Monthly Archives: October 2013

(Turner Spears)

To examine the food I consumed throughout the day of October 28th 2013, it is important to first give a timetable of when I ate the foods I did, as well as what exactly I was eating. Also, it is important to note that all of this food was purchased from Save On Foods on the University of British Columbia campus.

According to environmental journalist Richard Manning, everything we eat comes at a price. To put it simply, many people tend to overlook such factors in their food such as production, ingredients, transportation, packaging etc. and turn a blind eye to the fossil fuels that are needed to sustain such high development of these products while catering to the ever-increasing population. Manning discusses the inefficiency of the entire food industry and examines the absurd amount of energy that is used to create and distribute such things as a box of cereal. The food industry is simply wasteful and inefficient and seems to care more about profits than the effects they are having on the environment. Manning also explains how he is a hunter, which allows him to get his food locally, while only sacrificing one living organism, whether it be a deer or pig, and not placing stress on the surrounding ecosystem.

Breakfast

10:00am

4 large Western Family eggs, Dairyland milk

Lunch

12:30pm

Western Family Steak, Dempsters Whole Grain Bread

Dinner

7:00pm

Oceans Flaked White Tuna, Uncle Bens Brown Rice

To start my day on the right foot, I like to eat four large Western Family eggs, along with a large glass of milk. I have this meal every single morning and is essential for me to have energy to start my day and help get me through the school day.

Dairlyland Milk

Production

Milking in Canada

Dairy farming is a very prominent industry throughout Canada. These farms raise their cows until they are of age to start producing milk, then are milked on the dairy farm, through the use of machinery. The milk gets sucked through a vacuum and placed into large containers. The cow usually takes around five minutes to complete the milking process.The extracted milk passes through a strainer and heat exchangers before entering the large container where it will spend the next few days sitting at a temperature of approximately 42 degrees f/h. Milk trucks will then pump the milk where it gets transported to dairy factories, processed and packaged into consumer products. The processes of production require a lot of energy as machinery is a prominent system used in getting the milk from the cow itself, to the fridge of the consumers. Also, the cooling system that is required for the milk to sit in for days at a time uses a lot of energy as it is a man made environment where energy creates a cooled environment for milk to stay fresh. Also, heavy machinery is needed to provide food to the cows as farmers get feed supplies from either their own production or purchased from grain farms locally and abroad. Like most products I’ve talked about, milk that is produced on small operations requires less technological influence where manual labour can dominate but, when it comes to large operations such as Dairlyland, machines are needed to ensure mass production.

Transportation

Transportation is needed in two separate ways. First is getting the raw  milk from production farms to factories that process the milk for consumers. Then, the milk is transported again to retailers and consumers. Milk is fortunately a prominent industry in Canada which means that it can usually be produced locally in many regions, minimizing distance between production and consumption. The main source of transportation is done via the trucking industry, which is a big contributor to harmful emissions and energy outputs. Canada doesn’t need to export most of it’s milk so the industry stays concentrated within Canada and many different provinces can produce milk to their local communities.

Packaging

Milk Packaging

Milk packaging requires a heavy use of machines and processes which begins with creating the container itself. Some containers are made from a paperboard product that starts it’s energy consumption at a paper mill.The transformation of hardwood and softwood into pulp requires a great deal of energy and fuel. It is then formed into paperboard which is then lined with polyethylene which is a type of water proof plastic. Once the carton is created, it must be stamped and labeled to showcase the companies logo and nutrition facts. All of these steps require a lot of energy with automated machinery that uses large volumes of energy to create the packaging package for the milk so it can then be sold to consumers.

Western Family eggs

Production

Egg production

Eggs are again one of the essential food staples in North American and are produced at very large volumes to cater to the enormous demand. They are produced through chicken farms where hens lay eggs which are then mechanically shuttled onto a conveyer belt where they will be processed and sorted to get ready for packaging and transportation. The employees will monitor the eggs for cracks so they are not packaged and sold. They also need to go through a heating faze where they are warmed to a certain temperature, then sit for a short period of time after they have been cleaned. The chickens also need to be constantly fed to make sure they are able to stay alive and produce a good amount of eggs. The production process is not as energy dependent as the milk production process is. However, it is still important to note that oil and energy is being used in almost all facets of the production system and make up the majority of the automated production process with as little human labour as possible.

Transportation

Eggs are usually grown locally so the need for intensive transportation is minimized. The eggs I eat from Western Family come from Oregon which is a short distance to retailers in Vancouver. They are usually brought via trucking systems and need to be cooled from the inside. The method of cooling along with the transportation itself require large levels of energy. Not only do the eggs need to be transported from producer to consumer but, the chickens themselves are brought to the farms via trucks, where they will lay the eggs. Fortunately egg production is across North America limiting the need for massive transportation plans and reducing the energy needed compared to other perishable products.

Packaging

The packaging required for eggs is actually quite sustainable because the cardboard is made from recycled materials and not from new raw materials. The material used for the packaging only needs to be produced into a very rough material. It is used only for egg cartons and does not require further production into finer paper products from recycled material. They also will need to be stamped and imprinted with company logos which of course calls for the machinery and technology to do so. The use of automated production to speed up the packaging process creates a greater need for energy contributing to the release of harmful fossil fuel emissions.

My lunch usually consists of two main staples every day which are Western Family sirloin steak, and Dempsters whole grain bread. Having food available through local producers such as Western Family is essential in making sure there is minimal energy outputs needed to source the products out. The company is based out of Oregon, USA which is close enough to Vancouver that systems such as transportation can minimize their energy impact.

Steak:

The steak I ate was a sirloin which is usually cut from the rear of a cow. Steak is a very good source of protein and fats which is crucial to any diet. Before I came to understand the processes of creating different foods, I didn’t realize there was so much energy needed to get a cut of steak to the consumer. However, after thoroughly investigating the steps there are in order to get the steak to retailers, I found out that there is much more to the picture.

Production

For many companies that produce steak, they have systems set in place that require a lot of energy through use of machines and technology. The beef cow is raised in confined areas so they can gain weight quickly. These facilities have automated feeding stations with conveyor systems to transport the food throughout the facility. Once the cow has reached the required size they are transported by trucks to the slaughter houses. The slaughter house is a complete production facility to process the cow from the time they leave the truck until they are processed into sections or into cuts of beef for the consumer. While a large hands-on approach is required to process cattle large sections of the facility require refrigeration. This consumes large quantities of energy. The video link below demonstrates part of the meat production.

The Meatrix 2 1/2

As you may be able to tell from the video, the production of meat, particularly steaks in this situation, requires an enormous amount of energy through machines. These systems of conveyer belts, cutters, and disposal bins need large volumes of energy in order to operate leading to increase emissions of fossil fuels to the atmosphere. The video gives notice that a slaughter house can process up to 5000 cows in a single day which of course means there is powerful machinery aiding in this efficient process. Cows are brought in through hanging hooks that rotate through a system of blades which cut them up into smaller pieces, they are then cleaned in order to relieve any harmful substances. The pieces of meat are then brought down through a conveyer belt which employees are able to separate the usable pieces from the not usable (human consumption). After this is done, they meat is packaged and sent off to retailers abroad. It’s a costly system that needs significant amounts of energy to operate and produce at such quick and productive paces.

Transportation

The Steak I ate was produced by the company Western Family which as I mentioned above is located in the state of Oregon, USA. There is a huge benefit in buying products from close proximities as there requires much less transportation in order to get the products to retailers and ultimately consumers. The majority of energy outputs throughout transportation is through consumption of diesel fuel. The engines on these trucks run constantly to ensure the cooling systems continue to operate and the meat does not spoil.

Along with the fuel required to get from one place to another and the requirement for refrigeration/freezer systems to run constantly large volumes of fuel is required to get the product to the consumer. The burning of fossil fuels is the leading source of greenhouse gas emissions and continues to grow every day.

Packaging

The meat that I purchased came in a vacuum sealed package that allocated for four strips of 8oz sirloin steaks. The package consists of a foam like material on the bottom with a clear surrand wrap over the top to keep the meat sealed and ready to be cooked. The material used in the packaging is produced from oil based raw materials which requires a great deal of energy to produce. The process of packing these meats requires machinery to ensure the efficiency and productivity of getting the meat to it’s final stages, the supermarket. Localized companies will use manual labour to pack their products but large, multinational companies produce such large quantities of beef they require quick, efficient methods of packing, mainly through energy hungry automation.

Dempsters Bread

Dempsters is owned by a company called Maple Leaf foods which is located in Toronto, Ontario. It is a leading consumer food packaged company which operates across Canada and in the United States, United Kingdom, Asia and Mexico.

Production

Dempsters bread is produced locally and uses a mix of manual labour and automotive machinery to help produce the final product. To get a sense of the process, we can look at a ‘how it’s made video’ which will give a basic understanding and knowledge of how exactly bread becomes a finished product.

How it’s made Bread

As you can see there is a lot of manual labour that has been taken over by technology. The system of making bread requires a lot of mixing and baking, which uses a lot of heat energy in order to expand the yeast and make it more full. There are many different stages in the production of bread which require some form of energy and machinery to keep moving the materials to the next steps of production. Processing wheat requires planting, harvesting, transporting, cleaning, grinding and enriching the product which results in forms of fossil fuels being burned resulting in Co2 emissions  to be released into the atmosphere.

As you can see, the production of bread is not as simple as many think but rather, it requires a complex system that enables all the ingredients of bread to form together creating the finished product which can then be packaged and transported off to retailers.

Transportation

Since dumpsters bread is produced in regions throughout canada, transportation isn’t as severe as a lot of different staples that need to be exported and shipped from countries such as the U.S. The main source of transportation for Dempsters is through the use of trucks which don’t need to travel vast distances because the bread is being produced locally in most provinces across Canada. Of course there are greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuels being emitted out of the trucks because they require a lot of fuel to run however, it could be much worse in the bigger scheme of things as other modes of transportation such as planes and shipping vessels require much larger quantities of energy. Most of the wheat comes from out of province, in places like Alberta and Saskatchewan as their climates allow for better wheat production. This wheat will then be shipped to local Dempster locations where the bread will be produced and shipped to retailers.

Packaging

Bread Packaging

Dempsters bread comes in a plastic bag which is sealed through the use of a plastic clip. plastic is an oil based product that requires the refining process to produce the materials for plastic production. These plastic bags are not made from recycled materials so the energy required starts at the refining process. The machinery required to produce the bags and then package the bread requires energy to operate and is a contributor to the consumption of fossil fuels and the release of Co2. All processes for the production of packaging require some form of technology and automation which requires energy, contributing to the consumption of fossil fuels and Co2 emissions.

For dinner I like to keep it fairly simple, having Oceans flaked white tuna mixed in with some Uncle Ben’s brown rice.

Ingredients (Tuna):

Tuna doesn’t have to much added ingredients to it but mainly includes:

• Light Tuna
• Water
• Salt

Tuna is a very good source of healthy  omega 3 fats and rich in protein and minerals.

Production

The fishing industry has become one of the largest industries in the world, as there is a substantial increase In the overall demand for products such as Tuna and Salmon as staple foods in many countries. Large fishing vessels venture the sea taking in mass amounts of fish which are later brought back to land and produced into the finished goods you see every day in grocery stores. The industry has become so big in fact that there is serious concerns about over fishing and a decline in fish populations globally.

Tuna Processing Line

The video outlines seven steps in the production of the tuna fish. These steps include:

1. Cutting
2. Pre-cooking and cooling
3. Cleaning
4. Filling
5. Brining/Oiling
6. Closing
7. Sterilizing

To the average person, including myself at the beginning of my food consumption experience, tuna is seen as a simple enough food that doesn’t require too much extra processing and use of energy and fossil fuels to produce. However as shown in the video, there are numerous steps that require the use of machinery to aid in the processing and efficiency of the manufacturing to get it to a finished product and out to consumers. It isn’t as simple as hand-cutting and putting it in to cans, rather, it requires an efficient process to ensure it is safe to be sold and at a standard appropriate for human consumption. In many cases there are fishing industries that use traditional hand cutting methods to minimize the amount of machinery needed however, many have gone the path of technological aid in order to increase efficiency and productivity.

The World’s Largest Tuna Fishing Vessel greek subs

As you can see from the video, some of the vessels needed to gather such high volumes of tuna are incredible and require enormous amounts of energy just to fuel the ship and transport the tuna back to land. Businesses tend to target more vulnerable countries who will allow them to capture huge quantities of fish without breaking any rules or laws. This is leading to ultimate devastation of the fish population in many areas of our oceans. The good thing about Ocean’s tuna is that they try to fish sustainably by only using regions which have healthy populations of fish by which there won’t be a significant impact placed on the species.

Transportation

Luckily for Canada, especially the BC area, there is a thriving fishing industry that doesn’t require massive transportation as many stores are able to buy there products from local fisherman. However, there is still a need for distribution throughout canada through the use of  transport trucks which can be on the road for many days at a time, releasing harmful emissions into the atmosphere. Ocean’s Tuna delivers all around the world which results in the use of heavy shipping vessels and air travel allowing them to sell there product to consumers in other countries that do not have the processing capabilities. There is an obvious impact on the environment through the amount of energy needed to make the distribution possible. Living in Vancouver allows for very short distances to transport tuna as many of it will be processed and transported from Richmond B.C which is approximately 13.5 km from Vancouver.

Packaging

The packaging for Oceans Tuna is a small tin can that is produced from scratch. The company has not yet started to use recycled cans for their products but are looking into future possibilities of doing so. Recycled materials are not allowed on the packaging of a lot of food products yet as they have heavy BPA consistencies. Whether it is from scratch or recycled there is a lot of energy needed to create the cans and allows for large amount of energy outputs through the burning of fossil fuel creating even more green house gas emissions.

Uncle Bens Brown Rice 

Rice is and has always been one of the largest staple foods on the planet and continues to feed billions of people, especially in countries where it is being grown and produced. Rice is not manufactured in Canada which means that most of the time it has to be imported from Eastern countries such as China and Japan, which are regions that thrive off rice production and also have it as their main staple food. Luckily, Uncle Ben’s rice is produced in the United States.

Production

How rice is made

Rice is a fairly simple food to produce and is done so in many countries through the use of manual labour processes which allow for sustainable harvesting and minimal technological energy and fossil fuel emissions as a result of producing rice. There is however a growing interest in mechanical harvesting which of course allows for much more efficient modes of production and for large volumes to be created in the shortest amount of time possible. These technologies are usually seen in very large rice growing operations where as traditional manual methods are usual seen in smaller more localized rice patty farms.

Uncle Ben’s rice is imported from Eastern countries as a raw material, and produced in Houston, USA. It uses methods that require machinery to aid in the production of their rice. One of their main mottos is “having a sustainable production system”, which includes reusing their rice hulls to create energy that helps power important parts of their plant that produces the rice. They do this instead of sending the hulls off to landfills which many companies do. Uncle Ben’s is keen on the idea of wasting nothing and ensuring that everything they make will be used in one way or another.

Transportation

Since rice is one of the largest food staples in the world, as mentioned before, there needs to be different and efficient methods to distribute rice all around the world to regions that cannot produce it. The rice can be transported through use of railroads, ships, trucks, and planes which allow for quick and easy importation and exportation of rice all around the world. However, like most things that aren’t locally grown, the cost of transportation in a non monetary sense ie. energy use and fossil fuel emissions is huge and powering these forms of transportation requires large quantities. It also doesn’t help that rice is largely produced in Eastern countries which means rice is bing exported and imported at frequent rates requiring a large consumption of energy. Uncle Ben’s manufactures their finished product in the U.S. but imports most of their raw rice from Eastern countries but continues to help increase the production in the U.S. to help cut down on importing product from other countries and decreasing energy consumption.

Packaging

Automatic Rice Packaging Machine

Rice packaging has become very easy and efficient through the use of technology. Machines have taken over traditional manual methods of packaging while reducing the time significantly. There is much energy required for these machines to run and puts forth the idea that efficiency is more important than environmental sustainability. Uncle Ben’s has taken the sustainable steps necessary in reducing emissions by using recycled cardboard to form their boxes of rice which eliminates the need for machines to create them from scratch starting at the paper mill plant. Much of the rice industry however uses plastic bags which are much cheaper to produce but requires the use of petroleum based products.