? Describe their standard of living.
Free range food comes from animals that have more space to live than factory farmed animals
They are given different amounts of space depending which brand you buy, they aren’t given hormones
They live nice lives
Less food can be produced by rearing animals in free range conditions
It is more expensive to raise animals this way
What does the red tractor symbol on food mean?
The producer meets standards of food safety, hygiene, animal welfare and environmental protection set by the assured food standards scheme.
Farm assured food can be traced back to the farms they come from
What does the RSPCA assured symbol mean?
It can be found on eggs, fish and meat. To get the logo producers have to follow strict RSPCA welfare standards .
These standards cover every part of an animals life, including diet, lighting, bedding and how they’re transported
What is trawling?
It is a very common method of fishing- trawlers are fishing boats that catch fish using nets
Some drag a net near the surface of the water, others along the bottom
Dredging is like bottom trawling but with a metal basket
What is fish farming?
Large numbers of fish are raised in tanks or cages in the sea or rivers, there is a greater chance of disease due to overcrowding
What is sustainable fishing?
Bottom trawling is destructive, e.g. the nets that drag along the bottom destroy coral which is a habitat for marine life
Trawlers catch unwanted animals in the nets. Dolphins, turtles
Overfishing is when more fish are caught than can be replaced by natural reproduction
What are some methods to make fishing more sustainable?
Longline fishing uses a fishing line with baited hooks secured between two buoys, fewer fish are caught and less unwanted animals are caught
Fishing quotas can be set by governments that limit the amount and sizes of fish that can be caught.
Regulating net sizes so that smaller unwanted fish can escape
What are 4 reasons we throw away food at home?
Food has spoiled because it was overcooked or burnt, wasn’t covered or stored correctly, wasn’t kept at the right temperature, it has passed its used by date.
Confusion over best before date
Too much food was made and leftovers weren’t kept but chucked away
Preparing food incorrectly, peeling veg to thick
How do retailers and producers waste food?
Retailers will reject food from producers if it is spoiled or damaged during transport.
Imperfect food is often rejected because producers cant sell it
To avoid running out of stock, supermarkets overstock and chuck away food which is edible.
Large packs of food are better value for money and supermarket offers encourage people to buy more- they often cant eat it all
How to reduce waste and save money?
Plan meals and correct portion sizes, only buy ingredients that will be used, use leftovers before buying more.
Correctly store food to prevent food going off
Use the whole food. Bones for stock. Peels for compost
Donate unwanted foods
What are the different types of packaging that manufactures use and why?
Plastic-transparent, lightweight and can be used to shape the food
Glass-transparent, heat resistant gives food a long shelf life and is reusable and recyclable
Metal-heat resistant, gives food a long shelf life
Paper-lightweight, can be printed on and is biodegradable
Why is packaging bad for the environment?
Manufacturing the materials for packaging uses lots of energy
Packaging gets used once, them thrown away filling landfills
Some packaging, like plastics take a long time to biodegrade
Packaging adds weight to a product heavier the material. More enrrgy to transport.
Litter is dangerous to animals too
How can you reduce the environmental impact?
Recycling uses much less energy than manufacturing new plastic
Recycle plastic, paper, glass and metal
Buy products with less packaging
Choose products with biodegradable packaging
Carry food in reusable bags to to reduce the need for plastic
