Reading Response Sunday!

Fast Food Nation written by Eric Schlosser.

Precis 

seven: cogs in the great machine.

"You can smell Greeley, Colorado, long before you can see it. The smell is hard to forget but not easy to describe, a combination of live animals, manure, and dead animals being rendered into dog food." Cogs in the Great Machine, chapter seven of Fast Food Nation begins by describing the factory town of Greeley. Schlosser illustrates the industrialization of the meatpacking by going into detail the common domino efects that the industries have on towns. The majority of the time when companies like IBP or ConAgra enter a town, problems such as crime, drugs  and poverty begin to rise higher than ever before. ConAgra, a large, major beef supplier, holds large feedlots where cattle are so often abused to the point of death. Cattle are supposed to eat grass, but today, unless they're 'grass fed cows', they eat other products like corn, grain, and as a result of this 'mad cow disease,' dead cow. These companies chose to feed the cows this because they've learned that the larger the cow, the larger the profit. The large amounts of excrement that the cows give off are then dumped into huge pits, and aren't treated like human poop. "The two Monfort feedlots outside Greeley produce more excrement than the cities of Denver, Boston, Atlanta and St.Louis- combined."

I began to wonder how exactly the town became this way. People might view this as development because of the effect this town and other meat packing towns have on large, major cities, but I viewed it with disgust. The following chapters told the history of Greeley- which started off pretty well. The city was founded by a man named Nathan Meeker, who's objective to creating the town was a utopian dream, meaning an idealistic way of life. Local farmers began by feeding the cows grass, but Warren Monfort realized that by feeding the cows grain, they'd save a lot more money, and make a lot more profit. When Monfort first opened his slaughterhouses, workers were treated with respect and the jobs at the slaughterhouse paid high wages. Today, companies target mostly immigrants, where one fourth of workers are undocumented.

eight: the most dangerous job

The title of the chapter along with the photo of a man, woman and a baby sitting on a couch make the word exploitation waves across my thoughts. Schlosser begins by taking me on a tour through the largest slaughterhouse in the United States, in the High Plains, wherever that is. Large slabs of meat are all over the house, and the images of thousands of cattle entering the slaughterhouse, and exiting in a cardboard package fill my head. There is literally one tiny window throughout the entire building. Workers have to wear metal on their bodies for protection from the knives, but reviewing the amount of recorded injuries, the steel obviously doesn't do much. Hundreds of the workers are pressed together, so its easy for one worker to hurt the other. What made me the angriest during the reading is when I read about the sexual harassment toward the females that occurs often in the slaughterhouse.

Gems

"Some machines assemble cardboard boxes, others vacuum-seal subprimals of beef in clear plastic."

"Carcasses swing so fast along the rail that you have to keep an eye on them constantly, dodge them, watch your step, or one will slam you and throw you onto the bloody concrete floor."

"Now the cattle suspended above me look just like the cattle I've seen on ranchers  

Thoughts

Having seen films and photos that go into this are of study deeply, I felt as though I was already educated enough on this topic. But reading this book is a completely different experience than watching a film and taking down notes. One thing that shocked me, because I hadn't heard it before, because it hadn't been spoken about was the sexual harassment. It made me so angry to find out that managers of certain slaughterhouses sexually harassed some of their female workers. I think that films like FRESH and Food Inc. need to address this sexual harassment.

Growing my own food

Our class was given an assignment to bring a glass jar and cheese cloth to school. When we got to school, our teacher placed seeds inside of the jars, and gave us instructions to rinse the jar with water twice a day, and to ensure that no water was left inside. I was confused when I saw the assignment, and thought that my teacher was crazy because I thought that plants only grow if they receive proper nutrients from soil... but I was mistaken! I slowly saw my sprouts growing- first with little tails on the end of their seeds. The growth made me so happy! Smelling the jar reminded me of working in the sprout houses in New Orleans- one named Monkey and one named Havana. Once they were mature enough to begin to eat, I shared with a couple of people and ate them myself. On the day we were allowed to bring them home, however, I went to a Ratatat concert, and rinsed my sprouts quickly before I left. I'm guessing that I left some water in the jar, because sadly, when I returned home on Saturday, my sprouts appeared dead. I couldn't believe what had happened to them- they even smelled bad! I tried to salvage them by placing them individually on a paper towel outside in my backyard, but it was no use, the wind blew them away, and my father threw them out.

Because of their death, I wasn't able to take photos of them. R.I.P. sprouts.

Reading Response Wednesday!

 Fast Food Nation written by Eric Schlosser.

Precis

four: 'Success'

Schlosser's 'Fast Food Nation' chapter on 'Success' narrows in on a franchiser named David Feamster who runs four of the pizza chains for the parent company, 'Little Caesars' in Detroit. Feamster struggles a lot between his own morals and the parent company's expectations and guidelines. Franchisees are expected to run a business while working for the 'top guy' or the top corporation. There is no guarantee that franchisees can succeed, especially when a chain like Little Caesars is now competing with Papa Johns and other pizza places like Dominoes. General Motors adopted the idea of a franchiser to expand new stores for companies while providing jobs for other people, like Feamster. Ray Kroc, of McDonald's, tested his own franchisees because he wanted them to understand that being a franchisee meant that you had to be fully devoted and committed to the job. Franchisees' restaurants can often go out of business, especially when a new franchiser opens up next door. An example of this would be when Richard and 'Mac' McDonald sold McDonald's to Ray Kroc, but made a deal to continue to own the first McDonald's, which they renamed, 'The Big M'. Soon after, Kroc opened up a brand new McDonald's across the street from 'The Big M' and ran them out of business.

five: 'Why the fries taste good'

This chapter explores the flavors of food both in fast food restaurants and in foods that people eat every single day. It begins with telling the story of J.R. Simplot, who started out as a potato farmer, and went on to grow and process corn, avocados, cattle, and more.  At first, he began by dehydrating onions for the U.S. army during World War II, which he said looked like "gold dust." While he sold this "gold dust," he used the money to buy his potato farms. He later invested in frozen foods, which were popular in the 50's, especially since large numbers of refrigeraters and freezers were being sold then. Simplot began selling his frozen french fries to McDonald's, which noted that their customers didn't taste a difference between the fries they had before and their new frozen ones. Today the farming industry is extremely competetive and, according to Bert Moulton, a staff member of the Potato Growers of Idaho, "If potato farmers don't band together, they'll wind up sharecroppers."

Schlosser also took a visit to International Flavors & Fragrances, the world's largest flavor company, located in New Jersey. He describes how the only difference between artificial and natural flavoring is the method by which the flavor is produced. This often leads to people's confusion about "natural flavors" being healthier for their bodies. Flavorists are scientists that are efficient in tasting and their work is based on imitating scents and flavors to smell like the actual food substance.

six: 'On the range'

In conveying to the reader what goes on, 'on the range', Schlosser begins chapter six, with telling the story of Hank, a local rancher in the farm and of Colorado Springs.  When the reader reaches Hank's land a tour is given. Hank raises free range cattle and attempts to create a better relationship between environmentalists and ranchers. The production and growth of the city of Colorado Springs has led to damages on the lands of local farmers such as Hank. The city has led storm runoff into Fountain Creek, where Hank's cattle live, destroying the creek beds that used to flourish with life: "As more pavement covered land within the city limits, more water flowed straight into Fountain Creek instead of being absorbed into the ground."

The value that people held for ranchers has lowered over the years. People used to look up to ranchers and cowboys as idols, and now, it appears that was just a past dream. The variety of providers of meatpacking firms has also lowered, as smaller branches such as ConAgra, IBP, national Beef and Excel have grown into the main top four firms. Ranchers have increasingly been forced to sell their meat for lower prices, since it has become such a competeitve field. Many ranchers believe that raising cattle is on its way to being at the same level as the poultry carriers. Poultry carriers have no say in how the chickens are cared for, they have to abide by rules from companies such as Tyson. "Like most of the other leading processors, Tyson supplies its growers with one day old chicks. Between the day they are born and the day they are killed, the birds spend their entire lives on the growers property. But they belong to Tyson." Ranchers and poultry carriers have also grown to realize that by making their animals fatter by feeding them food that does not consist in their diet, they can make a lot more money.

Gems:

"McDonald's began to sell J.R. Simplot's frozen fries the following year. Customers didn't notice any difference in taste. And the reduced cost of using a frozen product made french fries one of the most profitable items on the menu- far more profitable than hamburgers. Simplot quickly became the main supplier for french fries to McDonald's. At the time, McDonald's had about 725 restaurants in the United States. Within a decade, it had more than 3,000."

"Out of every $1.50 spent on large orders of fries at a fast food restaurant, perhaps 2 cents goes to the farmer who grew the potatoes."

"About 90% of the money that Americans spend on food is used to buy processed food"

"The act of drinking, sucking, or chewing a substance releases its volatile gases. They flow out of the mouth and up the nostrils, or up the passageway in the back of the mouth, to a thin layer of nerve cells called the olfactory epithelium, located at the base of the nose, right between the eyes. The brain combines the complex smell signals from the epithelium with the simple taste signals from the tongue, assigns a flavor to what's in your mouth, and decides if it's something you want to eat."

"A person's food preferences, like his or her personality, are formed during the first few years of life, through a process of socialization. Toddlers can learn to enjoy hot and spicy food, bland health food, or fast food, depending upon what the people around them eat. The human sense of smell is still not fully understood and can be greatly affected by psychological factors and expectations... Childhood memories of Happy Meals can translate into frequent adult visits to McDonald's, like those chain 'heavy users,' the customers who eat there four or five times a week."

Thoughts and Questions:

Something I found interesting was the connection between an 'hourglass' and America's agricultural economy. "At the top there are about 2 million ranchers and farmers; at the bottom there are 275 million consumers; and at the narrow portion in the middle, there are a dozen or so multinational corporations earning a profit from every transaction." I thought that the connection was completely valid in showing how people don't benefit off of these food ways. Ranchers don't gain much profit anymore, and people eating this food become more and more unhealthy, while the workers don't get treated right nor do they get paid well.I also thought that it showed how much people aren't aware of these issues, because, maybe, if they were, they'd actually want to do something about it.

Reading Response Monday!

Fast Food Nation written by Eric Schlosser.

Precis

intro:

Schlosser's book begins by showing the parallels between the fast food industry and The Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station.  He describes how fast food has taken over many aspects of America's popular culture and goes on to describe how what people consume can often mirror their society. Most Americans have grown accustomed to consuming fast food on a daily basis.  Hamburgers, donuts, pizza and the other common foods produced by fast food outlets are such a normal part of life in American society that most people don't think twice about it.

The growth of the fast food industry has become an enormous part of the US economy over the past few decades.  The large corporations behind this industry - McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut, etc. have become powerful and extremely wealthy.  They learned over time that by targeting children as consumers, they could gain a great deal of profit. The Mcdonald's corporation also created a strategy that many other industries have followed: using factory-styled production techniques so that labor is controlled and intimidated inside of the kitchens. Increasingly, the production of fast food is more like the production of cars and sneakers than the food food families typically cook in their kitchens.

one: 'The Founding Fathers'

Schlosser describes the early history of fast foods in telling story of one of the founders, Carl N. Karcher. Karcher grew up working on a farm in the midwest. He later moved to southern California where he thought he might be more successful. His family were firm believers in the 'American dream' and he grew up believing that 'the harder you work, the luckier you become.' His businesses started out with just one hot dog stand and he later purchased more hot dog stands that his wife helped out with. As cars began to become a lot more popular in southern California, fast food restaurants developed  Drive In's to make it even easier for a person to buy food. Schlosser describes how the different restaurant chains later adopted the 'speedee service' which was meant to quicken the service as well as increase the profits. Fast Food corporations later learned that locations were just as important as the quality of food, and therefore began to open new restaurants in areas such as high ways and strip malls.

two: 'Your trusted friends'

Schlosser also explores the history of McDonald's and the Walt Disney Company- and how the two developed and merged throughout history. Although McDonald's was founded by Richard and 'Mac' McDonald, Ray Kroc took the company over. Ray Kroc was an ambitious man who spread the idea of the Speedee Service System nationwide. Like Carl N. Karcher and many others, including Disney, Kroc also believed in the idea of the 'American Dream'. Disney started out by employing low skilled workers with a cheap pay and used the same factory style labor when it came to the drawings depicted for the Disney characters. Disney treated his workers unfairly and a union was created to address the bad working conditions. At the end of the strike, Disney agreed to the demands of the strikers but stated, 'it's the law of the universe that the strong shall survive and the weak must fall by the way, and I don't give a damn what idealistic plan is cooked up, nothing can change that.' Following Disney's lead the McDonald's Corporation saw their ideal customer as children. They realized that when they target kids as customers, the kids bring parents, and the parents bring in the money. Like Disney, they realized that to target children, they should get a mascot, and produce toys for the children in their meals. A series of mascots were toyed with until finally they came upon the clown, Ronald McDonald.  Like Disney's mascot, Mickey Mouse, Ronald McDonald became the friendly face that appealed to children.  The McDonald's corporation also began to build playlands in the restaurants storefronts to attract the families and make it seem as though McDonald's was a 'trusted friend' that makes families happier and makes lives easier.

three: 'Behind the Counter'

Schlosser describes many places that have become similar to Colorado Springs, a city where local stores once stood and now many fast food restaurants and other chains have taken their places. Simple things such as a store like 'Gap' took their model of selling clothes like chains sell their foods. Schlosser describes the life of a teenage girl who works at a McDonald's from opening to mid day shifts every single day. Many teenagers like this are often at risk of failure in school, or close to drop out. They often begin there jobs to help out at home, or to pay for other essentials. Most of the fast food chains have adopted ways of cooking in the kitchen that require no skill- for example, at Taco Bell, the description of the recipe is to 'just add hot water' for every food type. Restaurants such as McDonald's and Burger King are working on lowering the expenses of employees so that the people who work at these jobs don't need any skill at all. The conditions in the workforce of these restaurants are usually not good. Unions have been created, but defeated, and therefore people often get into a repeated cycle of quitting once they've had enough of a job. Studies have shown that robberies in fast food companies are often robbed by previous or former staff.  

Gems:

"Americans now spend more money on fast food than on high education, personal computers, computer software, or new cars. They spend more on fast food than on movies, books, magazines, newspapers, videos, and recorded music- combined."

"Farmers and cattle ranchers are losing their independence, essentially becoming hired hands for the agribusiness giants or being forced off the land. family farms are now being replaced by gigantic corporate farms with absentee owners."

"The U.S. now has more prison inmates than full time farmers"

"The new division of labor meant that a worker only had to be taught how to perform one task. Skilled and expensive short order cooks were no longer necessary."

"They employed only young men, convinced that female workers would attract teenage boys to the restaurant and drive away other customers. Families soon lined up to eat at McDonald's"

"Studies conducted by Jerald Greenberg, a professor of management at the University of Ohio and an expert on workplace crime, have found that when people are treated with dignity and respect, they're less likely to steal from their employer. 'it may be common sense,' Greenberg says, 'but it's obviously not common practice.'"

Thoughts and Questions:

One thing I found really interesting was when the McDonald's restaurant employed only young men to attract families instead of teenagers. Now everybody is familiar with a McDonald's restaurant, so it doesn't matter who works there- and their typically at the bottom of the chain- teenagers, old people and immigrants.

I think that this first thought about employing only men was one of the many attributes to fast foods that helped reel in families and children and now they continue to reel some people in(ads, commercials...) but a lot of people are already hooked. I feel like this book just makes me begin to think of people as lambs, and whatever is popular and accessible is what people go to. I feel like nobody is really an individual anymore, and this makes me angry.

Another thing I started to think about was how to try and avoid shopping at places like McDonald's, the Gap, and such chain stores. I haven't eaten at a McDonald's or fast food place in a long time, but I think I really need to be a conscious consumer- because purchasing clothes from a store like H & M is probably very similar to purchasing food at a fast food restaurant. I want to do some research on clothing stores, food stores, and other places so that I could be a conscious consumer.