Service Learning Reflection 3

     For my third service learning experience, my fellow students and I pickled peppers. We first had to cut up peppers harvested from the roots garden. Then we put the peppers in jars and filled the jars with apple cider vinegar. With the jars filled, we put the jars in boiling water so they could become pickled.
     This service-learning experience helped me learn about how pickled peppers are made. I feel like the experience taught me a valuable cooking skill along with a way to provide food for myself. I found the whole experience to be quite interesting. I am now more interested in cooking and creating new ways to harvest and use vegetables that are harvested from gardens. I also learned that the community can provide some tasty vegetables. Asheville is a great place to grow food and it can definitely become a sustainable environment. In the future I hope to accomplish more service learning such as harvesting vegetables or just helping around. I am really looking forward to the crop mob coming up.
    

"Biotechnology Isn't the Key to Feeding the World" and "Will Organic Food Fail to Feed the World" response

     Regarding the TED talk I witnessed today, I noticed several things. First, the speaker informed me about the many vacant lots in south central L.A. I never knew that there was enough land for 20 central parks, and none of it is being used. He also brought up that millions of people are living in food deserts. That means that they do not have access to healthy and organic food. The environment mainly consists of fast food and no grocery stores are even close. I wonder if the movement will get shut down by the government because it isn't in its interest. I also wonder if this will change the lives of those actually living in food deserts. The speaker in this TED talk made me think about how some people do not have any access to healthy food. Obesity is constantly rising and healthy food is disappearing for these people. I hope that the man's movement works out and that he helps many people.

     In the article "Will Organic Food Fail to Feed the World?", the author questions whether or not organic food can feed the entire population of the world. In an effort to reduce pollution, farmers are starting to use organic methods to help curb the environmental effects of pesticides and other conventional farming practices. I also wonder along with the author if organic food can actually sustain the population of the earth. I think the article is very interesting and informative. I find it interesting that the world already produces enough food for each person, but the lack of access is causing people to not get food.

     In "Biotechnology Isn't the Key to Feeding the World", the author wrote about how access to food can become an economic situation. The people who are hungry do not create a large enough demand for companies to give food to them. I think that the author brings a valid point in that democracy is needed for food security can be given. I wonder if the author has a plan to change this lack of democracy in the food department and if it is actually possible. It worries me that capitalism or lack of democracy is causing a lack of food supply,

"The omnivore's Delusion" and "Real Food, Real Farming" response

      In regards to "The Omnivore's Delusion" by Blake Hurst, I understand his point. I notice that he thinks of organic farming as backwards and unrealistic when it comes to the world's population. I also noticed that he said that GMO's are helpful when it comes to creating a more plentiful yield of crops. I also notice that Blake Hurst does not provide some sort of counterargument in his article. He mainly just describes how organic food is unrealistic, but I personally believe that there is a way for organic methods to produce cheap and plentiful sources of food. I wonder why he decided to actually write this essay. The essay is very biased because he was raised in a farming family that uses modern methods of farming. I also wonder if his facts are completely correct, because the video of the debate said that some of his facts were incorrect. Regarding the full text, I think that Hurst's argument is informative and interesting. He obviously has some sort of personal bias in the matter. Although there is a large bias, his facts do speak for themselves.
     While reading the article, "Real Food, Real Farming" by Elliot Coleman, I noticed that it was mainly a critique of American Capitalism. The article writes about how the organic industry was originally shunned, and now American businesses have tried to make a profit out of organic food. I wonder how organic food will change based on this article. Will organic food become extremely expensive and industrialized? I believe the article wonders that as well. I personally think that the article is interesting because there is truth in it. I have personally seen the organic industry explode and also how businesses are trying to make a large profit off of organic food.
      The video of the debate was very interesting to say the least. I noticed that after reading the article by Blake Hurst, Mr. Pollan addressed the facts in the article. Mr. Pollan stated that some of Blake Hurst's facts were incorrect. I wonder what an actual debate would be like with both of them in it. I'm sure it would be extremely interesting. I think that both topics have research to be done. They are not concrete facts because studies are still being produced regarding the topics.