Where our food is grown Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Where our food is grown - Essay Example There are many types of farm produce that are gotten from the markets or even the local grocery stores,these farm produce are either fresh fruits or vegetables.Vegetables and fresh fruits should always take up the largest part of healthy foods in a grocery list as they have vitamins,antioxidants, minerals and most of all they are generally low in calories. Some of these produce items include; Fresh vegetables & fruits Place of origin Potatoes Place of origin is south of Peru and the northeast of Bolivia. Peppers South central Bolivia. Peas Originates either from Northern India, Burma & N. Thailand. Lettuce Originates from lactuca serriolla found in the Mediterranean, Europe and Near East (Persia). Broccoli Northern European coast. Kales Greece Bananas Southeast Asia Grapes Germany Tomato Peru Apple Caucasus mountains of Asia Pears Europe Pineapple Paraguay Cabbages Serbia Table 1: Types of farm produces identified in the market In the United States, although many types of farm produc e are found, as they are great farmers and they produce a lot, there is still evidence of an unsatisfied demand. Even with the organic farming option, (the agricultural production system that is used mainly for the production or produce of fiber and food), the demand for fresh vegetables and fruits exceeds the supply, hence the dependence on imported food stuff (see table 1). All agricultural products (examples include: grains, fibers and flowers), are generally produced organically in the US but still more is imported from outside the US. Some of the farm produce that are found in the United States include: rice (produced for over 300 years and has three different types and they include: javanica, indica and japonica), oat (also known as Avena sativa), wheat (Triticum aestivum), oranges and tangerines. Others include: grapefruit, soybean, lemons, watermelons, bananas, limes, peanut, apples, sorghum, cotton, hay, strawberries, mangoes, peaches, plums, nectarines and corn (grain) (Ha ggett, 154). Produce that are traded by the united states to other countries The United States trade various produce with other countries; some of these products include: rice, wheat, grains, cotton, barley, tobacco, corn and soybean with the main export being cereal products. Importance of trade between states Interstate trade allows traders to interact more without barriers while ensuring that shortages in one state are met by the surplus in another state. It leads to controlled prices and because of the buffer it creates through the variety of products it avails in the markets to meet the demand in those markets. Other than meeting the demand, the trade will increase revenue collection in source countries which in itself motivates the suppliers to produce more for the export market. Since it is very hard for countries to depend on their own produce and services alone, interstate trade exploits the variety in human, natural, capital resources and extremely different techniques in other states thus making them equally capable of availing a variety of goods on demand by the local populace. Importance of global food trade Global food trade is important as countries do not generally have the major resources more so the capacity to generate the good amount of food that is needed by the citizens in a given country. Products cannot be produced everywhere as climate changes do differ between different countries and areas of states hence without the global food trade many countries will be deprived of various goods as they cannot produce them (without the global food trade people will just get the food indigenous that are available in their countries only). U.S. survival without global food trade The fact that the United States produces most food surplus does not mean that it can survive without the global food trade. The United States would not survive without the global food trade as it mostly depends on the money produced through the trade. It needs to trade with other count