Organic: Digesting New Technology
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When asked to explain how technological advances have affected our modern age, the traditional, and most obvious answers, revolve around cell phones, cars and computers. However, such progress reaches beyond the scope of what kind of fuel we put in our cars or the newest applications we can download onto our nifty new gadgets. When we boil it down, technology affects even what we put into our mouths. In order to feed a growing population, the food industry has turned to using chemicals and pesticides that trigger mass production on vegetable and fish farms, as well as ranches that raise livestock. Mass commercialization of herbicides, which are said to kill unwanted plants, began in the late 1940s. Now, as technology advances their effectiveness, they have grown to account for 70 percent of agricultural pesticide use. Proponents for eating non-organic food argue that factors such as price and how the produce is raised contribute to their choice. Monica Meadows, a human ecology lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, argues that as long as she can peel her produce, there is no risk in eating something that has had chemicals sprayed on it. “What I generally consider is the way the food is presented to me, and the way I am going to consume it,” she said. “For example, I peel oranges so I don’t care so much for myself whether oranges have been grown organically. But, for something like strawberries or celery, that I’m not going to be able to peel away, I’m more likely to at least consider the organic food.” Some, however, argue that even food that can be peeled might not be healthy. Some farmers spray the soil with herbicides and pesticides in order to make their farms highly productive. The chemicals in turn grow within the root of the plant rather than being isolated to the skin of their product. “The reason why the commercial products from HEB and Randalls are so good is because the [chemicals] actually go directly into the plant,” said Larry Smith, a vendor at the Farmer’s Market. Still, many argue that unless consumed in large quantities, humans do not suffer from health effects from the pesticides. To many, organic food is very expensive. Unlike, traditional food markets that routinely offer discounts and affordable prices, vendors and organic food markets exhibit steep prices. To offset the high cost, these stores offer private-label brands that allow you to fill your pantry without emptying out your pocket book. For example, Whole Foods Market offers their 365 Everyday Value products for consumers wanting to buy organic food, but can’t afford it.
“It is a lot to swallow,” said a shopper at Whole Foods Market. “It’s a lot more expensive, but I still feel that it’s worth it. So, I am willing to pay for it. Prices [for organic food] aren’t that cheap even in the super markets.” Still, some shoppers think that the difference between organic and non-organic prices outweighs the value in eating organic food. “Growing up, my mom was really into eating organic food,” said a shopper at Randalls. “But now that I am on my own with my own family, the reason why we don’t eat organic food as a whole is because of the expense.” Next: Customers Weigh Difference in Shopping Organic, Non-Organic |
21 Responses to “Organic: Digesting New Technology”
great pictures! Love the topic. Looks like y’all worked really hard on this and it payed off. I really liked the soundslide.
Great pictures! Full of color… makes me want to eat healthier! Interesting info-graphics as well! Your team knows what you need to fix… cant wait to see the final product!
Very creative title. Great quality of pictures in the slide show.
Nice presentation and I like the topic. The information is well organized and very interesting!
Your soundslide is very visually appealing. Some of the pictures do need to be rotated. The layout is well-organized. But you need links to the next pages. But good job overall.
Beautiful slideshow! Really cool info graphics, too. Great way to compare prices. I like the layout, too; it’s easy to read. Really great presentation- nicely done!
I really liked the topic. Vistually appealing…. I enjoyed the soundslide. good work!
Also, hate to add more, but under the ‘BEEF’ tab bacon and baby back ribs are both pork items. Technically, tomatoes are a fruit. Just FYI!
Great photos and infographics! You might want to describe a little more of exactly how technology relates to organic food.
Also, this isn’t a big deal, but the subhead kind of sounds like a biased command. Great job, though!
This project seems to deal more with the benefits and information about organic food rather than technology. I would make this more clear or go into more depth abou the technology.
good media and story. showing a bit more how the technology relates to organic food would help. also, it felt like the only pictures were of fruits and veggies. was there anything else that could be seen?
Very creative and interesting. It’s easy to see you guys have done your research especially with the infographics! They are amazing
Nice story… all of the pictures are great…. so colorful makes me want to eat healthier! Just one comment: on your slide, under the “BEEF” info-graphic… bacon and baby back ribs are pork items… that’s all! Thanks!
Loved the topic! The soundslide is great… visually appealing. Looks like y’all worked really hard on this. great job!
The pictures really catch the audience’s eyes - the colors of the food are bright and sharp. However, it seemed there were too many pictures of food. The infographics did bring a lot of facts one would not think about.
I don’t see the control icons (play, stop, credits, etc) for your slideshow. is it just my computer?
The photos make me hungry! Great photos. I still don’t understand what the technology is. Is it herbicides and mass production or the organic food itself is a technology?
I do see the control icons on my computer. If there is a way to fix it, let me know and I’ll change it.
Your topic is very visual. I really like the banner at the top and the colors throughout the story are great. You might want to include a few other photos of items that are not food.
Check for typos on the slide show- some of the captions have misspellings. Ex- “Rnadalls” instead of “Randall’s” on the photo of the bell peppers, Whole Foods Market “headquarter” instead of “headquarters”, and using “isle” instead of “aisle”.
I know that’s nit-picky, but some of those jumped out when you were showing the presentation on the big screen in class.
On a good note- you guys have a lot of great photos- the color is great, and the visuals make the story more enticing.
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