Food in the City Report: Environmental, Economic, & Cultural Aspects

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of beef production, examining its environmental impact, government regulations, cultural significance, and economic aspects. It explores the negative environmental consequences of beef production, including pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, ...Read More

Running head: FOOD IN THE CITY
Food in the City
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

1FOOD IN THE CITY
Ecology
Impact of beef production on environment
The environmental impact of beef production depends highly on the various kinds of
agricultural practices across the world. Some of the negative impacts that have been imposed on
environment due to production of beef include environment pollution due to high usage of fossil
fuel, effluent waste, animal methane and consumption of water and land. According to the
researchers, livestock sectors can be considered as one of the chief stressors of the global
ecosystem. Thus is because, it is one of the largest source of greenhouse gases, one of the reason
behind the loss of biodiversity and in various under developed and developed countries, a
leading source of water pollution (Röös et al., 2013).
Politics
Impact of government regulations on beef production
Have there been any trade agreements or disagreements about your product?
Government regulation imposes a crucial role in shaping the beef industry of USA. In the
19th century, advancement in technology had led to the development of highly concentrated
meatpacking industry in US. . In order to ensure the quality of beef, the government had
implemented regulations, especially USDA Grading. However, beef production of USA is
suffering from multi-tasking issue, since the course grading system of USDA is failing to ensure
the quality of beef. This system focuses on the quantity of the beef production only while the
quantity of beef production is hampered.

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Due to the free trade agreement between various countries, the beef industry is steadily
regaining global market. In 2015, a free agreement named JAEPA had taken place between
Japan and Australia with a reduction of tariff rate for Australian beef import (Cooper et al.,
2012). Besides that, the free trade agreement between Australia and South Korea took place in
2014. Apart from that, the Canada Korea free trade agreement took force in 2015.
Culture
Impact of beef on culture and history related to beef
Beef is a highly consumed product in the majority of countries across the world. Some of
the chief places where the mentioned product is highly celebrated as a popular food product are
Canada, Brazil, EU and USA. Canadians are proud of their beef production. Being a highly
popular food, it strengthens the culture o a great extent. Beef is considered to be a must-have in
special ceremonies like wedding or picnic.
One of the mention-worthy historical facts about cattle is that cattle were first brought to
western hemisphere by Columbus in 1493. In 1519, the offspring of the same cattle was carried
to Mexico by Spanish explorer Hernando Cortex.
Economics
How profitable (or not) has this product been? Where are the producers and/or
manufacturers located? How does this impact the product? Does the manufacturing of this
product raise any ethical questions? How has technology changed the way we produce,
manufacture and/or distribute this product?

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Beef production is considered to be the easiest and most profitable livestock to be raised for
money. The profit ranges from 30,000 dollars to 100,000 dollars (Preston & Willis, 2013). Beef
cows are raised by cattle farmers in regions with sufficient pasture and hay. The quality of beef
depends on the quality and amount of hay fed to the cattle by the farmers. In various parts of the
world, ethical issues have been raised over the consumption of beef. In order to meet the
increasing demand for beef, new technologies like bio-digesters and bio-ethanol production are
used by the beef producers. Both online and offline services are used to distribute beef in various
parts of the world.

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Reference List
Cooper, W. H., Manyin, M. E., Jurenas, R., & Platzer, M. D. (2012). The Proposed US-South
Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA): Provisions and Implications. Current
Politics and Economics of Northern and Western Asia, 21(1), 1.
Preston, T. R., & Willis, M. B. (2013). Intensive beef production. Elsevier, 12-15
Röös, E., Sundberg, C., Tidåker, P., Strid, I., & Hansson, P. A. (2013). Can carbon footprint
serve as an indicator of the environmental impact of meat production?. Ecological
Indicators, 24, 573-581.