The Story About Our Toxic Food System > Farm to Fork Infographic

 
The conventional food system today is heavily dependent on synthetic/toxic chemicals and additives that negatively impact our health and well-being. It is no surprise to any of us that the process of producing food by food producers and manufacturers is about their bottom line and NOT the health of the consumer. Read about our scary and toxic food system in this incredible Healthy Child Healthy World farm to fork infographic, which is one of the best we have ever seen.
 
Today, our food manufacturers add over 6,000 toxic additives and chemicals into our conventional food system. Many of these chemicals and additives are used to preserve our food in addition to flavouring, coloring, texture and improving yield for cheap food. What is scary about our toxic food system is that many of us don’t even know what happens between the farm and our table, which is what this Farm to Fork Infographic tries to inform you about. Do you know where your food comes from? Or what is in our toxic food system? You may be quite surprised! Today’s conventional toxic food system depends on the use of unhealthy and synthetic chemicals that pose direct threats to our health, especially in our children and the elderly. For children, their developing bodies are more vulnerable to these toxins, but from the higher level, the toxic chemicals negatively impact everyone’s health and life. Here are a small but shocking snapshot of the food system.
 

 

At the Farm > It’s NOT Local, It’s Called Business

 
Today, 80% (eighty per cent) of all food in the United States is supplied by massive factory farms, associated with a myriad of both environmental and health risks. Do you know what our animals are being fed at the farm? According to the latest Union of Concerned Scientists study, animals at these business factories are fed the following: same species meats, manure and other animal waste, diseased animals, feathers, hair, skin, hooves, blood, drugs and chemicals in addition to plastic! In our toxic food system in the United States, nearly 900 million pounds of toxic pesticides are applied to farms each year. Since the 1990’s, millions of tons of potentially harmful and toxic sewage sludge have been applied to the US farmland as food crop fertilizer. Yum. In addition, an estimated 13.5 million pounds of antibiotics – the same classes of antibiotics used in our own medicine and health care system – are routinely added to animal feed or water.

 

Chemicals Rule at the Factory Too

 
Here are some of the chemicals and toxic chemical treatments that are applied in our food supply chain at the factory before they even get to the market. To become white flour, wheat flour undergoes bleaching with chemicals such as oxide of nitrogen, chlorine, chloride and nitrosyl. Whole soybeans are drenched in hexane, a byproduct of the gasoline refining industry, to separate the soybean oil from protein that is used in various processed and unhealthy foods. Chemicals used to make plastic packaging, like phthalates and BPA sometimes migrate and seap into our food supply system. The Food and Drug Administration considers these migrants ‘indirect food additives’. No kidding! But remember, they do NOTHING about it and don’t regulate it! Nearly 6,000 additives and toxic chemicals are used by food companies to process and produce our food. To produce orange juice, whole oranges are placed in processing machines and are sprayed with various acids to improve fruit peel quality and increase juice yield. As well, more than 70% of all processed foods include genetically modified ingredients or GMOs.

 

Stick a Fork in It at the Table > The Consumer

 
Over 70% of all calories consumed by the average American comes from highly processed foods! And this is increasing at an alarming rate. The average American child also consumes more than 5 servings of pesticides every day just from their food and water. The average child in the US consumes 150 mg of artificial food coloring every day, an increase of five times since the 1950s.

 

What are US Children Eating? Take a look at the health risks associated with a child’s favorite foods.

 

Cereal = linked to cancer, ADHD, neurological toxicity and obesity
Banana = linked to cancer and reproductive toxicity
Cheese Burger = cancer, hormone disruption and neurodevelopmental deficits
Milk = cancer, neurodevelopmental deficits, hormone disruption and developmental toxicity
Crackers = cancer
French Fries = cancer
Soda = cancer, hormone disruption, obesity and reproductive/behavioural problems
Chips = cancer
Macaroni and Cheese = reproductive toxicity, obesity, neurological toxicity and immune system impacts
Cookies = cancer, reproductive toxicity, obesity, neurological toxicity and immune system impacts

 
Luckily there are many simple, affordable actions you can take to reduce your exposure to harmful chemicals found in foods. For more in depth advice and statistics, we recommend the eBook “Easy Steps to Eating Healthy & Safe Foods” at www.healthychild.org.