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Fernandez Marquez, Alexis

Professor Alvarez

English 113 B

February 27, 2017

Food and Overconsumption

There is more than one reason why food is so important in the lives of a consumer. If a

question would be to ask to an individual why food is important, thousands of responses would

be diffrent. This theme towards food can influence our society because the majority of people

know what they are dealing with that can also point out someones opinion towards food. We can

talk about the crisis of hunger, people who are vegetarian or vegan, and simply talk in society on

how food is important to our everyday life. Annie Leonard describes and mention the lifecycle of

our material goods and how we are known to consume way to much and are consuming faster

than we produce. This leads to the point why we are killing our planet slowly. My opinion

towards Leonard believe is that I agree and disagree on how we the people consume more than

we should. I disagree to a certain extent because we are not the reason to why we consume so

much rather the business that overproduce for the need of making money an creating ads and

commercials to persuade us the people to buy more.

Activist Annie Leonard is an examiner toward the cost of consumption and garbage. She

is the author on the book The Story of Stuff. Many are pro-stuff as she claims, and she includes

herself as one, which simply means we support consuming and are not against it. Leonard notes

that, In fact, Im pro-stuff! I want us to value our stuff more, to care for it, to give in the respect

it deserves, I want us to organize that each thing we buy involved all sort of resources and labor.
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Someone mined the earth for the metal in your cell phone . In other word she is trying to

claim that we are killing our earth slowly just to pleasure our needs on consuming. The people do

not take in consideration and respect towards how to product was made and how it is affecting

our earth. I agree towards Leonards point because we are so caught up in todays society rather

than paying attention what is happening around us . This then leading us to what kind of things

we over produce and why we consume so much of it.

Some debates and arguments that exist in this theme of food is the diffrent types of food

they are making in modern day just as they are making diffrent types of metals and scraps that

are destroying our earth. We have natural food like vegetables, fruit, meat, wheat, etc. Then we

have false food such as candy, hot-cheetos, cookies, etc. This false food is just man made

products that we so call food that hurts our health and dietary system. This leads to why many of

us are unhealthy and why many get sick. Another debate is that we waste many things in the

world and food is one of them. We throw tons of food away in the trash whether it is expired or

not completely finished when other are in need of it. Food comes packaged in a box, plastics, or

jars. What happens to the millions or jars, plastic, and paper that is covered or rapped around the

food? It all gets wasted out to the trash and most is laying around the earth waiting to be

decomposed! It takes trees, deforestation and minding to make all the packages for food or any

other products. Little do we know we are harming our planet because we are running out of land

to produce goods. We are also using up all of earth manufacturing goods such as land and water

harming our environment making it irreplaceable.

The consequences in living in a society where we are dependent on consuming so heavily

are not looking so good for us. The companies are the reason to this and can not be
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blamed towards us. They bribe many to buy their products and at the end they come up with

many more to persuade and bribe again. For them this is a cycle and for us as well. We could

have overcame world hunger if it weren't for spending millions of money in consuming to much

products that involves mining and deforestation. The question comes to hand if we really need all

the products that we are consuming. Why do many companies rely on making money on

consuming and harming our world? and why not the other way around on making products that

will ever last rather than products they know will last a certain time and will come back for

more. The world we have come to live in today involves consuming and is what controls us.

Food is starting to be a product that is being overproduced and are definitely using a large

proportion to live of from.

Have you ever had those days when you open your refrigerator or a families or friends

refrigerator and that sense hits you? A sense of disgust and disappointment , you tell yourself

what is that smell and it comes down to being rotten food. We don't realize it but we throw away

tons of food that goes to waste and its disgusts many because its considered a sin to throw or

waste food. Over the years it has become a habit to throw away food because it easy to say we

can just go to the market and buy new fresh food again. If we continue with the same habits that

same smell will appear on us again. Its hard to take in that smell but its the smell of

overconsumption.

Elissa Torres a Graphic designer at Asbury Design Studio and newspaper publisher of

Golden Gate Xpress deplores overconsumption of food waste, and money that creates more

pollution in modern days. Her basic complain is that due to over buying we the people have

created such waste and trash in the world that we also wasting the valuable resources that went
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into making it. The average family wastes 20 pounds of food each month and Torres notes that,

Due to overbuying, more food resides in landfills and incinerators than any other material in

municipal solid waste. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, more than 34 million

tons of food waste were produced in 2010. Torres point is that we need to find solutions to shop

smart and if this doesn't change our landfills of trash will continue to grow. Ultimately, Torres

complains, that the real problem lies within consumption in houses and restaurants because its

the main cause of a vast amount of food waste and is the reason to large waste landfills that is

powered by valuable resources that went into making it such as energy an water all gone to

waste.

Torres observation clicks true to me because, now that I think about it, many consumers I

know, regardless their race or wealth come to a point were they overbuy and most of the food

they bought goes to waste. This then goes to as Torres explains to the large landfills. Believe it or

not Landfills are a major source of human methane. This human methane produces 20 percent of

emission in the United States as the Environmental Protection Agency state.

I do heavily believe their is a method to all this overconsumption and therefore we can

make a difference in the world. As Leonard states that we should, value our stuff more, to care

for it, and to give in the respect it deserves. If we value the stuff of what we consume we can

come up with solutions such as buying less, and being mindful with our purchases. All this can

happen but it is just in matter of our hands and if we are willing to make a change.

Everything all comes down to the same point or reason. Overconsumption is a major

problem in the United states and it involves everything whether it is food, clothing, land, or

electronics. You can disagree or agree towards one opinion and information but at the end of the
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day the opinion is backed up with valuable information and data. As food and products are being

overproduced, little by little we are harming our world were we wont be able to turn back and

make a difference. There still is time to make a change but its in the hands of us to make a

difference. Companies just worry about getting richer so the change starts with us.
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Work Cited

Posted, and Elissa Torres. Overconsumption of food wastes money, creates more pollution.

Golden Gate Xpress, 10 Mar. 2013. Web. 4 Mar. 2017.

Leonard, Annie, and Ariane Conrad. The Story of Stuff: The Impact of Overconsumption on the

Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health--and How We Can Make It Better. New

York: Free Press, United States, 2011. Print.