Food is transported thousands of miles from the farm to the market

ĐỀ 3/11/2011

Food is transported thousands of miles from the farm to the market. Is it a positive or negative trend?

We all need food to survive. It is thought that with the domination of cutting-edge technology, such as airplane, food is accessible to everywhere while others see it as a danger, rather than a boon. I totally support the mobile trend in food distribution.

First of all, opponents of this tendency argue that the spread of food to far-away places is cost-ineffective. Such fees related to gasoline, transportation delivery, staff management and other types of insurance are way beyond the pocket of suppliers. However, economically, it bestows upon both producers and consumers more noticeable benefits. Due to scarcity of food in some areas, as a result of frozen or extremely scorching weather, crop failures are predictable, leading to a sky-rocketing price. Hence, with the in-time delivery from other zones which are available in this type of needed food, the prices can be curbed and their taste is fully satisfied while businessmen who truly prioritize the demand of customers over others gain a huge amount of profit. Besides, as living standards of human escalates non-stop, their need for varied food, from eastern to western, is more urgent than ever, especially in times of globalization. As there goes a saying “variety is the spice of life”, food transported from thousands of miles away from its farm is inevitable.

The second disadvantage of this trend is believed to trigger the inability to control the quality of food and growing dependence of each nation. The past has shown that Roman, as a consequence of relying on food chain supply of other nations, ever saw its power going into steep decline whereas the task of far-distance distribution can hardly ensure the thorough examination between suppliers and buyers, and trigger unwanted virus damaging the food. Nevertheless, gone are the days that food was easily ruined by external factors when refrigerators and other types of modern innovations are employed to keep food fresh and pasteurize it effectively. Another point is that Roman might have seen a quick economic recovery if successfully developing other industries to compensate for their lack of food supply. Geographically, each nation is born to be in a location which could be either suitable or hostile to food production, but by focusing on their inherent strengths and exchanging their products, food supply and other types of products are readily accessible to both, and at the same time, this is conducive to heightening the specialization in their production and maximizing their output in general. Moreover, with this trend growing ever-prevalent, procedures of supervising food set up by food experts are internationalized. Entering the market of Wal-mart in America, customers are able to choose the lowest price dishes from all walks of life, even Vietnam, the other side of the world, while still feeling satisfied with their quality by dint of clear markings of out-of-date and usage attached to each item. Equally important, this tendency is a contributor to pressuring local food companies to continuously enhance their quality; otherwise, customers will turn to other markets for better ones with less cost.

All things considered, I strongly hold onto the view that more gains than pains are realized in this scenario for its cost-effective, motivational, win-win benefits for customers, producers and governments. 

-             Domination (n) sự thống trị

-         Boon /bu:n/ (n) lợi ích = profit = benefit

-         Accessible (adj) dễ dàng đến được/ hiểu được/ sử dụng được

-         Cost-effective (adj) mang lại lợi nhuận, sinh lợi > < cost-ineffective

-         Gasoline = petrol : xăng # gas  - crude oil : dầu thô

-         Scarcity (n) sự khan hiếm

-         Scorching (adj) nóng như thiêu như đốt > < frozen

-         Curb (v) kiềm chế, hạn chế

-         Spice (n) gia vị

-         Trigger (v) gây ra

-         Pasteurize (v) tiệt trùng, diệt khuẩn, tiêm chủng

-         Thorough (adj) cẩn thận, kỹ lưỡng = careful = cautious

-         Hostile (adj) thù địch, bất lợi, có hại, không thuận lợi > < suitable