Where Food Comes From

• Traceability - the ability to track any food product through all stages of production and distribution so any errors can be traced back and fixed
• Modern intensive farming:

  • After WW2, farmers offered subsidies to produce large scale, low cost products
  • This has resulted in fewer and larger farms and more agribusiness and artificial methods
• Barn-reared animals:

  • Live indoors with alright space
  • They have natural light from windows and features such as fresh straw
• Organic foods:

  • Grown naturally without help from chemical or synthetic treatments
  • Buying this is a lifestyle choice - no health benefits
  • Natural compost and manure as fertilisers
• Free-range farming:

  • Allows animals access to outdoor areas
  • Egg and meat quality is better
  • More ethical, less environmental impact
• Hydroponic farming:

  • Production of food that uses specially developed nutrient-rich liquids instead of soil
  • Takes place in greenhouses or polytunnels in controlled conditions
  • Expensive - only used for high-value products
• Fish farming:

  • Increasing demand causes diminishing wild stocks through overfishing
  • Hatcheries can release more young fish
  • Now more farms are created in isolated pools/nets
• Genetically Modified (GM) food:

  • Form of intensive farming that is carefully regulated, however, there are ethical concerns
  • Modifying DNA of crops to give them certain characteristics, greater yield, or resistance to diseases
• Seasonal foods:

  • Foods that are traditionally only available during certain times of the year
  • However, they can be imported from other places to fix this
• Food miles:

  • The distance that food travels from its origin to where it is eaten
  • The vehicles used for transport release CO2
  • This can be reduced by buying local and seasonal products
• Food waste:

  • Almost 1/3 of food produced ends up in landfill
  • Food waste can be reduced by only buying food you need and eating leftovers
• Sustainable food:

  • Food that will continue to be available for many years to come
  • Eating more veg protein
  • Eating less meat, poultry, fish
• Food assurance logos:

  • Fair trade - ensures a realistic income for farmers in developing countries
  • Red tractor - confirms standards of food hygiene, animal welfare etc
• British cuisine:

  • Different cheeses for regions
  • Regional dishes etc.g cornish pastries
  • Nowadays we have more imported ingredients and dishes derived from other cultures e.g CTM
• Spanish cuisine:

  • Tapas - variety of small appetisers
  • Paella - rice dish cooked in a wide flat plan with local ingredients
• Japanese cuisine:

  • Fish and seafood is common due to the country having a large amount of coastline
  • A typical meal has rice, miso soup, pickled veg, and meat
  • Sashimi and sushi have fish or seafood served with other ingredients
• Primary processing:

  • The initial process that makes a food usable
  • E.g peeling carrots, washing salad, milling grain
• Secondary processing:

  • A further process that takes place to make a new food product
  • E.g processing milk into cream, butter, cheese, yoghurt
• Additives:

  • Can be natural, nature identical (but still synthetic), or artificial
  • Can be colourings, flavour intensifiers, preservatives, or stabilisers/emulsifiers
  • Advantages - extended range of foods, longer life
  • Disadvantages - allergies, conceal use of low quality ingredients